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Hamas draws Israeli fire, Palestinian praise

Posted: Thursday, April 17, 2008 1:40 PM
Filed Under:

By Martin Fletcher, NBC News Correspondent 

TEL AVIV, Israel – You would think that Palestinians in Gaza would be upset at Hamas’ provocative stance against Israel, which has brought economic sanctions and contributed to massive unemployment and food and fuel shortages.

It has also brought Israel and the Palestinians closer toward a military confrontation in Gaza that Hamas cannot win.

But instead, polls show that Hamas is tightening its grip on power and growing in popularity. Resistance pays in the polls.

Image: Palestinian journalists comfort each other.
SLIDESHOW: Fighting in Gaza intesifies
Following a storm of Palestinian rockets, Israel killed 120 Palestinians in Gaza six weeks ago and bought a few weeks of relative calm. Now Hamas is back again, firing rockets and ambushing Israeli soldiers. In return they got 20 dead Palestinians on Wednesday and provoked yet more threats from Israel that it would launch a major offensive to clean out Gaza of rockets and gunmen.

However, Hamas has about 20,000 trained and well-equipped fighters ready. That means that if Israel were to invade, it would be long, bloody and painful for both sides. But still, Hamas appears to want this to happen

Border tensions
Anger is building in Gaza not only against Israel, but Egypt. Complaints are voiced more and more loudly against Egypt's refusal to open its border with Gaza.

After Hamas blew open the Rafah border earlier this year, and Gazans tasted the whiff of brief freedom and easier movement in and out of Gaza, they want it again, badly.

Hamas is said to have mined the border wall again, and to have its men in position ready to blow the wall down. Meanwhile, Egypt has reinforced its police with elite soldiers ready to repel invaders. That would be another bloody scenario.

So Gaza is facing a bloodbath on two fronts, against Israel as well as Egypt. In fact, Israel and Egypt are said to be cooperating in their preparations close to the Rafah border. 

Popularity growing
So what is Hamas up to? Do they want a war or is it just a growing sense of desperation at their inability to bring any improvement to the lives of Gazans, a failure that they are masking by building up external threats?

Whatever it is, it's working. Not only is Hamas more popular than before in Gaza, but all indications are that they are growing more popular in the West Bank, too, and that they would win elections for president which are scheduled for January 2009. That prospect terrifies Israel, as well as the head of the rival Fatah Party, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

An explanation is provided by a poll released Wednesday that shows the three most popular leaders in the Arab world are not, for example, leaders of Morocco or the Persian Gulf who have brought stability and prosperity to many citizens. Instead, they are Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, Syrian President Bashar Assad and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Why? They face up to America, and by extension, what they call the "little Satan": Israel.

The conclusion is that the more Hamas faces up to Israel, the more popular it becomes, regardless of the hardship it brings to its people. It's a bluff, because everybody involved understands that Israel has the power to destroy Hamas at will; the question is, does Israel have the will to do it?

The speculation is that the answer is yes, but not yet. Israel's 60th birthday celebrations in mid-May, the arrival of President Bush and other world leaders to join the party, and ongoing military preparations all conspire to delay Israel's attack on Gaza. Nobody doubts that it is coming, though.

Early summer is the best bet for Israel to call Hamas’ bluff. The destruction of Hamas military power in Gaza would serve Israel well, not only because it would weaken the threat from Gaza, but because it would destroy Hamas’ chance of taking over the West Bank through presidential elections. Nobody would be happier than the Fatah leadership and Abbas. 

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Comments

Speaking for myself, I hope Hamas wins.  Israel has been draining US taxpayers for decades.  The war in Iraq, in my opinion, was created to protect Israel and guarantee access to crude oil supplies.  In the process, America has been made weaker and poorer.  Enough already!

Richard, Los Angeles (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 2:59 PM)

Strange things are done out of desperation, when people are being humiliated with the boot of occupation strangling them. Don't think Hamas (or the Palestinian people) will give up. Many Palestinians see the PLA almost as collaborators and resent Abbas.

American love their darling Israel, but that has nothing to do with justice. You'll never crush these aspirations for independence by military means alone. America's interest are not served by its prejudiced policies. Nor are Israel's - in the long run. The hatred of Muslim people (as opposed to the governments) will be guaranteed and our security will be imperilled. Bravo to Carter for recognizing this!!

