ANALYSIS: Cease-fire with Hamas would make PA irrelevant
By Avi Issacharoff and Amos Harel Last update - 27/04/2008 Ha'Aretz
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' statement Friday in Washington that he had failed to move ahead negotiations with Israel after talks with President George W. Bush reveals how anxious the Fatah leadership is over a possible cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, which would make the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank almost irrelevant.
While no apparent progress has been made between Israel and the PA on the final-status agreement, Hamas will have one of the most significant victories in its history, if not the most significant.
Palestinian public opinion may see the agreement, which lifts the blockade in exchange for a cessation of hostilities, as proof that only attacks and Qassam rockets can wrest concessions from Israel.
Palestinian and Egyptian sources say the cease-fire will initially apply to the Gaza Strip only, but six months later, if quiet prevails, it will expand to the West Bank, something the PA has failed to do for seven and a half years. Under those circumstances, who needs Abbas - they might really be able to start packing at the Muqata.
Hamas is also demanding that during the cease-fire in Gaza, Israel does not respond militarily there to attacks in the West Bank or within the Green Line. This is a stumbling block for Israel, which is concerned that the agreement will increase Hamas' motivation to carry out attacks in the West Bank.
Another weakness in the agreement is that it apparently does not include the release of kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit.
The head of Hamas' political wing in Damascus, Khaled Meshal, took pains yesterday in Qatar to explain that Hamas is not keen for the cease-fire to happen. But in reality, Hamas is very interested, so the economic blockade can be lifted and its position strengthened.
If Hamas fails this week in Cairo to persuade the other groups in Gaza to join it, its dilemma will be whether to restrain Islamic Jihad, or risk the collapse of the understandings with Egypt and Israel.
Without the other [Palestinian terrorist ] groups on board, Israel will discount the agreement. The murder Friday of two Israelis at the Nitzanei Shalom industrial zone near Tul Karm might be the first of a wave of terror by Islamic Jihad and other groups hoping to disrupt the calm in the Strip.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
AP's coverage of Israel at 60 continues. Installment focuses on the Palestinian perspective.
The second installment of the AP's coverage of Israel at 60 was published today in the DM Register and presumably in newspapers across the country. CAMERA.org will most likely examine the series in detail.
Today's installment covers the Palestinian side of the story, recounting both how Palestinians "look back on failures" and how the current "influx of foreign aid ahve given the West Bank's middle class and business community a sense of opportunity." The article states, for example, that "Abbas' government plans to build 30,000 apartments in several new suburbs [ =settlements. Let's use the same terms. ]." And that there is high-rise construction leading into Ramallah.
In brief, the language used in the article is generally pareve. For example: "The state [Palestinians] were to have in a partitioned Holy Land was made stillborn by the 1948 war. The 1967 war that brought the West Band and Gaza under Israeli rule doubled the [Palestinian] catastrophe [naqba]. And the negotiations that are meant to bring about a Palestinian state are bedeviled by violence and distrust."
Yes, the 1948 war initiated by the Arabs to prevent Israel from coming into existence did also kill the prospects of the Arab Palestinian state --- when Jordan and Egypt grabbed the land and failed to created, in it, the Arab Palestinian state. But... those are just details.
Similarly, in sidebar introductions of Palestinian leadership, we see a similar "even-handedness" of expression. In describing Khaled Mashaal, the Hamas "political leader" [ read: terrorist resident in Syria], it is noted that "Hamas does not recognize Israel." [read= Hamas preaches that Jews are the sons of 'apes and pigs' a nd teaches Palestinian youths to hate and kill Jews.] But again, just details.
