The Last Word: Ziad Abu Amr

The three people mentioned for the new cabinet, yourself included, studied in the United States. How will this affect the Palestinian view of America?

I don't think this is a political consideration. The more important consideration [is that] you have good formal education, the right education. It doesn't matter if it's the United States, the Arab world or anywhere else [in the] the world. We are talking about people with qualifications, particularly with skills and a track record. We are talking about people who are known for their integrity and leadership abilities. We are talking about people who can do the job. We are stuck in a situation where we need a certain type of person--not only for political consideration, not because that's what the rest of the world wants--but because the objective conditions warrant that type of government. [We need] people who can reconstruct, work hard, plan, move around, travel, talk to the rest of the world.

The economic sanctions have hurt Gaza and the West Bank badly. Do you think the Palestinians regret supporting Hamas?

I don't know. Of course there's been a lot of disappointment [in Hamas, but] it also enjoys strong hard-core support. I think we need to wait [to] answer this question. I think if you look at some indicators, there is disappointment, frustration and loss of faith in anybody--Hamas and Fatah. But it's very hard at this point to measure popularity. I would say everybody's popularity has been declining under these most adversarial conditions. The siege, poverty, people not receiving their salaries for months--these elements wouldn't make any government popular. But Hamas is one of those movements that is capable of restoring its popularity.

Even if there's a new cabinet, the Hamas stance is still at odds with the international community's demands. They reject Israel's right to exist, for instance.

The government is not an individual enterprise. You have [a number of] cabinet members who are non-Hamas. It doesn't matter if there is a majority, even if you have a small number of non-Hamas cabinet members it's going to make a difference. [But] this is going to be a different government. This is not a Hamas government. This is a national unity government. You are going to see things you haven't seen in the last six or seven months, there are going to be real discussions, real debates in the cabinet, votes--it is different.