Why has the U.N. not designated Hamas as a terrorist group?
13/10/2023
At a COMSURE AML training session yesterday, I [Mathew Beale] was asked why the U.N. has not designated Hamas as a terrorist group. A couple of reasons came to my mind as follows.
So, to answer the question, we looked at the current situation.
- Hamas is a militant and political group that operates in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. It has carried out attacks on Israel, such as suicide bombings, rocket fire and hostage-taking. It also provides social services for people in Gaza, such as education and health care.
- Countries and organisations have different views on whether Hamas is a terrorist organisation.
- The U.S., the U.K., the E.U., Canada and many others have designated Hamas as a terrorist organisation.
- Some countries, such as New Zealand, only consider Hamas’ military wing, the Qassam Brigades, a terrorist group.
- Russia has also not designated Hamas as a terrorist organisation, saying it is still analysing the situation.
So why the U.N. has not designated Hamas as a terrorist group?
- The Hamas is a political party that won elections in Gaza in 20061. The U.N. recognises the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and does not want to interfere with their democratic process.
- Another reason is that the U.N. Security Council, responsible for making such decisions, has yet to reach a consensus.
- The Security Council consists of 15 members, five of which are permanent and have veto power: China, France, Russia, the U.K., and the U.S. Any of these countries can block a resolution that would designate Hamas as a terrorist group.
Some supporting sources
- https://www.nbcnews.com/news/investigations/hamas-know-group-deadliest-attack-israel-decades-rcna119628
- https://meduza.io/en/news/2023/10/11/russia-not-ready-to-designate-hamas-as-terrorist-organization
- https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/hamas-terrorist-organisation-ecj-european-court-of-justice-eu-uk-palestinian-israel-a7860301.html
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As well as owning and publishing Comsure's copyrighted works, Comsure wishes to use the copyright-protected works of others. To do so, Comsure is applying for exemptions in the UK copyright law. There are certain very specific situations where Comsure is permitted to do so without seeking permission from the owner. These exemptions are in the copyright sections of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (as amended)[www.gov.UK/government/publications/copyright-acts-and-related-laws]. Many situations allow for Comsure to apply for exemptions. These include 1] Non-commercial research and private study, 2] Criticism, review and reporting of current events, 3] the copying of works in any medium as long as the use is to illustrate a point. 4] no posting is for commercial purposes [payment]. (for a full list of exemptions, please read here www.gov.uk/guidance/exceptions-to-copyright]. Concerning the exceptions, Comsure will acknowledge the work of the source author by providing a link to the source material. Comsure claims no ownership of non-Comsure content. The non-Comsure articles posted on the Comsure website are deemed important, relevant, and newsworthy to a Comsure audience (e.g. regulated financial services and professional firms [DNFSBs]). Comsure does not wish to take any credit for the publication, and the publication can be read in full in its original form if you click the articles link that always accompanies the news item. Also, Comsure does not seek any payment for highlighting these important articles. If you want any article removed, Comsure will automatically do so on a reasonable request if you email info@comsuregroup.com.