Irwin, Thousand Oaks, CA (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 3:06 PM)

Isreal is destroying this country. US should abandon Isreal and let the crazies in the ME fight it out among themselves.

The whole scenario scares me. Isreal attack Gaza, Hezballah attack Isreal to save Gaza. Syria attack Isreal to save Lebanon. Isreal attack Syria. Iran attack Isreal to save Syria. America attack Iran to save Isreal.

Wow...any one smell the draft.

Josh, Hershey, PA (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 3:07 PM)

go Israel, with the Lord

john doe inUSA (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 3:12 PM)

The only reason Israel has allies is because the U.S.  So here is some news for you, the U.S. only has friends, not allies.  This friendship is over

John Doe, Washington D.C. (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 3:31 PM)

Fletcher is yet another Jewish propagandist work for Israel in the U.S. media. Its amazing how both MSNBC and CNN did not mention the deaths of 3 Israeli occupation soldiers during the entire day on Wednesday, yet Haaretz (an Israeli news website) mentioned it the minute it happened?

Our American has become even more pro-Israel and pro-Occupation then the Israeli media. What a disaster we are in here in America!

john saah, bethesda, maryland (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 3:40 PM)

Are there any people in the world as self destructive as the Palestinians? I doubt it. They persist in seeing the U.S. as the enemy even though we have given billions to their corrupt leaders. Our latest effort to help them is an offer of 500 million usd to help palestinians in the west bank buy their own homes, but not one dime is coming from arab countries even though they are drowning in petrodollars. So much for the so-called "ummah" or islamic unity.

cliff michael, foxboro, ma. (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 3:49 PM)

This has long been coming for years. The full might of the Israeli military will be unleashed.The total destruction of the Gaza strip and yes there will be many many many civilian deaths. The palestinian people will finally get what they want to turn the Israelise into monsters. And the Israelise will hate the Palestinians bittery because of it forever.

Alex, New York New York (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 4:08 PM)

Hamas doesn't really want to rule just like Arafat didn't want to make peace.  It would make them administrators rather than fighters.  They have no real interest in peace; look at the children's programs they put on calling on all to die killing Israelis (civilians at that).

I think it might have been Golda Meir who said that there will be peace when the Arabs love their children more than they hate the Jews.  

S.B. Stein E.B. NJ (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 4:16 PM)

Obviously the Palistinians have no sense. They belong to an insane religion, they back insane policies and they follow insane leaders. They get what the deserve.

v racer (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 4:26 PM)

Yes Hamas is bad but Israel has done much to
flare tension between them and Pales. Bad reporting l
leads to wrong conclusion and wrong conclusions
lead to bad policy.
Sound familiar.

San Fracncisco (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 4:26 PM)

Palestinians have been made to pay for the sins of The Third Reich and it is way past time for the world to WAKE UP from the holocaust hangover that has allowed America's best friend in the world to become the biggest bully on the planet.

International Law demands that occupation is to be temporary, maintain the status quo, not pilfer the resources of the occupied, nor transfer the occupier's population into occupied territory. But Israel does not adhere to international law; they follow the law of the jungle.

John Doe (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 4:28 PM)

The destruction of Hamas by Israel would only increase the animosity  that the Arab world has towards Israel and by association us. You might say, it doesn’t matter, because the organization would be finished. But the error that people make is of thinking of these organizations as solids, like a house you can tear down and then there’s no more house. They are instead organic, you can kill the people that make up this organization right now, but as long as they have the sympathy or the people they claim to defend (and let’s face it, they do), others will appear almost instantly to replace those lost. An attack by Israel would only give it more credibility by making whole organization a martyr.

Obama like other American politicians responded to pressure by criticizing Carter. But he is the only one that has the right idea.  We have to stop trying to make the world the way we want it to be, and start dealing with the world the way it is. And the way it is right now, Hamas is more representative of the Palestinian people than the so called Palestinian “government” – and I use that term loosely because we know they don’t have control of the area, they don’t provide basic services to people, etc.

Hamas was elected already. They are more legitimate in the local’s people mind already, and an Israel attack would push public opinion even more to Hamas’ side.

I know we don’t like Hamas. We don’t like the way they act. We don’t like the way they think. We don’t agree with them. But we’ve talked to people who we don’t agree with before. We did it with Rusia. We need to do it again.

