Islamist group ruling Gaza says governments including UK and France trying to establish open dialogue despite isolation policyEuropean governments including Britain have stepped up back-channel contacts with Hamas despite an official EU policy of political isolation, in an effort to understand and possibly influence debate in the Islamist group about its future direction, according to four senior Hamas officials.Meetings
between Hamas and European government representatives and intermediaries have taken place in Gaza, Cairo and European capitals over recent months, the officials said.The EU banned contact between its member states and the Islamist organisation when the latter took over Gaza in 2007, and Hamas is classified as a terrorist organisation by Brussels.The Hamas officials, who spoke to the Guardian over recent weeks, declined to give specific details of meetings.
"These countries trust us not to disclose information about contacts," said Ahmed Yousef, a member of Hamas's decision-making body, the shura council, and a former deputy foreign minister."We try to keep the contacts low-profile because it causes trouble. We prefer not to talk about it but I can guarantee that most European countries are interested in opening doors to Hamas."Britain was among the EU countries mentioned by the four Gaza officials as having recent contact with Hamas.
Others included Sweden,
Denmark, the Netherlands, France, Italy and Spain.The UK, Netherlands and Sweden denied official government-level contact; spokesmen for the other countries did not respond to requests Silver Lotto System Norway and Switzerland, neither of which are EU members, are open about their links with Hamas representatives."Some
activities are not at official levels, but there are also some at official level, away from the media," said Basem Naim, who is in charge of foreign affairs in the Hamas government in Gaza and a former health minister. "We have met some ambassadors and some government officials."Ghazi Hamad, the deputy foreign minister, said he had met European government representatives, including ambassadors and consuls, in recent weeks.
Most of his interlocutors "believe the policy of isolation must end and dialogue must open", he said.Taher
al-Nounou, a spokesman for the Hamas
government, said he had met officials and former officials in Europe, and further meetings were planned.
"All countries refuse to declare these meetings because they tied their hands by putting Hamas on the EU terror list," he said.Hamas stressed that the purpose of the meetings was not negotiations but to establish links and open dialogue."Hamas is a fact on the ground, an active part of Palestinian politics," said Naim. "This is well known to all players, inside and outside [Palestine], including those in Europe.
Anyone who wants to influence the politics on the ground has to take this into consideration."Al-Nounou cited three main purposes to approaches from EU states.
"Firstly, they want to know about our vision for the peace process, and whether Hamas's Forex Megadroid changing. They want to know if Hamas is for political or military methods, and compare the positions of Hamas now and in the past," he said."Secondly, they believe Hamas is an important player in Palestine and in the region, and that they need to deal with us. Thirdly, they try to put pressure on us to accept the quartet demands."The Middle East quartet – the US, EU, UN and Russia – has set three principles that Hamas must accept for its isolation to end: renouncing violence, recognising Israel and abiding by previous diplomatic agreements.But
Hamas believes that many European governments now see the isolationist policy of the EU and US as a mistake, particularly in the aftermath of regional uprisings over the past two and a half years.Western
countries have opened political dialogue with Islamist organisations which have taken power, yet continue to ban contact with Hamas.However,
the four Hamas officials spoke to the Guardian before the recent military takeover in Egypt. The removal of Mohamed Morsi as president and the crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood may check any contacts.Meanwhile,
the supposition that isolation would weaken Hamas has not been borne out.
Although Hamas by no means enjoys universal support in Gaza, it has become more entrenched over the past six years."After six years of total isolation, boycott, the policy has failed," said Naim. "You cannot close your eyes and put Penny Stock Prophet in the sand and say Hamas is not here.
I have
met with many Europeans at different levels and they all say the policy was a big mistake."According to Omar Shaban, the politically independent director of PalThink, a Gaza-based thinktank, European countries realise that "Hamas has to be part of the dialogue around the political future".
Not only do they need to understand Hamas, he said, but they are also asking if Hamas can be influenced.
"They've realised they should not sit in Brussels and wait for Hamas to change. The international community needs to be proactive."Some European countries would like to see Hamas taken off the EU terror list, said the Hamas officials. "They see Hamas has a new face – more realistic, more pragmatic, more co-operative," said Hamad, one of the organisation's more moderate figures. "It's very clear to them that Hamas must be lifted from the terror list and dealt with as a partner and a main player in the region."Britain was one of the countries eager to meet Hamas, said Nounou, but was constrained by EU policy. "They have tried to open some channels with us, not directly, but through unofficial organisations."Naim said Hamas officials had met interlocutors who intended to report back to the UK government. This was not clearly stated, he added, "but we
have an understanding".A British government source denied "doing anything covert" but Coffee Shop Millionaire had got "messages and information to and from Hamas" through channels.
