Purported Hamas attack leader Ayman Naji DaraghmehAfter nearly six months absence, Mental Mayhem’s opinion poll is back. The topic this week is the ongoing Hamas debacle. So far the poll’s results are in favor of the Jordanian government version of the story. Part of me wants to believe yesterday’s airing of the confessions of Hamas members on Jordan’s national TV would alter the opinions of skeptics out there. But I think I might be mistaken. A quick sift through the comments posted on different Jordanian blogs here and here and on my own blog seems to prove otherwise. Sadly enough, and for reasons I won’t get into now, it seems that there is a segment of society that insists upon doubting anything coming from the Jordanian government — no matter what; even if it involves their own security.

I wonder if those that continue to deny Jordan was eyed by some Hamas members as a possible military target have forgotten that Jordan was recently attacked. Jordan has been — and still is — a target. That’s the sad reality we have to grasp. Whether the perpetrators were Alqaeda or Hamas, I believe Jordanians should stand up and condemn these attempts instead of resorting to the old Middle Eastern option: embracing conspiracy theories.

Anyway, arguments about this are endless, so I will leave you with a quote from one of my favorite Jordanian bloggers, Khalaf:

Any self-respecting Jordanian who cared about the welfare of the country should stand up and tell Hamas to keep their hands off of Jordan. Smuggling weapons into the country, monitoring the movements of members of security forces and tourists and planning to commit terror is not a game, and this should not be a subject for political football.