The only way to be rid of Hamas is to take away their reason for being. Their reason for being is the Palestinian unhappiness with the situation in Gaza. People are unhappy there for good reason.  I understand that Israel feels it needs to be that way for their protection but it seriously undermines the standard of living of Palestinians (to put it mildly).  

The argument that we can’t talk to Hamas or deal with Hamas until they recognize Israel is just pigheaded. Basic human nature would dictate that they will actually be OK with Isreal once their own basic needs are taken care. Until then, they will look around for someone to blame and that inevitably will be Israel. And they will keep on venting their frustrations in violent ways.

Israel can’t make Palestinians into what they wish they were by force, anymore than we were able to make Iraq into what we wanted it to be by force.

Lily, Dallas, TX (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 4:34 PM)

Hey, I have an idea... how about Isreal and the U.S. face up to the fact that democracy doesn't mean "elect whom I want" and deal with the fact that Hamas is the duly elected representatives and talk with them.

Fred, NC (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 4:35 PM)

It is becoming more evident that Israel is doing more of the terrorist activity in that entire region.  Israel must remember that for "Every action there is a reaction".

Seth, Morton Grove, IL (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 4:44 PM)

Wow, that speaks volumes as to the mindset of many in the Arab world. Those three clowns are the most popular? I guess its like battered-women syndrome, where you keep coming back for more abuse from the one you "love" because its all you know. What a bunch of cavemen. With their support of Hamas and the status quo, I feel everyone in Gaza is responsible and hardly innocent. Its too bad they just don't get it, because death is their only future. But honestly, when I see 6 year olds wearing Hamas flags and waving guns around, and this is mutually acceptable in Gaza, I no longer worry about them dying. They're already lost. When they die, I won't be surprised or upset.

Paul (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 4:54 PM)

"The destruction of Hamas military power in Gaza would serve Israel well". Boy doesn't that sound good! Unfortunately if they did go in to Gaza to do this the world would again renounce Israel for killing innocent civilians and destroying buildings. Also, the fact that Hamas's popularity grows only goes to prove the many Arabs in this region are more interested in the destruction of Israel than they are in their own properity.

Mike (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 4:54 PM)

Hamas is a terrorist gang that desires the annihilation of Israel and the extermination of the Jewish people. They don't care about the comfort and safety of Arabs under their control. In fact the deaths of non-combatants fits into their propanganda campaign against Israel. Hamas is not only a pack of murderers but they are pathologic liars. It's the moral and ethical responsibility of the news media to check out what Hamas presents them as facts.

Douglas Miller, Miami Beach, FL (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 5:03 PM)

pretty much a one-sided story

robert haynes (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 5:26 PM)

We need to get rid of Hamas for once and for all!  The residents of the Gaza Strip have been poorly served by the arab world for over 30 years.  Israle has been paying the proce of their problems for too long.

Hillary, Evanston, IL (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 5:34 PM)

Hamas is pushing for a fight with Isriel because Iran wants them to do just that. If an full war in Gaza explodes, then Hezbollah will also get into the conflict on the Lebanon side, resulting in a war with Israel on two fronts. Iran wants this because it sees that with war in Iraq between the US and the insurgents and Israel with Hamas and Hezbollah, their goal of regional Islamic conflict with the west works in their favor to distaboloze the Middle East and further their ultimate goal of an Islamic region.  Israel and the West are just going to finally realize that we will ultimately have to confront this radical Islamics, financed and supported by Iran, once and for all.  A broder regional 'World War III' is going to happen and the West just needs to accept this and get on with it. Iran feel quite convinced that it can achieve it's goal of regional and possibly world domination by their version of Islam.  If they can develop atomic weapons it just may decide to go for it regardless of how many people die in the process.

Richard Lawrence (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 5:34 PM)

Palestenians want freedom from the israel.
They want it now.

petros (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 5:52 PM)

The Palestinians are trapped in a "no exit" room initally built by their Arab "brothers," and further reinforced by their own leadership.  If the Arab nations had accepted the UN partition plan instead of invading Israel in 1948, there would be a Palestinian state today.  If they had answered Israel's call for talks after the '67 war instead of intransigently proclaiming "no recognition, no negotiatons, no peace," there would be a Palestinian state today.  If Arafat had agreed to the boundaries proposed by Ehud Barak at Tabah (at least as a starting point for negotiations!), there could well be a Palestinian state today.  If after Israel left Gaza, Fatah had begun building a functioning society instead of continuing the mismanagement and corruption that lead to a forcible takeover by the implacably hostile Hamas, a Palestinian state would be under way by now.
But they did none of these things, so we are faced with the situation described.

