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Is Gaza burning?
Yes, Gaza is burning and Israel is fanning the flames. The present Israeli Government must be rubbing its hands with glee: All its efforts both transparent and concealed to get Palestinians to fight a civil war have finally succeeded. Now Israeli can relax, sit on the fence and watch the show. No more worries about recognizing a Palestinian State and relinquish some land; no need anymore to destroy velleitary freedom fighters: They are destroying each other with passion. Since both al-Fatah and Hamas want the destruction of Israel, the only risk for Israel is the eventual victory of the more aggressive, Siria-, Iran-, and al-Qaeda-supported Hamas. But probably it will all end in a stalemate with the creation of two rump quasi-Sates: Fatahland in the Westbank and Hamasistan in Gaza. "Hamas gains control in bloody Gaza violence", writes The Times, and now comes the suggestion NATO troops be sent at the border between Egypt and Gaza, which means more American, British and Canadian troops will have to die for this madness. But I say that's enough: let the stupid bastards kill each other until exhaustion, then will see.
Submitted on Wed, 2007-06-13 14:48
Blame Israel....again
The Boston Globe editorial board looks at the Gaza civil war, and finds it's the fault of the Jews:
The people of Gaza are the true victims of the civil war most of all because the fighting is destroying their future. With the military wing of Hamas poised to seize complete control of Gaza in what Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has rightly called a "coup attempt," Gaza's residents stand to lose whatever hope remained of achieving independence and a decent life in a viable Palestinian state.
The Hamas campaign to eradicate Fatah from Gaza is certainly not the sole cause of Gazans' misery. They long suffered from Israel's suffocating occupation, and then from Ariel Sharon's foolishly unilateral withdrawal in 2005, a move that allowed Hamas to bid for power with the misleading claim that its rockets and suicide bombings had driven Israeli soldiers and settlers out of Gaza.
According to the Globe, Israel is to blame both for its "occupation" and for having ended it--the latter of which "allowed Hamas to bid for power." But "the people of Gaza" are innocent victims. It somehow escapes the Globe's notice that Hamas came to power because Palestinians voted for it. The Globe denies that Palestinians are responsible for their own actions, and thereby dehumanizes them under a pretense of compassion.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/best/?id=110010209
Is Gaza burning?
IM,
The issue in Gaza, as for the whole Israel/Palestine long festering problem, is not so much to whom blame should be apportioned but, rather, how to solve it, if it is still possible now that the Region has become the anus mundi.
It is obvious to anyone who is unbiased, and has been trying to understand the problem since the incipit, that both sides are wrong and, except for a small minority of honest brokers, the majority of Israelis and of Palestinians are not willing to compromise in order to obtain peace. Rabin was murdered, Arafat was undermined and ridiculed, the PLO was corrupt and unwilling to reign in Hamas, Israel used its force to prevaricate, harass,and torment in thousand ways the Palestinians.
The latter, exasperated by the corruption and impotence of Fatah and by their unending misery made the mistake to vote in Hamas and now are paying the price. Israelis have obtained what they were wishing for: A civil war in Palestine which weakens both Fatah and Hamas and renders the dream of a Palestinian State even more remote. So what do you get? At best two rump Sates: Hamastan and Fatahland, at worse a bloody civil War which will involve the whole Middle East.
To what advantage?
Israelis have obtained what they were wishing for: A civil war in Palestine which weakens both Fatah and Hamas and renders the dream of a Palestinian State even more remote.
What Israeli grand strategy thwarts a Palestinian state in favor of a bloody civil war on their borders, spilling over into their neighborhods? I would hope their national security strategy would incorporate a focus on achieving peace, not perpetual unrest. Your conclusion seems a bit conspiratorial to me.
IM
Is Gaza burning?
"What Israeli grand strategy thwarts a Palestinian state in favor of a bloody civil war on their borders, spilling over into their neighborhods? I would hope their national security strategy would incorporate a focus on achieving peace, not perpetual unrest. Your conclusion seems a bit conspiratorial to me. "(IM)
There was a time, long time ago, when labour Israeli governments really wanted to make peace with Palestinians in exchange for giving them Gaza and most of the West-Bank in order for them to establish a functional Palestinian State. For this purpose they kept at a minimum the building of new Jewish settlements in the West-Bank.
