Controversy erupted in Tunisia this week when A-Sahbi Atiq, head of the parliamentary faction of the country’s ruling Islamist Ennahda party, suggested that Hamas leaders opposed inserting a clause in the Tunisian constitution that would criminalize relations with Israel. Iran-backed Hamas quickly issued statements insisting that its leaders do in fact support criminalizing official and unofficial contact between Arabs and “the Zionist enemy,” and further outlined the group’s complete rejection of any recognition of Israel. Atiq has since declared that he was “mistaken” to think otherwise.

[Photo: juba-paldf / Deviant]