Everything was perfectly prepared for the Wednesday morning release  of BBC reporter Alan Johnston following his 114 days in captivity at the hands of a clan calling itself the Army of Islam. Surrounded by armed Hamas members, Johnston was ushered to the home of Ismail Haniyeh at 3 a.m. for a bit of breakfast with the former Palestinian prime minister. Hummus, marinated vegetables and pita bread were spread out on the table before him. Not even the fresh bouquet of flowers was forgotten.

The radical Palestinian group is on a publicity offensive. Following their violent takeover in the Gaza Strip in June, Hamas is eager to prove themselves better able to maintain law and order than their Palestinian rivals from Fatah. The Islamist group has made a concerted effort to end the street battles and crime that has infested the Gaza Strip for years and had repeatedly called for an end to Johnston's captivity.

Gaza analyst Talal Okal told Reuters that Hamas' message was "to show the Israelis, the Arab world and the international community that it is the only qualified group that can maintain the security situation in the Gaza Strip." Johnston himself also said that Hamas pressure on his kidnappers  had led to his release.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, from Fatah, booted Hamas out of the Palestinian government in June following the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip . Immediately, the international community began sending aid to the West Bank in an effort to support Abbas' government. The Gaza Strip, meanwhile, has sunk even further into poverty. The US and the EU consider Hamas to be a terrorist organization.

Abbas himself welcomed the release of Johnston, but a senior aide to Abbas called the release a "movie" which came about due to a "falling out among thieves." A separate aide, Yasser Abed Rabbo, said: "I think this was staged by Hamas to appear as if it respects international law."

Commentators from German and European publications were divided on what the release means for Hamas.

The center-left Munich daily Süddeutsche Zeitung said that Johnston had become an "extra in a Hamas production that could be called 'Happy Ending in Hamastan.'"

"So now the fundamentalists from Hamas have freed the British reporter Alan Johnston from the hands of a killer clan. And they are even promising that the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, kidnapped more than a year ago, will return home. Have the Hamas extremists suddenly turned into lambs? On the contrary. They want to defend their power and that means they need to establish a monopoly on the use of force in the Gaza Strip."

"Like their brothers in law from Fatah, Hamas wants to improve the lives of the Palestinians. But they don't have much more than control of the streets of Gaza. They can't even ensure that the 1.4 million people who live in the Gaza Strip have something to eat. Which is why they need Israel -- and Israel should not ignore the outstretched hand of Hamas. Hamas isn't going to disappear and it could get much worse if nobody steps in to stop the violence."

Right leaning daily Die Welt on Thursday is more concerned with the fact that there now seems to be law and order on Palestinian streets.

"Within just a few weeks, the radicals from Hamas have ended the anarchy in the Gaza Strip. Suddenly, the streets are calm. The monopoly on violence is in the hands of a central power, even if that central power is called Hamas, and the kidnapped BBC journalist Alan Johnston is free."

"Hamas pushed through these successes for two reasons: On the one hand, they have to prove to the population in the Gaza Strip that living conditions can improve under their rule. On the other hand, they want to show the world that they, when they want, can establish order and is more than a group of undisciplined soldiers. Abbas is following a similar strategy in the West Bank. Out of fear of losing the last of his power, he has forbidden Hamas, disarmed radical groups and improved state structures."

"If the trend continues, the antagonistic Palestinian areas may actually develop into halfway civilized state-like regions that Israel can negotiate with. Amazing what a bit of civil strife can create."

The Financial Time Deutschland is a bit more sober on Thursday:

"Externally, Hamas wants to instrumentalize its success (of freeing Johnston) as a propaganda victory…. Hamas is presenting itself as a reasonable negotiating partner, instead of as a bunch of extremists."

"But that won't bring the Islamists any closer to their goal of international recognition. Hamas doesn't want to fulfill the central demands of the West -- that they renounce terrorism and recognize Israel's right to exist. In addition, the case of the kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit is much more important for the flagging peace process. And here, Hamas is not fighting against a band of criminals, but rather is part of the problem."

Outside the borders of Germany, the debate over how to deal with Hamas following the release of Johnston continues. The Dutch daily De Volkskrant on Thursday argues that the international community should even consider negotiating with Hamas:

"In principle, every reduction in the Middle East conflict should be welcomed. The timid question is always whether a specific de-escalation is due to strategic deliberations or is a momentary tactical move. When it comes to Hamas: A decisive test will be whether Hamas control over the Gaza Strip leads to an end of rockets being lobbed into Israel. But following the release of Johnston -- and especially after a prisoner exchange -- there are plenty of reasons for the world to find out in the context of direct talks in which way the green flag (of Hamas) is blowing."