The paragraph introducing Arafat fails to indicate that his PLO was a terrorist organization which pre-dated "the Occupation," which itself was created after the Arab countries failed to negotiate with Israel for the territory Israel captured in a defensive war in 1967. The paragraph does state that " A six-year Palestinian uprising [beginning in 1987] ended after Arafat negotiated a peace deal with Israel [in 1993], but [the Oslo peace process ] later fell apart after new violence." [read= After rejecting the offer of Palestinian sovereignty at Camp David in 2000, Arafat reneged on the basic terms of the Oslo peace process -- in which he swore to abandon the use of violence -- and started a second, violent intifada rather than continue negotiations with Israel. The result: thousands of deaths attributed to Arafat and the decimation of the Palestinian economy.] And oh yes, he stole millions of dollars from his own people, funds that were supposed to go to building businesses, jobs, and infastructure to support a fledgling Palestinian state.
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Hamas admits the truce is only a "tactic" in furthering its aims
CAIRO (AP) — The chief of Hamas said Saturday that his group would accept an Egyptian proposal for a cease-fire with Israel, but that it would be a “tactic” in the group’s struggle with the Jewish state.
Khaled Meshal, the Hamas leader, said in an interview with Al Jazeera television that Egypt had proposed a six-month truce between Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that controls the Gaza Strip, and Israel. He said his group was ready to cooperate, but added, “It is a tactic in conducting the struggle.” He called it “normal for any resistance” to sometimes escalate, sometimes retreat from fighting. “Hamas is known for that. In 2003, there was a cease-fire and then the operations were resumed.” He warned of an explosion of violence in Gaza if Israel rejected the truce.
---- [commentary on this at http://www.yourish.com/2008/04/27/4730 ]
The second installment of the AP's coverage of Israel at 60 was published today in the DM Register and presumably in newspapers across the country. CAMERA.org will most likely examine the series in detail.
Today's installment covers the Palestinian side of the story, recounting both how Palestinians "look back on failures" and how the current "influx of foreign aid ahve given the West Bank's middle class and business community a sense of opportunity." The article states, for example, that "Abbas' government plans to build 30,000 apartments in several new suburbs [ =settlements. Let's use the same terms. ]." And that there is high-rise construction leading into Ramallah.
In brief, the language used in the article is generally pareve. For example: "The state [Palestinians] were to have in a partitioned Holy Land was made stillborn by the 1948 war. The 1967 war that brought the West Band and Gaza under Israeli rule doubled the [Palestinian] catastrophe [naqba]. And the negotiations that are meant to bring about a Palestinian state are bedeviled by violence and distrust."
Yes, the 1948 war initiated by the Arabs to prevent Israel from coming into existence did also kill the prospects of the Arab Palestinian state --- when Jordan and Egypt grabbed the land and failed to created, in it, the Arab Palestinian state. But... those are just details.
Similarly, in sidebar introductions of Palestinian leadership, we see a similar "even-handedness" of expression. In describing Khaled Mashaal, the Hamas "political leader" [ read: terrorist resident in Syria], it is noted that "Hamas does not recognize Israel." [read= Hamas preaches that Jews are the sons of 'apes and pigs' a nd teaches Palestinian youths to hate and kill Jews.] But again, just details.
The paragraph introducing Arafat fails to indicate that his PLO was a terrorist organization which pre-dated "the Occupation," which itself was created after the Arab countries failed to negotiate with Israel for the territory Israel captured in a defensive war in 1967. The paragraph does state that " A six-year Palestinian uprising [beginning in 1987] ended after Arafat negotiated a peace deal with Israel [in 1993], but [the Oslo peace process ] later fell apart after new violence." [read= After rejecting the offer of Palestinian sovereignty at Camp David in 2000, Arafat reneged on the basic terms of the Oslo peace process -- in which he swore to abandon the use of violence -- and started a second, violent intifada rather than continue negotiations with Israel. The result: thousands of deaths attributed to Arafat and the decimation of the Palestinian economy.] And oh yes, he stole millions of dollars from his own people, funds that were supposed to go to building businesses, jobs, and infastructure to support a fledgling Palestinian state.
