Hamas and Palestine Hamas and Palestine: The Contested Road to Statehood analyses the Palestinian Islamist movement, Hamas, between 2005 and 2017. The book expounds how Hamas has employed a dual resistance strategy, consisting of political and armed resistance, as a mechanism to achieve, maintain, and defend its continued political viability. Hamas entered politics to transform the role of the Palestinian Authority from an administrative institution into one driving the Palestinian quest for independence. To achieve this the analysis explains how Hamas implemented a process of soft-Islamisation in Gaza. This was intended to build the institutional capacity of the Authority based on the bureaucratisation and professionalisation of key institutions, while selectively increasing the role of Islam in society. The book provides a detailed explanation of key shifts in Hamas’s political behaviour as it adapts to the vagaries and vicissitudes of governing Gaza, despite the imposition of Israel’s political and economic siege. Employing the Inclusion-Moderation theoretical framework, the book traces Hamas’s transformation from a non-state armed group into a legitimate actor in Palestinian politics. The book’s analysis also highlights the key role that Hamas’s national liberation agenda has on shifting its behaviour towards adopting more moderate and inclusive policy stances. Specifi cally, the analysis demonstrates how Hamas has made measurable shifts in it political behaviour towards accepting the primacy of the two-state solution, and its dealings with Israel and the Peace Process. The book provides a comprehensive assessment of Hamas’s time in government and its capacity to deal with the vicissitudes of governing. It is a valuable resource for students and researchers interested in the Israeli-Palestinian confl ict and Middle East Politics. Martin Kear is a Sessional Lecturer in the Department of Government and International Relations at The University of Sydney. His research interests include the political participation by Islamist groups, Middle East politics, and the role of political violence in the ideological narrative of Islamist groups. Routledge Studies in Middle Eastern Democratization and Government Edited by: Larbi Sadiki Qatar University This series examines new ways of understanding democratization and government in the Middle East. The varied and uneven processes of change, occurring in the Middle Eastern region, can no longer be read and interpreted solely through the prism of Euro-American transitology. Seeking to frame critical parameters in light of these new horizons, this series instigates reinterpretations of democracy and propagates formerly ‘subaltern,’ narratives of democratization. Reinvigorating discussion on how Arab and Middle Eastern peoples and societies seek good gov- ernment, Routledge Studies in Middle Eastern Democratization and Government provides tests and contests of old and new assumptions. Politics and Revolution in Egypt Rise and Fall of the Youth Activists Sarah Anne Rennick Kurdistan in Iraq The Evolution of a Quasi-State Aram Rafaat Political and Institutional Transition in North Africa Egypt and Tunisia in Comparative Perspective Silvia Colombo Clientelism and Patronage in the Middle East and North Africa Networks of Dependency Edited by Laura Ruiz de Elvira, Christoph H. Schwarz and Irene Weipert-Fenner Hamas and Palestine The Contested Road to Statehood Martin Kear For a full list of titles in the series: www.routledge.com/middleeaststudies/series/ RSMEDG Hamas and Palestine The Contested Road to Statehood Martin Kear First published 2019 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2019 Martin Kear The right of Martin Kear to be identifi ed as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice : Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identifi cation and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book has been requested ISBN: 978-1-138-58541-6 (hbk) ISBN: 978-0-429-50527-0 (ebk) Typeset in Times New Roman by Apex CoVantage, LLC Contents Abstract vi Acknowledgements vii List of abbreviations ix List of maps xii List of fi gures xiii Introduction 1 1 Empirical ambiguities and theoretical considerations 22 2 Hamas: balancing pragmatism, principles, and purpose 45 3 Between a state and occupation: surviving Israeli state- building 73 4 The political learning curve: the promises and perils of electoral participation and success 109 5 Governing Gaza: the ‘slow assassination’ of Hamas 149 6 Fighting to survive: Hamas and its confrontations with Israel 178 7 The vacillating power-sharing dynamics of the territories 210 8 The impermanence of regional alliances 240 Conclusion 271 Index 283 Abstract Hamas’s 2006 election victory altered the political environment in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) dramatically. For the fi rst time in the Arab world, an Islamist movement had won government by participating in free and fair elec- tions. Hamas’s electoral success reshaped not only its role in Palestinian politics, but also the way by which it is perceived in the OPT, the Arab Middle East, and the broader international community. Yet the bulk of academic analyses of Hamas tends to be located within the security rubric, portraying it as a terrorist movement that is determined to disrupt the security of the Israeli state and the relative stability provided by the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority (PA). The post-2006 political environment has rendered this analytical framework problematic, necessitating an alternative perspective to examine the shifts in politi- cal behaviour within Hamas. Employing the inclusion-moderation framework this book analyses Hamas’s performance in government, and the development and implementation of its dual resistance strategy. Focusing on Hamas’s quest for legitimacy and Palestinian statehood, the book examines the constellation of domestic and external forces that have reshaped Hamas’s aims, political and policy stances, and ideational shifts. Acknowledgements This book is a product of my PhD thesis. So fi rst and foremost, I would like to extend my most sincere thanks to my supervisor, Associate Professor Lily Zubai- dah Rahim, for her continued and unfl inching support, encouragement, advice, and patience throughout my PhD candidature and beyond. Her critical feedback and exacting standards improved the quality of this book immeasurably. I would like to thank Professor Larbi Sadiki for his continual encouragement and support in the transition of my thesis into this book. Larbi has also provided me with sage advice over the time we have known each other, for which I am also very grateful. I would also like to thank Lily for all of her efforts to facilitate my engagement in the academic community of the university, particularly through the Religion, State, and Society (RSS) research group. This has enabled me to gain valuable experience in presenting my work and has provided me with the opportunity to meet and interact with various academic luminaries in the fi eld. Throughout my time as a junior academic, I have received immense support and advice from members of the Department of Government and International Relations at The University of Sydney for which I am truly grateful. I would especially like to thank Dr Judy Betts, Dr Peter Chen, Dr Naser Ghobadzadeh, Professor Ben Goldsmith, Dr Ryan Griffi ths, Dr Stewart Jackson, Dr Diarmuid Maguire, Associate Professor Sarah Phillips, Professor Ariadne Vronmen, and Professor Colin Wight. I would also extend my sincere gratitude to the many other PhD candidates and academic tutors at Sydney University that I have met and become friends with since beginning my candidature and beyond. They have made what can be quite a lonely process of researching and writing far more collegial. I would also like to extend my love and immense gratitude to my parents Bob and Kerry, brother Drew, sister Rebecca, and their respective partners. Without their enduring support, my unexpected journey through university, which has cul- minated in this book, would not have been possible. The same applies to my very good friends Rick and Hester; Scott and Christine; Andy and Viv; Monique, Sha- ron, Jess, Ricky and Melanie; Emmie and Bernie; CJ and Mike; Sandy, Rob, Giffer, Allan, and to my extended family in the Philippines, I treasure your friend- ship and support always. viii Acknowledgements Last, but by no means least, I would like to thank with all my heart my beautiful man Franco whose undying love and support throughout this project has been of immense help and support. He has been with me from the beginning of this project and has experienced the highs and lows of researching and writing. Babe, I love you more than ever, and God willing