Excerpts from an 18 February broadcast on Iranian state satellite TV (IRINN):

Interviewer: Thank you very much. I would like to know the background and the reasons for the Mecca agreement.

Middle East Affairs Expert Haji Najari: After the Hamas victory in the Palestine elections, which was really a symbol of the victory of revolutionary and Islamic thinking in Palestine, America and the Zionist regime were unable to tolerate the formation of a revolutionary Islamic goverment that adheres to its fundamental principles of not recognizing Israel and the Zionist regime.

For this reason from the very first days sanctions, an economic embargo and economic pressures on the Hamas government began and intensified in subesequent years. By cutting off aid to the Hamas government and the Palestine revolutionary forces, they were trying to prevent the formation of a revolutionary government.

However, despite their efforts and on the other hand thanks to the support the government of the Islamic Republic and the region's other revolutionary regimes have given to Mr. Haniyeh's government, America and this Zionist regime have not been successful in this effort.

Interviewer: What is the outlook for the unity government?

Najari: The outlook depends in one sense on whether or not the nations who were in attendance at the Mecca conference will be able to keep their promises. Naturally they were not happy about the clashes between the Palestinian forces, the Arab and Muslim forces. One of the basic areas for reinforcing this government is stopping the clashes. Naturally if this is done it will provide a context for better tolerance.

If the aid continues and this goverment is formed, in view of the fact that with its understanding of the Zionist regime Hamas has stood by its principles and in view of the end of the economic embargo and the delivery of aid, this will create conditions in which Palestinian goverment will overcome its internal conflicts, which are its most important problem.

In recent months we have seen demonstrations and strikes by workers in the Palestinian government within the occupied territories; if this aid continues, naturally the government will be able to take the first steps and will be able to succeed with its principles and aspirations.

On the other hand it is possible that due to international agreements there will be pressure on Hamas which Hamas will divert to the Palestinian Parliament for making decisions about its international relations and its relations with the Zionist regime.

Interviewer: Thank you very much. One of your most important issues is thus overcoming Palestine's domestic problems, and then the formation of the government.

Interviewer: Thank you very much. One of your most important issues is thus overcoming Palestine's domestic problems, and then the formation of the government.

Najari: Naturally it is like that. When this government is formed in the region with authority, and when the anxiety that naturally exists among Muslims is reduced, this in itself will reinforce the Islamic movement in the region. It is for this reason that Ms. Rice, despite initial impressions, opposed with her presence the formation of a national unity government and sought to implement the failed roadmap agreement, an agreement for whose failure Israel itself played the primary role!

Interviewer: What is your assessment of the objectives of Ms. Rice's trip to the region?

Najari: In reality Ms. Rice has four basic objectives for her trip to the region. One objective is the Palestine question and the changes that have occurred in the region, to which I will refer later. Ms. Rice's second objective pertains to the changes that have occurred in Lebanon. Her third objective has to do with the problems that have arisen in Iraq, and the next issue is the nuclear case that is before the Security Council. In reality these are the four objectives that can be examined with regard to Ms. Rice's trip to the region.

Ms. Rice's trip to the Palestinian occupied territories is really a trip to give American support for the Zionist regime. You know that the first position that was taken, without much serious study, was taken in opposition to the formation of a national unity government.

Of course it was possible to understand beforehand that when the Mecca Conference was held and the Mecca agreement was being made, considering the relationship Saudi Arabia has with the US, the Americans knew about the agreements before they were made.

One might ask, why did this happen? This takes us back to the issue that originally brought about its formation. If the Mecca Conference had not been held and if the agreement had not been made, with the progress Hamas forces had made within the occupied territories, naturally the Abu Mazen group or the Palestinian Working Group would not have been formed, and Hamas would have won a decisive victory!

Thus this was the first step in stopping Hamas, and of course it was stopped. Of course it made positive achievements in ending the fratricide among the Palestinians, and in reality contrary to the wishes of the Zionist regime and the Americans, the Palestine went back to an issue between Palestine and the Zionist regime. This was the first step.

However they thought the next step would be to convince Hamas to accept the Zionist regime, but this brought no result. In other words after the Mecca agreement, despite the fact that this agreement included international commitments, after the Mecca Conference Mr. Haniyeh offically announced that Hamas does not recognize Israel.

Interviewer: One of Ms. Rice's conditions was that the Zionist regime must be recognized officially.

Najari: Yet this is not a condition! When this issue was turned over to the Palestianian Parliament it was really a way of running away that was naturally put in front of the resistance forces to get through this phase for the the creation of stability and security, and in reality it was important to make the national unity government effective.

While we are in these civil wars many of the Fatah forces are reconciling with the Hamas forces, and this shows that there has been a change within the Fatah. If the national government is able to succeed in solving the internal problems in view of those basic issues that Mr. Haniyeh and Hamas are pursuing and if this government is able to succeed, in reality this will be an important achievement in Palestine. It will be important that they were able to make positive and important achievements and to bring a revolutionary government to power with the support of the people, without recognizing the Zionist regime.

This would really be a change, even though we have acts of sabotage at the outset. For example if you look at the road map, there was American and especially Zionist pressure in designing the road map, and here the issue of understanding the Zionist regime arises.

Yet you see that the first ones to undermine this agreement were the Zionists themselves. With the creation of the Jewish settlements and the creation of that giant wall they really negated the road map. Yet a few years after the road map Ms. Rice is calling for its implementation again!

In our belief, Ms. Rice has nothing to say on this trip. She has come to the region solely to encourage governments, to pressure and even coopt moderate Palestinian forces to create support for the changes she wants because even the Arab nations in the region who support America cannot tolerate a continuation of this situation, because it has become clear that contrary to their occasional slogans, in these clashes they have aligned themselves with the Zionist regime to put down the Hamas forces using the resources provided by some of the Arab nations such as Egypt.

In any case in view of the influence of the Palestinian movement in reinforcing the Islamic movement in the region they have no choice but to abandon the Palestinain movement in the region.

Another of Ms. Rice's objectives for her trip to the region is connected to the Palestine question. In Lebanon America's gains in isolating the Hezbollah have been defeated. This was an historic defeat after the Lebanon war where they tried to isolate the Hezbollah, but with the vigilance of the Hezbollah and the other forces that were cooperating with them, not only were they unsuccessful doing this, they were obliged to accept many realities.

We are seeing that many nations in the region and the superpowers are trying to maintain the situation somehow and keep the Hezbollah from achieving further successes in the region.

Likewise, with regard to the Islamic Republic's nuclear case, and this in itself is a more serious topic where Ms. Rice is seeking to defeat the Islamic Republic of Iran's strategy for achieving its objectives with its peaceful nuclear program.

Interviewer: Thank you very much Mr. Najari!