Mohammed Abbas long fended off calls to adhere to the Road Map by disarming terror groups—such as Hamas. He has justified his stance by claiming that bringing Hamas into the political process and even into the government (as appears likely given the imminent Parliamentary elections) will lead to their moderation. Pollyannas in the State Department and the EU, probably agree.

But when Hezbollah became part of the Lebanese government it only emboldened them. Now Hamas looks set to become the leading Parliamentary party in the Palestinian areas and will likely assume control of the region.

Barry Rubin, one of the most superb analysts of the Middle East, points out that Lebanon is far from the only example where bringing terror groups into politics only leads to further chaos and violence. Extremist groups become more extreme and gain power when these attempts at co—opting fail. He exposes "The Myth of a Moderate Hamas" in this timely column.

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