---------------------------------------------------
Hamas admits the truce is only a "tactic" in furthering its aims
CAIRO (AP) — The chief of Hamas said Saturday that his group would accept an Egyptian proposal for a cease-fire with Israel, but that it would be a “tactic” in the group’s struggle with the Jewish state.
Khaled Meshal, the Hamas leader, said in an interview with Al Jazeera television that Egypt had proposed a six-month truce between Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that controls the Gaza Strip, and Israel. He said his group was ready to cooperate, but added, “It is a tactic in conducting the struggle.” He called it “normal for any resistance” to sometimes escalate, sometimes retreat from fighting. “Hamas is known for that. In 2003, there was a cease-fire and then the operations were resumed.” He warned of an explosion of violence in Gaza if Israel rejected the truce.
---- [commentary on this at http://www.yourish.com/2008/04/27/4730 ]
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Israel's UN Ambassador: Internal improvements for Jewish communities in WB are necessary, not obstacle to peace.
The Palestinian line, which is picked up again today in the DM Register (p. 2A) is that "the biggest obstacle [to peace] is Israel's continued expansion of Jewish settlements ..."
When was the last time you've seen the media give Israel's side of the story?
According to Israel's UN ambassador Dan Gillerman:
DAN GILLERMAN: Israel has no policy of expanding or building new settlements. Israel is only doing what is absolutely necessary to accommodate the people who are already living there.
And I really do not believe that settlements, which has become sort of a coined word, is the obstacle. The real obstacle to peace is the extremism and fundamentalism of Hamas. The real obstacle to peace is terrorism.
As long as the Palestinians are set on killing and maiming Israeli civilians, babies and children, shelling our cities and our villages with rockets indiscriminately, there will be no peace. And if Saeb Erekat mentioned the road map, the first obligation under the road map is for the Palestinians to cease terror. That is the first obligation and the main obstacle.
And, therefore, you know, settlements, occupation, you know, we have Gaza as a model. Israel was in Gaza for many, many years. Israel left Gaza over two years ago, every single grain of sand, every inch of Gaza. The Palestinians then had two choices, one, to turn it into a place where their people would live well and improve their quality of life and standard of living, or make it into a launching pad for missiles to Israel and a terror base.
Sadly, tragically, not just for us, but for them, they chose the latter. There isn't a single Israeli in Gaza. There were, indeed, Israeli settlements in Gaza. They were totally removed. And we're still experiencing terror.
It's terror which is the impediment and the obstacle to peace, not settlements.
-------------------------
[From Gillerman's interview, along with Palestinian spokesman Saeb Erekat, on the PBS News Hour. A transcript of the program is available at http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/middle_east/jan-june08/peace_04-24.html ]
The Palestinian line, which is picked up again today in the DM Register (p. 2A) is that "the biggest obstacle [to peace] is Israel's continued expansion of Jewish settlements ..."
When was the last time you've seen the media give Israel's side of the story?
According to Israel's UN ambassador Dan Gillerman:
DAN GILLERMAN: Israel has no policy of expanding or building new settlements. Israel is only doing what is absolutely necessary to accommodate the people who are already living there.
And I really do not believe that settlements, which has become sort of a coined word, is the obstacle. The real obstacle to peace is the extremism and fundamentalism of Hamas. The real obstacle to peace is terrorism.
As long as the Palestinians are set on killing and maiming Israeli civilians, babies and children, shelling our cities and our villages with rockets indiscriminately, there will be no peace. And if Saeb Erekat mentioned the road map, the first obligation under the road map is for the Palestinians to cease terror. That is the first obligation and the main obstacle.
And, therefore, you know, settlements, occupation, you know, we have Gaza as a model. Israel was in Gaza for many, many years. Israel left Gaza over two years ago, every single grain of sand, every inch of Gaza. The Palestinians then had two choices, one, to turn it into a place where their people would live well and improve their quality of life and standard of living, or make it into a launching pad for missiles to Israel and a terror base.