Make no mistake, the Israelis will go to almost any length to avoid warfare.  My belief is that they would fall all over themselves to help in the development of a thriving, vibrant, prosperous Palestinian society.  But, if they conclude that their country is in mortal peril, they will not hesitate to invade and lay waste to Gaza!

Richard Rosenblatt (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 6:09 PM)

When you degrade an entire nation to the extent the Israeli's have to the Palestinians you should expect them to rally around the only entity that stands up against their oppression. That is I think only human nature. Israel's threat of destroying Hamas with it's military might is just more of the same. It solves nothing. It will only perpetuate the blood and hate.

RJ Edmonton Alberta Canada (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 6:54 PM)

Atrocious article.

Luv a good smile (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 7:33 PM)



My reflex has been to say
"It is amazing the media material Americans are fed".

An adjunct to this would be
"It is amazing what Americans swollow."
Some Americans gratefully swollow anything that
plays to their belief system. Some could care less
about vetting what they take in. Some simply
could care less -- period.

For how long, though, can one keep repeating
"it is amazing...it is amazing...". After awhile you
have to face the fact that there is nothing extraordinary
about it. It is normal. This *is* what America is.

We are presently in a disasterous war. Disasterous
for ourselves and even more disasterous for those
(the Iraqis) whom we profess to be enlightening
with freedom and democracy.

We are in a disasterous war and we got there because
Americans were fed lies (WMD). We were then fed lies about
the lies. (How hard do you think you would have to
poll your personal associates to find one that still
believes that the US intelligence agencies gave Bush
bad information and thus misled him into an invasion?)

Being sucked into a disasterous war based upon lies
is situation-normal for the US. Face it.

The article by Martin Fletcher is a case in point. It is so misleading, and it attempts to get us to accede
to the massive violence that is going to be perpetrated on Palestinian civilians in the coming months by Israelis armed with American weapons. But how easily will Americans swallow it? One guess.

At this point in my comments I would rebut specifics
about the article -- gladly.

Anybody care to go first?

Luv a good smile (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 8:09 PM)

Bush pressed Abbas to hold elections in the Occupied
Territories. When Hamas, to Bush's surprise, won the
elections Bush hatched another plan. Bush armed
and prodded the Fatah faction to have a coup against
Hamas, but the result was the opposite of what Bush
expected.


David Wurmser, whose bio includes Mideast advisor to
VP Cheney, aide to John Bolton, a chief co-author of the
infamous "A Clean Break: A New Strategy for Securing
the Realm", has long been one of the neocon elite.

Wurmser accuses the Bush administration of "engaging in
a dirty war in an effort to provide a corrupt
dictatorship [led by Abbas] with victory." He believes
that Hamas had no intention of taking Gaza until Fatah
forced its hand. "It looks to me that what happened
wasn't so much a coup by Hamas but an attempted coup by
Fatah that was pre-empted before it could happen,"
Wurmser says.


The botched plan has rendered the dream of Middle East
peace more remote than ever, but what really galls
neocons such as Wurmser is the hypocrisy it exposed.
"There is a stunning disconnect between the president's
call for Middle East democracy and this policy," he
says. "It directly contradicts it."

Luv a good smile (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 9:25 PM)

Here lies the problem with your argument. Agreed, that Israel can destroy Hamas militarily, at least temporarily. But politically, Israel does not have a way to destroy Hamas. The reason why Israel has been unwilling to try to destroy Hamas militarily is because even if they destroy Hamas militarily temporarily, Hamas comes back stronger politically (and may be even militarily) long term.

Javed Husain, Chicago, IL (Sent Thursday, April 17, 2008 10:24 PM)


My reflex has been to say
"It is amazing the media material Americans are fed".

An adjunct to this would be
"It is amazing what Americans swollow."
Some Americans gratefully swollow anything that
plays to their belief system. Some could care less
about vetting what they take in. Some simply
could care less -- period.

For how long, though, can one keep repeating
"it is amazing...it is amazing...". After awhile you
have to face the fact that there is nothing extraordinary
about it. It is normal. This *is* what America is.

We are presently in a disasterous war. Disasterous
for ourselves and even more disasterous for those
(the Iraqis)  whom we profess to be enlightening
with freedom and democracy.

