Fringe groups to join Cairo talks

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip | Palestinian fringe movements will for the first time join major players Fatah and Hamas in Cairo this week to discuss a long-term cease-fire with Israel and the formation of a unified Palestinian government.

But the participation Thursday of senior cadres from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) may be a mixed blessing, because they are just as opposed as Hamas to recognizing the Jewish state.

Outnumbered by Hamas in terms of followers, PIJ and the PFLP have well-armed, clandestine paramilitary wings that give them the ability to wreck any cease-fire.

Suicide bombers from Hamas and the two fringe groups have killed hundreds of Israelis over the past two decades and the groups’ rocket teams in Gaza appear to operate outside the control of Hamas.

Daniel Byman, a terrorism expert at Georgetown University, said the groups “don’t want to be marginalized. For them, it’s a big deal to be asked” to join talks.

At the same time, he said, the Palestinians may be looking to unify in anticipation that there will be no meaningful peace talks if Benjamin Netanyahu, a hawkish Israeli politician, becomes prime minister in a new government.

Israel refuses to talk directly with Hamas, PIJ or PFLP because it considers them to be terrorist groups.

Instead, Palestinian factions from Gaza and the West Bank are to negotiate separately with Egypt, which is acting as a mediator.

The PFLP was founded in 1967 by the late George Habash, a Palestinian Christian. It has long been considered a terrorist organization, carrying out numerous airline hijackings in the 1970s.

The PFLP nevertheless earned respect from Palestinians because it was less corrupt than Fatah, Mr. Byman said.

The current leader of the PFLP in Gaza, Dr. Rabah Mohanna, an endocrinologist by profession, rejects the terrorist moniker. “We are fighting for our rights, for justice, and for our land,” he told The Washington Times.

Swairjo Dolfikar, director of PFLP Radio, added, “Stay in Gaza for a while, you´ll see who the terrorist is.”

Mr. Dolfikar, a pharmacist, was referring to Israel, which killed more than 1,300 Palestinians during a 22-day offensive in Gaza last month. Israel attacked in response to Palestinian rocket fire on Israeli towns.

The PFLP is secular while PIJ - as its name makes clear - is not. It emerged about two decades ago from the Palestinian branch of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, which had rejected the use of violence to achieve political objectives. Iran has been a major backer of PIJ for over a decade, Mr. Byman said.

The armed wings of the PFLP and PIJ fought alongside Hamas´ Al-Qassam Brigades during the recent fighting with Israel.

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