Sadly, tragically, not just for us, but for them, they chose the latter. There isn't a single Israeli in Gaza. There were, indeed, Israeli settlements in Gaza. They were totally removed. And we're still experiencing terror.
It's terror which is the impediment and the obstacle to peace, not settlements.
-------------------------
[From Gillerman's interview, along with Palestinian spokesman Saeb Erekat, on the PBS News Hour. A transcript of the program is available at http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/middle_east/jan-june08/peace_04-24.html ]
Friday, April 25, 2008
Palestinian headline [from Ma'an] Brigades claim killing of two Israeli guards in Tulkarem industrial zone Date: 25 / 04 / 2008
Translation: 5 Palestinian terroirst groups claim killing two Israeli guards in Israeli city near the West Bank
Ma'an report -[Palestinian source] Five Palestinian resistance factions have claimed responsibility for shooting dead two Israeli security guards in the Tulkarem industrial zone on Friday. Fatah's Al-Aqsa Brigades say they carried out the attack in co-ordination with the relatively unknown Al-Awda wa Nidal Brigades and the Ahrar Al-Muthalith Brigades, who are based inside Israel.
A spokesperson telephoned Ma'an and said that three of their members targeted Israeli the security guards, using only one gun. They then escaped."The operation was two weeks in the planning and so the brigades rejected the ceasefire talks with Israel by Hamas and other factions," the spokesperson said.
The military wing of Islamic Jihad, the Al-Quds brigades and the Al-Qassam Brigades the military wing of Hamas, also claimed responsibility for the operation in Tulkarem. They sent a joint statement to Ma'an giving details of the operation -
"At 5.15 am at dawn on Friday one of the resistance fighters was able to reach get into the location disguised as a woman. He went from near Tulkarem to the region of Nitzanei Shalom, which is the industrial zone located between the territory of Tulkarem and the lands of 1948. He then changed into a worker's uniform and went to the area at 7.17 am at the same time as Palestinian workers enter the factories. The Palestinian youth that shot the guards was slightly injured but managed to escape safely." The two Israeli guards were shot dead in the Nitzanei Shalom industrial zone near the West Bank city of Tulkarem on Friday morning.
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(h/t: Israellycool.com, who comments "Coming soon: palestinian complaining about checkpoints and their inability to work inside Israel."
The above source quotes the Jerusalem Post description of Nitzanei Shalom, the Israeli city:
The Nitzane Shalom complex was built in 1995. It houses nine factories that provide jobs to many Palestinians from the West Bank.
Translation: 5 Palestinian terroirst groups claim killing two Israeli guards in Israeli city near the West Bank
Ma'an report -[Palestinian source] Five Palestinian resistance factions have claimed responsibility for shooting dead two Israeli security guards in the Tulkarem industrial zone on Friday. Fatah's Al-Aqsa Brigades say they carried out the attack in co-ordination with the relatively unknown Al-Awda wa Nidal Brigades and the Ahrar Al-Muthalith Brigades, who are based inside Israel.
A spokesperson telephoned Ma'an and said that three of their members targeted Israeli the security guards, using only one gun. They then escaped."The operation was two weeks in the planning and so the brigades rejected the ceasefire talks with Israel by Hamas and other factions," the spokesperson said.
The military wing of Islamic Jihad, the Al-Quds brigades and the Al-Qassam Brigades the military wing of Hamas, also claimed responsibility for the operation in Tulkarem. They sent a joint statement to Ma'an giving details of the operation -
"At 5.15 am at dawn on Friday one of the resistance fighters was able to reach get into the location disguised as a woman. He went from near Tulkarem to the region of Nitzanei Shalom, which is the industrial zone located between the territory of Tulkarem and the lands of 1948. He then changed into a worker's uniform and went to the area at 7.17 am at the same time as Palestinian workers enter the factories. The Palestinian youth that shot the guards was slightly injured but managed to escape safely." The two Israeli guards were shot dead in the Nitzanei Shalom industrial zone near the West Bank city of Tulkarem on Friday morning.