We are in a disasterous war and we got there because
Americans were fed lies (WMD). And we bought it.
We were then fed lies about the lies. (How hard do
you think you would have to poll your personal
associates to find one that *still* believes that the
US intelligence agencies gave Bush bad information
and thus misled him into an invasion?)

Being sucked into a disasterous war based upon lies
and buying into those lies is situation-normal for
the US. Face it.

The article by Martin Fletcher is a case in point. It is
so misleading, and it attempts to get us to accede
to the massive violence that is going to be perpetrated
on Palestinian civilians in the coming months by
Israelis armed with American weapons. But how easily
will Americans swallow it? One guess.

At this point in my comments I would rebut specifics
about the article -- gladly.

Anybody care to go first?

Moshe Liperaal, Simsbury, Conn (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 6:47 AM)

All American reporting about this conflict is heavily biased in favor of Israel because of its political and economic power in the US. The fact that the Israelis are engaged in ethnic cleansing and have a state based on religious affiliation, not demoratic priciples is completely ignored by the world.

Clifford Bourgeois (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 8:36 AM)

"Following a storm of Palestinian rockets, Israel killed 120 Palestinians"
the Plastinina kitchen Made Rockets Storm !!!( it was only  4 Rockets that  Killed nobody )

"That means that if Israel were to invade, it would be long, bloody and painful for both sides. But still, Hamas appears to want this to happen"
yeah right , the heavey Plastinina artillery ( hand guns facing F16s and Mirkava tanks)   stop fooling us with this kind articles

me ,here ,there (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 8:46 AM)

Israel has long been fond of changing facts on the ground in defiance of world opinion. Now the fact is Hamas has become entrenched in the region. Misery, such as that heaped upon the Gaza people, who are essentially living in the world's largest prison compound because of Israel's bellicose and unilateral actions, make for desperate alliances. Nobody wants war for war's sake.

Michael, rochester, michigan (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 8:53 AM)

"a storm of Palestinian rockets"????Hamas has about "20,000 trained and well-equipped" fighters ready? GIVE ME A BREAK! why dont you try to be a little more objective & stop spitting propaganda for your Zionist Masters in Tel Aviv!? "So what is Hamas up to? Do they want a war"  omg! if theres is someone who wants that war SO BAD is the pariah Terrorist state of Israel so they can widen the ongoing HOLOCAUST on the defendless Palestinian population.
How dare you to compare the the Military strenght of one of the best trained & equipped (Modern weapondry,communications,total control of air power,etc) armies against the not very well organized Palestinian Guerrillas & their Soviet Era Kalashinovs?
Shame on you! You should be doing your job informing the people about whats really going on the Bloody....errr Holy Land

Emiliano Guevara, Armageddon,Babylon (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 9:07 AM)

Is it any surprise that Palestinians favor Hamas over the Imperial hypocracy that 'Israel' represents? Palestinians could only be killed so often before they recognized who was responsible. Palestinians are being punished (economic sanctions, Israeli attacks) for supporting their own people (Hamas). It's equivolent to holding Palestinians Hostage as Ransom against Hamas. Since when is this how we do business? Americans look down on such tactics everywhere else in the world except Israel. It's why we go to bat for them in the U.N. and why we turn a blind eye to the atrocious ways they govern the people they displaced.

Down with our policy of Salutary Neglect towards the terrorist policies of Israel.

C Wash, Tallahassee, FL (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 9:16 AM)

It is difficult to understand why those whose history was of oppression "did not care that they themselves had become oppressors".

Jon Grander (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 9:19 AM)

Why should Isreal live under constant rocket attacks? What other country would accept a day of rocket attacks from a neigboring country.

Ely, Brooklyn, NY (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 9:38 AM)

I am so sick of these middle east countries. Enough already....People all over the world want peace and prosperity for all...The palestinians have had a chance to acheive that several times but because they are brainwashed in there religion it will never happen. While I am not jewish and I do not stick up for Israel....lets keep in mind that they took a waste land dessert and built a thriving city from sand....what have the palestinians done? poverty and war thats what...

dean (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 9:40 AM)

Enlighten us, O wise and learned one.
Given that "Israel has the power to destroy Hamas at will", how will they achieve this without eliminating every single Gazan?
Didn't Israel have the "power" to destroy Hezbollah at will?
Do you really think that F-16s or even nuclear weapons can destroy Hamas?
Your assertion is ludicrous.

