The new Hamas government, broke and increasingly isolated, has turned to ordinary people for financial help, launching a fundraising drive on websites and Arab satellite TV stations, a spokesman said Thursday. The appeal, which is sponsored by the Arab League, comes at a time when the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority is not only being shunned by the West, but Hamas leaders are also getting the cold shoulder in some Arab capitals. Arab governments have been reluctant to make good on pledges of financial aid to the Palestinian Authority, apparently in part because they see Hamas as part of a global Islamic movement that is challenging autocratic Arab regimes. In addition, some Arab countries are reluctant to cross the United States. Palestinian Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar of Hamas was to embark on a fundraising tour of five Arab nations on Friday, but was expected to be snubbed by officials in at least two countries, Egypt and Jordan.
| By sheer coincidence, Hamastan has borders on both Jordan and Egypt. Who may have good reason to keep Paleos on a very short leash |