PBS LOOKS AT HAMAS TONIGHT

PBS Looks Inside Hamas: Search for Martyrdom, Hatred of Israel - Dave Shiflett (Bloomberg)
Anyone hoping that Hamas' parliamentary triumph will convert that martyr-making machine into a vehicle of peaceful democracy may be seriously dismayed by a new PBS special. "Inside Hamas,'' which airs Tuesday, May 9 at 9 p.m. New York time, strongly suggests the buzzard, not the dove, will continue to rule the roost in the Holy Land.

Kate Seelye reports from Gaza that the streets are teeming with angry young warriors bearing automatic weapons and deep grudges, all strutting their stuff beneath posters of martyrs. When Seelye asks Mahmoud Zahar, the Hamas foreign minister, if the group will change its charter and recognize Israel, he responds, "Why? To satisfy you?'' Hamas' victory in January has brought a flowering of Islamic fundamentalism, including a total ban on alcohol and a return to the veil for increasing numbers of women.