July Garcia, New York, NY (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 9:45 AM)

Amazing.

Didn't imagine MSNBC would allow so
much anti-zionist talk.

Why does it take so long for comments to
show up? I posted a comment and then many hours
later there was no sign of it so I posted
it again. Now I know.

Martin Fletcher led off his article with a false
premise:

"
You would think that Palestinians in Gaza would be upset at Hamas’ provocative stance against Israel, which has brought economic sanctions and contributed to massive unemployment and food and fuel shortages.
"

Hamas was more than a year into their self-imposed,
unilateral cease fire, and had participated in a
democratic election, when sanctions were then
severely escalated by the US (and Israel).

Instead of nurturing a new democracy the US and
Israel did everything they could to destroy it.
(And supposedly we are spending billions per year
in the Mideast to *bring* democracy) The
destruction of the democracy was complete when
Bush armed and prodded the Fatah faction to instigate
a coup. Hamas saw it coming and pre-empted it with
a coup of their own.


David Wurmser, whose bio includes Mideast advisor to
VP Cheney, aide to John Bolton, a chief co-author of the
infamous "A Clean Break: A New Strategy for Securing
the Realm", has long been one of the neocon elite.

Wurmser accuses the Bush administration of "engaging in
a dirty war in an effort to provide a corrupt
dictatorship [led by Abbas] with victory." He believes
that Hamas had no intention of taking Gaza until Fatah
forced its hand. "It looks to me that what happened
wasn't so much a coup by Hamas but an attempted coup by
Fatah that was pre-empted before it could happen,"
Wurmser says.



Moshe Liperaal, Simsbury, Conn (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 9:53 AM)

The Palestinians are an ass backwards people and the Arabs (Egypt & Jordan) in that neighborhood know it!  The Egyptians are prepared (with Soliders not local police) to repel another incursion from Gaza.  The Palestinians have a chance to make their own State, make money, make love, and watch their childrens grow up.  But they are going to blow this chance, again, and instead blow themselves up.  Why?  Because they hate Jews.  Petty.  Only when they love their children more than they hate Jews will there be peace.

Michael Johnson, Stamford CT (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 9:54 AM)

what a pathetic article stay in your favorate state of Israel and stop reporting lies and distortion by blaming the victims of this long and oppressive occupation

Carmelo Burgaretta, Shrewsbury, New Jersey (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 9:54 AM)

This conflict should end or have ended long ago. Unfortunatly it can never end until both sides make an ernest agreement to live side by side in peace. Unfortunately the Arab side will accept nothing less than anialation of the israelis. I can't count how many times peace agreements have been worked out only to see the same attacks by Arab radical groups immediatly resumed. The so called American Satin has contributed hudge amounts to the Palistinian people to impliment these treaties only to see the same conditions resumed immediatly after the treaties are signed and the money is in the bank. How many of these farce peace treaties are we willing to pay for?

Clarence McDaniel, Williams, Arizona (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 9:57 AM)

Israel is in danger of executing a final solution.

eab (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 10:00 AM)

It amazes me that so many people comment on here without knowing their history.  But, what can you expect from so many puppet socialist thinkers.  Israel was given statehood because no where in the world has been safe for Jews.  They were given a tiny piece of land, which most of had already been purchased by Jewish land owners.  This land was not being farmed and had little use beforehand.  Israil turned this patch of dirt into fertile usable land.  They also didn't make the Palestinian Muslims leave.  They left on their own based on the prompting of the Islamic nations around Israel.  They were told the Jews would kill their children!  Nobody took in the Palestinians or helped them.  All these oil-rich Muslim nations with thousands of unused acres of land turned their back on the Palestinians.  Now that the land is fertile, the Palestinians want the land back!  The Palestinians and their selfish, spitefull, and cowardly Islamic neighbors are completely responsible for their plight.  You can not blame a country for defending itself, even if that means "occupying" land.  Look at a map once and see the difference in land mass owned by each country in the Middle East.  Israel has done everything they can in making peace.  They don't want war.  The Muslims do.  The Muslims are at fault in the Middle East plain and simple.