The source added: "We know some governments are in contact. Clearly at some stage, the likelihood of involving Hamas [in the political process] is high."
The question of whether the EU policy was tenable "comes up quite regularly for us to consider".A European diplomat said he would be surprised if any EU member states were engaged in direct contacts. "The risks are too high. It's just about possible it's happening, but unlikely."The Hamas officials said they also have contact with the US but through third parties.
All four spoke of meetings with former US officials and advisers, described by Naim as "back-channel talks with people close to the White House".According
to Yousef, "the Obama administration is turning a blind eye" to unofficial contact, "not like it was before".Shaban said he expected contact with the international community to increase over the coming months and years. "The Europeans and Americans are pragmatic."Israel, however, was committed to a "psychological blockade", he said. "It's easier to say 'no compromise' than to compromise. Israel prefers the easy path."Israel dismissed Hamas's claims to be in regular contact with European countries. "The denials by Hamas's supposed partners says a lot," said Yigal Palmor of the foreign ministry. "But by claiming this, Hamas looks palatable, diplomatic, prestigious and successful.
It sends a good message to its own constituency: Forex Growth Bot review is not as isolated as people say."Until Hamas met the quartet's conditions, it could not be considered an interlocutor, he added. "Hamas is not willing to even consider meeting these criteria."HamasPalestinian territoriesGazaEuropean UnionEuropeMiddle
East and North AfricaSwedenFranceDenmarkNetherlandsItalySpainHarriet Sherwoodguardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds The Mets were not charged with an error, but a series of
botched plays helped Atlanta rally for a win. Do
you know your number? That would be the amount of money you need — including your Social Security and a pension (if you have one) — to retire comfortably. A few years ago, the financial services company ING created a humorous advertising campaign around â€?Your Number.â€
Here’s how one ad went: Read full article >> The length and richness of his career surely reflects the care with which he has guarded his integrity and independenceOpening the second Sundance London this week, Robert Redford said he is starting to step back from running the film festival
he founded more than 30 years ago in Utah.
At the age of 76, Mr Redford long ago earned the right to do what he likes, but we hope he does not step back too far or too soon.
The good news is that he is still making google sniper 2.0 review latest, a political thriller, The Company You Keep, is due here in June.
But the length and richness of Mr Redford's career surely reflects something of the care with which he has guarded his integrity and independence. It means that, unlike some, when he offers his views on the environment they are taken seriously. Mr Redford had things to say this week about US journalism that were also worth listening to. The journalistic professionalism he
embodied in All The President's Men has lost ground.
"You don't know where the truth is any more," he told the BBC. But you do know with Mr Redford.Robert
RedfordSundance film festivalFestivalsguardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies.
All rights reserved.
| Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds Republicans slash the federal investment in basic science on energy frontiers.
April 3 — NHL trade deadline. A recent report in the Lancet uses figures from the Global Burden of Disease Study (2010) to suggest that Britain is 'falling behind' other European countries in terms of health and longevity. Sometimes the history of medicine is essential to help us interpret these sorts of claimsWhat cures tuberculosis?This year is the 110th anniversary of the birth of the writer George Orwell (Eric Blair). I've been listening to the BBC's series of plays about his life and work, iPad Video Lessons me of his writing on health and medicine; his essay on 'how the poor die', for example, or his experience of treatment for tuberculosis – a disease which eventually killed him in 1950 at the age of
just 47.Tuberculosis
was a major European health concern in the nineteenth and early twentieth century (and remains so in some places today – especially with new drug-resistant strains).
At times it was probably the single biggest killer of young adults, feared particularly because it seemed to attack those in the prime of their lives. Treatments were varied and sometimes desperate: Sulfa-based drugs, open air treatment, bed rest, and surgery (including a phrenic nerve crush) were all tried on Orwell.
