Hamas, the anti-Islamists?

Reuters correspondent Nidal al-Mughrabi reports on an attack, by masked gunmen, of a UNRWA summer camp for children in the "religiously conservative" Gaza Strip:

About 20 men, some carrying assault rifles, tore up large plastic tents and burned storage facilities at the site, where tens of thousands of children are due to attend camp sessions, said Ibrahim Elewa, a private guard who was on duty when they struck.

Al-Mughrabi reports that Hamas condemned the attack and, in a fatuous effort to draw a distinction between Hamas and other Islamists, delivers this howler:

Fundamentalist Muslims, or Salafis, whose agenda of global or holy war against the West is against Hamas' nationalist goals, have stepped up attacks in the Gaza Strip over the past several months, targeting Hamas security men and offices.

Al-Mughrabi may wish to take a break from his banal propaganda efforts and have a read of the Hamas Charter which contains no fewer than 36 sympathetic references to global Jihad (holy war) including:

By virtue of the distribution of Muslims, who pursue the cause of the Hamas, all over the globe, and strive for its victory, for the reinforcement of its positions and for the encouragement of its Jihad, the Movement is a universal one.

And:

Nothing is loftier or deeper in Nationalism than waging Jihad against the enemy and confronting him when he sets foot on the land of the Muslims.  [Including, of course, Iraq, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia; ed.]

And:

When our enemies usurp some Islamic lands, Jihad becomes a duty binding on all Muslims.  [Including, of course, southern Thailand, Kashmir, Andalusia; ed.]

And:

We must spread the spirit of Jihad among the [Islamic] Umma, clash with the enemies and join the ranks of the Jihad fighters.

And:

At the same time, we must be aware of current events, follow the news and study the analyses and commentaries on it [including, of course, Reuters; ed.], together with drawing plans for the present and the future and examining every phenomenon, so that every Muslim, fighting Jihad, could live out his era aware of his objective, his goals, his way and the things happening round him.

And:

The Hamas views the other Islamic movements with respect and appreciation. Even when it differs from them in one aspect or another or on one concept or another, it agrees with them in other aspects and concepts. It reads those movements as included in the framework of striving [for the sake of Allah], as long as they hold sound intentions and abide by their devotion to Allah, and as along as their conduct remains within the perimeter of the Islamic circle. All the fighters of Jihad have their reward.

Al-Mughrabi and Reuters would like readers to believe there is some material difference -- other than geography -- between the aims and methods of Hamas and those of other Islamic movements waging Jihad around the world but the Hamas Charter clearly gives lie to that notion.