No Patience for a Peace Deal

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A top Hamas military-wing leader, who goes by the nom de guerre Abu Ali, met TIME's Jamil Hamad in the early hours of Friday morning in an isolated village in the West Bank. Hamas is one of two major militant Islamic groups operating in the Palestinian territories and Israel. The other group, Islamic Jihad, has taken responsibility for last week's Jerusalem car bombing. The chain-smoking Abu Ali, in his mid-30s, described Hamas' strategy.

Q. What's your position on the agreement between Yasser Arafat and Shimon Peres?

A. We are not a party to any agreement between Arafat and the Zionists. Arafat is committed to the strategy of negotiations. He endorsed [the Palestinian faction] Fatah's participating in the intifadeh for one single reason--he wanted to escape American pressure. From the moment Arafat signed the Oslo accords, he abandoned Fatah's revolutionary nature. Most Fatah leaders are interested these days in achieving financial gains and not in liberating Palestine. Fatah is becoming a fat cat, and fat cats don't play aggressively. They are only in favor of filling their stomachs with food.

Q. Are you under pressure to carry out attacks?

A. We are not under pressure. We do not act just to try to improve our popularity ratings.

Q. Will you join forces with Islamic Jihad?

A. We do not consider ourselves in competition with any organization.

Q. Do you think the truce will lead Hamas to declare war against the Palestinian Authority [P.A.]?

A. The Palestinian Authority declared war against itself. Meeting with [Regional Cooperation Minister] Peres, [Transport Minister Amnon Lipkin-] Shahak, [Barak adviser Yossi] Ginossar and other generals at a time when the Israeli army and settlers were killing our people--well I don't want to give a name to this, but I leave to others the job of giving such betrayal a name.

Q. Are you working with Hizballah?

A. I'm not telling you a secret that we and Hizballah are fighting the same battle.

Q. What do you think of the P.A.'s idea for an international conference to sponsor the peace negotiations?

A. The P.A. people are making a terrible mistake. Arafat is calling for a U.N. commission to investigate Israeli crimes. We think that in making such a call, Arafat is proving that he doesn't understand Israel at all. Israel doesn't respect the U.N. or its resolutions.

Q. What does Israel respect?

A. Israel respects force. Force makes Israel bow its head. South Lebanon and Hizballah are the best example of Israel's respect for force.

Q. What is your strategy for the near future? Are you going to carry out bombings?

A. Don't expect me to tell you when we are going to carry out military operations. We are working to build an Arab-Islamic front that will support us in rejecting all the agreements reached behind closed doors between the P.A. and the Zionists.