Overshadowed by events surrounding the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier and subsequent moves by Israel’s military is word that the Hamas and Fatah political factions have come to terms. Following weeks of tense and often bitter negotiations, it was agreed that a unity government would be formed within two weeks, bringing Fatah back into the government it had led until being ousted by Hamas in elections early this year. What it did not accomplish was the creation of a mechanism for Hamas to in some way – implicitly, if necessary – recognize the existence of Israel. In fact, the deal was not completed until amendments were added that made it very clear that Hamas does not recognize Israel, a position that has been reiterated by Hamas spokesmen since word of the agreement became known. An amendment also reaffirmed Hamas’ "agenda of resistance" against Israel. The word "resistance" is normally used to indicate "armed struggle." Is’mail Haniyya, the Palestinian prime minister and head of Hamas, is believed to have endorsed the agreement as a way to re-start the flow of international donations to the Palestinian Authority. But analysts at The Media Line point out that because the document clearly does not meet the demands made by Western nations to recognize Israel, forswear violence or accept agreements made by previous governments, it will now been seen which nations will cross the lines-in-the-sand they themselves have drawn.