Ben, Minneapolis, MN (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 10:03 AM)

Some of these comments are amazing, even mind-boggling.  I have said for years, people believe what they want to believe.  The truth doesn't matter, not with Hamas and not with most of the posters.  Hamas attacks Israel and gets hammered, yet somehow Israel is responsible.  Did you people even read the article???  Gazans are now venting their frustration at Egypt, why?  Because Egypt has enough of its own problems without having Hamas to deal with, so of course they are cooperating with Israel.  And just to show their beligerence, Hamas is prepared to yet again blow up the wall, why?  Because they cannot or are not (or both) willing to do what it would take to provide for the Gazans.  They want Egypt to do it for them, so they can continue to waste time and resources (and Gazan civillian lives) on a fruitless attack against Israel.  Hamas clearly doesn't care about the Gazan civillians, in fact the more deaths the better.  And 120 to 3 Israeli deaths is about what you can expect will happen, no surprise.  So tell me, why is Hamas doing this?  Why did they dig a tunnel and invade Israel after Israel finally pulled out of Gaza and ended the occupation?  And what good would it do for Israel to try to talk to them anyway, when its clear that Hamas isn't interested in talk, peace, or anything else?  Not even with Egypt.  The last poster said "it is difficult to understand why those whose history was of oppression did not care that they tehmselves had become oppressors."  That can easily apply to both sides here, and the answer is simple.  If oppression is all you know, then that's how you'll act when you finally get some power.  Men who abuse their children were abused themselves as children, that's a sad fact of human nature.  And that's what's happening here, I know, but I still find myself supporting Israel over Hamas, I guess because I want to believe that they are the victims here.  Hamas has never given me a reason to care about them.

Toni Bourlon (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 10:08 AM)

Martin, your pro Israel bias is obviously  showing in this article. First of all let’s be clear, the party that is making Palestinians life miserable is not Hamas but Israel!!   Two years ago the Palestinians democratically elected Hamas and they were rewarded by Olmert  and Bush with economic strangulation; daily raids into Gaza, fisherman are restricted to fish and basically turned Gaza into the largest prison in the world.

Hamas popularity is increasing due to the facts of the so called “Road Map” to nowhere has not improved the life of Palestinians both in Gaza and the West Bank.
Israel continue building illegal Jews settlements; daily raids in occupied territories killing Palestinians over 290 mostly civilians since the farce Annapolis conference ; even after Hamas maintained a cease fire for two years and have offered a cease fire to Olmert which he refused.
It’s becoming clearer to the Palestinians that Abbas is a lackey for Israel and the US (Bush). Abbas has done nothing to improve Palestinians lives with over 530 check points placing hardship on Palestinians to travel which normally takes to ½ hour to 3or 4 hours.
A number of Palestinians have died at the check point because some young Israeli soldier prevented them to reach the hospital.

You seem to miss the point of why rockets are being fired to Israelis; rockets are always and have been a respond to Israel daily attack on Palestinians both in the West Bank and Gaza. Furthermore, Just like all previous peace initiative if Olmert truly wants peace he would have done long time ago by removing all check points, stop the targeting assassination of Palestinians, remove the illegal settlements and negotiate for the final borders. But he wont

Carmelo Burgaretta, New Jersey (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 10:08 AM)

G0 Israel destroy all the Hamas people in the world.
Like in the Holy Bible said kill of people hwo want to destroy Israel

Aaron bedokh (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 10:12 AM)

"It is difficult to understand why those whose history was of oppression 'did not care that they themselves had become oppressors'." It is not hard to understand that some Jews got tired of depending on others for their survival.

"The only way to be rid of Hamas is to take away their reason for being. Their reason for being is the Palestinian unhappiness with the situation in Gaza." I don't agree; their reason for being is hatred of Israel and Jews, not just to be an armed force for taking territory. I wouldn't compare them to the IRA because I don't think the IRA expected to or cared to wipe England and the English off the face of the Earth.

For Hamas it is not enough to live a civilised, prosperous, peaceful life--they must get rid of Israel and the Jews before they will be satisfied.

Al Farabi, Dallas, Texas (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 10:20 AM)

Isreal has tried every military technique available, but still conflict continues. We have tried many of the same things in Iraq, with the same results. When there are talks, only the concessions that Isreal thinks that the other side needs, not what the other side requests. Maybe we should give President Carter's approach a chance, an talk to them.

jim crow does'nt work (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 10:23 AM)

"jon grander" I agree with what you are saying, sound like the truth to me.

anne/ ohio (Sent Friday, April 18, 2008 10:24 AM)



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