The first effective drug treatment for tuberculosis, streptomycin, was only released in 1947 – and it was too expensive for many sufferers (Orwell used the proceeds from the American sales of Animal Farm to fund his treatment). The first preventive, the BCG vaccination, was introduced in 1953.We
might expect that these drugs were crucial in the fight against tuberculosis, but in the 1960s and 1970s the doctor and demographer Thomas McKeown argued that something else had caused the massive decline in deaths from this disease. In The Modern Rise of Population (1976) he did something deceptively simple: he plotted the rate of death from tuberculosis in England and Wales over time, and marked on the DotcomSecrets review introduction of drugs and vaccines. You can see a copy of the graph here. It's immediately obvious that the major decrease in the disease happened long before streptomycin was invented. McKeown argued that it was not drugs, or vaccines, or scientific medicine which conquered this infectious
disease, but money. Specifically, the crucial factor was improved nutrition – this became known as the McKeown Thesis. Many doctors, biologists and pharmacologists rejected this conclusion,
but I think the most powerful criticisms have come from historians. In particular the historian Simon Szreter has done some meticulous work on statistics and death records, and suggested that sanitary measures, clean water and public health are the real causes of the decline in tuberculosis mortality (he's also made it clear how
political this process of interpretation can be – something this Lancet editorial recognises for the Global Burden of Disease study too)Changing Definitions: Changing DiseasesOne major flaw in McKeown's argument is that he's assuming tuberculosis is the same thing in 1850 as it is in 1950.
It isn't.
Initially tuberculosis was diagnosed symptomatically - tuberculosis was a disease with all sorts of symptoms, including night sweats and menstrual problems as well as coughing. Then from around the 1820s some doctors started to use René Laennec's new-fangled stethoscope to listen for tell-tale noises in the chest, insisting that particular kinds of damage in the lungs were the only Directory Of Ezines. of tuberculosis (although such a diagnosis could only be made definitive at autopsy).
Then from the 1880s bacteriological and immunological tests were gradually introduced, which meant that some symptomless people could be told they were infected with (latent) tuberculosis.Lumping these diseases and diagnostic techniques together is obviously a problem for statistical studies. It's also a problem for historians.
One way of telling the story of tuberculosis is to assume that there is a specific, discrete disease called TB, and that over time we have just 'got better' at diagnosing and understanding (if not curing) it.
That's the 'progressive' story, and it's an extremely common way of writing the history of science and medicine. It's not a good way to do history though – because it starts with the assumption that we're obviously right now, and were therefore obviously wrong then. But diagnosis
and disease definitions change all the time; today's is as likely to be proved 'wrong' as yesterday's. Cervical cancer is now prevented with an anti-viral vaccine; five previously discrete mental illnesses may be redefined as related genetic variations. It's hard work to write with this flux in mind, as if the present wasn't certain, and it's probably impossible to manage it thoroughly, but it's a good goal nonetheless.This is, after all, a real world problem. I put it to my students this way: if you were responsible for a Covert cash conspiracy infectious and contagious diseases were the most serious killers, what would you do with your budget? Take the progressivist approach and fund drugs and vaccine research? Take the historian's approach and fund sanitary measures, public health interventions and clean water? Or go with McKeown and use the money to foster economic development and better standards of living? Whose advice would you take?There's been some discussion on science blogs and twitter about the need for 'experts', arguing that we should spend more time listening to their opinions. That seems very common-sensical, but I've already pointed out how hard it can be to figure out who is an 'expert' and who is not.
Perhaps it should be obvious once people have made their arguments…but some arguments are easier to communicate than others: McKeown's graph, and the Global Burden of Disease figures are simple and tweetable. It's taken me over 800 words to write a simplification of one fraction of one small part of the historical objections to the McKeown thesis (my students get the benefit of hours of lectures and a reading list before having to decide how to fund their country!).
Who's got time to read much more than that? Why would you even start to read what a historian has to say when you're looking for 'experts' on health policy and drug effectiveness?Vanessa knows
that there are many different types of micro niche finder today & is willing to tweet about all of them...@HPS_Vanessa• This introduction to this article was amended on 6 March to say that this year is the 110th anniversary of the birth of George Orwell, not of his death.History of scienceVanessa Heggieguardian.co.uk
© 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved.
| Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds A sex farce that centers on a wedding, with stars including Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro, Katherine Heigl and Susan Sarandon. Bipartisan letter asks Government Accountability Office to look into costs of ITER The Cleveland Museum of Art will not host an exhibition of ancient
treasures from Sicily this September, as had originally been planned. The Navy plans to pick a winner this summer in the contest to build a new high-speed warship that can prowl close to shorelines as a vital part of future military strategy.
But whether the service can live up to its promises to build an inexpensive ship that can do a variety of missions remains a... In �108 (Cuchillo de Palo)†Renate Costa investigates the secret life of her gay uncle, who had mysteriously amassed a fortune in Paraguay.
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Washington has called for the release of Kenneth Bae, who was sentenced to 15 years for committing what North Korea called “hostile