US: Position on Hamas unchanged after new charter

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON

The U.S. position on Hamas remains unchanged after the group released a new charter removing language explicitly calling for Israel's destruction, according to a diplomatic source.

"Our position on Hamas remains unchanged," a State Department official speaking on condition of anonymity told Anadolu Agency. "Hamas is a designated terrorist organization."

While the State Department blacklisted Hamas in 1997, many countries consider the group a legitimate political actor.

The Palestinian militia and political party revealed a dramatic change in its stance on Israel Monday when it officially announced revisions to its controversial charter.

Politburo chief Khaled Mashal revealed the new document in Doha, Qatar. It no longer pledges Israel's destruction, and accepts a Palestinian state along the borders set before Israel occupied the West Bank and Gaza during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.

The Gaza Strip-based movement also accepted the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as the "national framework" for Palestinians.

Hamas leaders have previously floated the idea of accepting a long-term truce with Israel that established a Palestinian state along the 1967 border, but Monday's announcement meant it became official Hamas policy.

Israeli prime ministerial spokesman David Keyes dismissed the document, accusing Hamas of unsuccessfully "attempting to fool the world" while continuing to use violence against Israel.