[Letters] Why no peace agreement with Al Qaeda?

Now that there are moves to make peace with the Taliban, what about Al Qaeda? Why is there no peace agreement with Al Qaeda? Or any serious attempts from the west to try to pursue peace with them? If the west and Al Qaeda were to reach a peace agreement, it would heal the rift between the west and Islam, put an end to terrorism and the consequent war on terror, and may even herald the dawn of peace on earth.

Is the reason why no such idea is even contemplated because Al Qaeda is not exactly beating down our doorpost seeking a resolution, or is it that, even if they were, there are some ideologies that are simply too repulsive to find common ground with? One does not need to look far back in history to see that the world is a better place now that it is rid of ideologies like Nazism.

Why are there no calls to talk with Al Qaeda while there are for Hamas? For those who cry that Al Qaeda is not interested in a peaceful solution and therefore there is little point talking with them, one must ask - isn’t the same true of Hamas? If the explanation for calls to talk with Hamas is the west’s desire for a resolution to the Arab-Israeli conflict, isn’t world peace an even more desirable, ambitious and pressing goal?

The west reaching an agreement with Al Qaeda would remove doubt from Israelis’ minds over the possibilities of making peace with a group that says it doesn’t want it. Not even contemplating a peace process with Al Qaeda once again displays a level of double standards that Israelis constantly feel that they are subjected to.

There are numerous calls for Israel to talk with a Palestinian leadership that includes Hamas. While you make peace with your enemies as opposed to your friends, and it is true that you cannot make peace without Hamas, it doesn’t necessarily follow that it is possible to make peace with Hamas.

The Hamas charter quite clearly expresses its desire for the destruction of Israel. Hamas does not wish to return to the 1967 lines - a solution often preached by some in the global community - but rather wish for the complete annihilation of Israel.

The real obstacle to peace for Israelis and Palestinians is not how to reach an agreement on borders, settlements, refugees or security. These are symptoms of the main problem: an ideology that would refuse to embrace any reasonable resolution of these issues.

Only after one has examined the reasons why there are no attempts at peace talks with Al Qaeda will they understand why Israelis cannot see any peaceful solutions with a Palestinian leadership that includes Hamas.

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Michelle Moshelian, Givatayim, Israel