Israel is yet again embroiled in a war that was completely predictable and arguably avoidable if proper foresight had been exercised and if the ill-fated disengagement from Gaza had not led to the inevitable installation of a Hamas regime. At present, however, Israelis and Americans stand by the principle that they do not talk with terrorist groups like Hamas.
Already there are those who dare to disagree with this policy. Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema said this week that, “Without engaging in dialogue with the Palestinians who govern Gaza, the peace process will have difficulties in moving ahead." As he points out, numerous influential voices in Israel are saying the same thing.
Interestingly, the same discussion is going on among politicians in the United States. In the Democratic presidential campaign there has been a disagreement between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
Although Clinton says she wants to “engage” America’s adversaries, in her paper on the issue for the Council on Foreign Relations she sets out very severe conditions that should pertain before she would start talking and rules out the possibility of talking with terrorists.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3516826,00.html