Former US president Jimmy Carter has embraced Nasser Shaer, a leading Hamas figure, during a visit to the West Bank. He also laid a wreath at the grave of former PLO leader and Palestinian Authority chairman Yasser Arafat. Israel and the West Bank are the first stops on Carter’s visit that is also to include Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and Syria. Carter was shunned by his Israeli hosts and criticized by the White House for his willingness to meet with Hamas. The former US president has urged the end of Syria’s and Hamas’ isolation. "Since Syria and Hamas will have to be involved in a final peace agreement, they have to be involved in discussions that lead to final peace," Carter said on Tuesday.
Shaer, who served as deputy prime minister and education minister in the Hamas-led Palestinian government that unraveled last year, told the AP news agency that he hoped Carter would be able to help the Palestinian cause: "Carter has weight and respect, and I hope he'll have a role and effect on the Palestinian problem." Carter is to meet Khaled Mashaal, the group's exiled leader, in Damascus, Syria, on Friday. Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert is not meeting with Carter during his visit, and the only Israeli leader to host him, President Peres, criticized Carter for his planned meeting with Mashaal. An Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman told AP that Carter's meetings with Hamas "dignified" a group committed to Israel's destruction. "One cannot wonder how this attitude is supposed to promote peace and understanding," he said.