With Menachem Begin and mainly with Ariel Sharon, new settlements were built by the hundreds in what was now called Judea and Samaria. Palestinians were kicked out of their houses, olive trees were uprooted, horrible cement houses for the colons were built on top of hills, and the colons given the right to bear arms and harass and kill Palestinian farmers at will.
Now it was not possible any more to displace the colons to make place for a Palestinian State in Samaria, short of a civil war, as witnessed by what happened in Gaza when a few colonies were removed.
Now Israel wants nothing better than a very weak, split, warring Palestinian Authority, to better impose whatever it thinks is best for Israel' security: a rump State which can be kicked at leisure and which feeds from its hand.
To what extent this war
To what extent this war betwen Hamas and Fatah is down to Israeli manouvering is open to question. It is, no doubt, of short term benefit to Israel and, if it had been possible to encourage such a war, I am sure there are many in Israel who would have grasped the opportununity to do so. However, whatever subtle strategies the Israelis may or may not have employed, this particular war is down to the Palestinians. Yes, the situation that the Palestinians are in has a lot to do with Israel. It has to do with many others too, including Britain, the USA, Iran and many of the surrounding arab states, but you have to stop somewhere when it comes to responsibilty or we may as well empty our jails and say that everything that happens is down to the collective fault of world history.
Gaza has been the focus for all the most militant of the Palestinians. Hugely overcrowded and with an unemployment level at nearly 40%, with both numbers growing, it is hardly an unlikely scenario. Despite more than 70% of the population living below the poverty line, guns and ammunition seem in plentiful supply. The one political ploy that has been used for so long is to blame everyone else, especially Israel and America, as a way to deflect any criticism from the failures of local government. Hamas was elected by the people because they managed to convince people, with some justification, that Fatah was corrupt and doing a poor job too. But unfortunately, because the Palestinians have been told for so long that all their misfortunes are down to Israel and America, there was also a large element who voted for Hamas because they shouted this message more loudly that Fatah who they feared may be weakening in this, now ingraned and almost religious, belief.
It is hard to be positive about the future. I think it is in Israel's strategic interest to divide the Palestinians. If this can be done geographically as well as politically it will be seen as an even better outcome. I would guess that if the Israelis have a strategy, they will allow more support for Abbas and Fatah. This has happened in the lifting of sanctions on support for the Palestinians since Hamas has been ousted from the emergency government. It will be interesting to see how far this will progress and to how far a wedge will be driven between the two extreme groups.
To say that none of this will be advantageous to the Palestinians is probably an understatement. The looneys who hold sway in Gaza seem to have pushed the self destruct button. The fighting won't carry on forever, and Israel must know this too, and the most likely outcome will be, yet again, that this is Israel's fault. Any likely reaction as a result will be met fiercely by Israel and the cycle will probably begin again. It is probably Israel's hope that this can be contained within Gaza, but really, it is hard to see that any progress will result.
external influence
However, whatever subtle strategies the Israelis may or may not have employed, this particular war is down to the Palestinians.
It could be argued that the international stance of isolating Hamas as terrorists because they refuse to recognise Israel was the final wedge that divided the Palestinians. Whether is was justified or not is not the point I am making, but 18 months of worsening conditions and heightening tensions are at least partially attributable to that financial stress. Israel really does have no 'one' to negotiate with a this point and things look particularly bleak.
Perhaps turning a corner...perhaps not.
Recent resumption of US aid to the Palestinians and Israel's unfreezing of assets suggests that Hamas may indeed regain some credibility with the Palestinian people. Then it will be up to Hamas to screw up a good thing with their history of corruption...who knows?
IM
Do you mean Fatah?
I presume you mean Fatah when you say 'regain some credibility' as I don't think Hamas will be getting anything from anyone. Fatah will have a difficult time meeting any of the conditions for peace without the support of all Palestinians which, it seems to me, they do not have.
Sorry...my bad
You're right, sorry but I meant Fatah---since we are talking about the more moderate of the blood-thirsty terrorists. And I agree that Fatah regaining credibility is no easy task given their history of corruption and violence. But with US aid restored and Israel unfreezing assets, there will be some relief in the lives of the average Palestinian and that alone will build Fatah some credibility with ALL Paelestinians who are looking for ANYONE to relieve the suffering. Not that it will last of course. But it may buy everyone a little more peace than they've had for awhile.
IM
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