In May of this year, Barack Obama fired Middle East adviser Robert Malley when it was revealed that Malley had been holding secret talks with Hamas.

One of Barack Obama’s Middle East policy advisers disclosed yesterday that he had held meetings with the militant Palestinian group Hamas – prompting the likely Democratic nominee to sever all links with him.

Robert Malley told The Times that he had been in regular contact with Hamas, which controls Gaza and is listed by the US State Department as a terrorist organisation. Such talks, he stressed, were related to his work for a conflict resolution think-tank and had no connection with his position on Mr Obama’s Middle East advisory council. “I’ve never hidden the fact that in my job with the International Crisis Group I meet all kinds of people,” he added.

Ben LaBolt, a spokesman for Mr Obama, responded swiftly: “Rob Malley has, like hundreds of other experts, provided informal advice to the campaign in the past. He has no formal role in the campaign and he will not play any role in the future.”

According to reports from the Middle East, Ben LaBolt and the Obama campaign were lying.

Report: Obama Sends Advisor Malley to Cozy Up to Egypt and Syria.

According to a report on Middle East Newsline, President-elect Barack Obama has dispatched his “senior foreign policy adviser”, Robert Malley to Egypt and Syria to outline Obama’s policy on the Middle East.
 
Malley reportedly relayed a promise from Obama that the United States would seek to enhance relations with Cairo and reconcile differences with Damascus.

“The tenor of the messages was that the Obama administration would take into greater account Egyptian and Syrian interests,” an aide to Malley was quoted as saying. The aide said Obama plans to launch a U.S. diplomatic initiative toward Syria. Malley met both Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Syrian strongman Bashar al-Assad “to explain Obama’s agenda for the Middle East.”

UPDATE at 11/10/08 9:04:36 am:

An Egyptian source confirms the story from Arutz Sheva:

On the flipside, it emerged that Obama had sent his senior foreign policy advisor Robert Malley to both Cairo and Damascus these past few weeks to outline the president-elect’s plans for the region, which indicates a willingness to further strengthen ties with staunch US ally Egypt and begin boosting relations with Syria.

UPDATE at 11/10/08 11:37:19 am:

Allahpundit is skeptical, and that’s a good attitude to maintain. But Barack Obama’s lack of transparency about his past associations with anti-Israel activists is enough to keep us from discounting the story entirely. If the Obama people issue a disavowal, we’ll report that, of course.

UPDATE at 11/10/08 12:09:25 pm:

More possible connections pointed out at Mere Rhetoric: Syria: On Second Thought, We’re Gonna Wait A Few More Months Before Talking About A Peace Deal (UPDATED AND BUMPED: Assad Convinced By Malley Not Brzezinski?)