-------
(h/t: Israellycool.com, who comments "Coming soon: palestinian complaining about checkpoints and their inability to work inside Israel."
The above source quotes the Jerusalem Post description of Nitzanei Shalom, the Israeli city:
The Nitzane Shalom complex was built in 1995. It houses nine factories that provide jobs to many Palestinians from the West Bank.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Envoys from US, UK, France, Costa Rica and Belgium walk out of UN Security Council meeting, Wednesday, after Libya compares situation in Gaza worse than Nazi concentration camps.
Excerpts from (AP) — .... The remarks led the United States, Britain, France and others to walk out, a rare protest by members of the U.N.'s most powerful body against one of their own members.
U.S. deputy ambassador Alejandro Wolff said: "The Libyan delegate is being tendentious, selective, historically incorrect and making morally outrageous comments, and that's why I walked out."
"Libya is a very pertinent example of what happens when you let terrorists infiltrate the Security Council," [said Israel's UN Ambassador Dan ]Gillerman .
Hamas offers 6 month 'period of quiet' with caveats
[Ha'aretz] Hamas' Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said Wednesday that Hamas [will offer a 6 month 'period of quiet' if Israel lifts its blockade, etc.] [No mention of stopping smuggling of weapons...]
[Haniyeh also said that Hamas] is prepared to offer Israel a long-term cease-fire, or hudna, in return for an Israeli withdrawal to the 1967 lines, a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, and right of return for refugees - without recognizing Israel. [Israel will not agree to letting Palestinian refugees flood Israel.]
Israel's UN ambassador: Truce would give Hamas chance to regroup
04.25.08,
"We don't think Hamas is trustworthy. Whenever they offer a truce, it is because we have been able to hit them where it really hurts and they then need time in order to regroup, in order to re-arm and be ready for the next round," Israeli Ambassador Dan Gillerman told reporters in New York.
"We do not intend to give them that time and we do not believe any truce offer that comes from Hamas is indeed trustworthy," he said. (AP)
Excerpts from (AP) — .... The remarks led the United States, Britain, France and others to walk out, a rare protest by members of the U.N.'s most powerful body against one of their own members.
U.S. deputy ambassador Alejandro Wolff said: "The Libyan delegate is being tendentious, selective, historically incorrect and making morally outrageous comments, and that's why I walked out."
"Libya is a very pertinent example of what happens when you let terrorists infiltrate the Security Council," [said Israel's UN Ambassador Dan ]Gillerman .
Hamas offers 6 month 'period of quiet' with caveats
[Ha'aretz] Hamas' Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said Wednesday that Hamas [will offer a 6 month 'period of quiet' if Israel lifts its blockade, etc.] [No mention of stopping smuggling of weapons...]
[Haniyeh also said that Hamas] is prepared to offer Israel a long-term cease-fire, or hudna, in return for an Israeli withdrawal to the 1967 lines, a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, and right of return for refugees - without recognizing Israel. [Israel will not agree to letting Palestinian refugees flood Israel.]
Israel's UN ambassador: Truce would give Hamas chance to regroup
04.25.08,
"We don't think Hamas is trustworthy. Whenever they offer a truce, it is because we have been able to hit them where it really hurts and they then need time in order to regroup, in order to re-arm and be ready for the next round," Israeli Ambassador Dan Gillerman told reporters in New York.
"We do not intend to give them that time and we do not believe any truce offer that comes from Hamas is indeed trustworthy," he said. (AP)
Monday, April 21, 2008
1. Sunday: Hamas spokesman: No referendums on peace with Israel
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu-Zuhri on Sunday rejected an Egyptian plan for a cease-fire agreement with Israel, Al Jazeera reported. ... Egypt's plan ...[is] to put a peace agreement, if reached this year, to a Palestinian public vote.
"The idea of a referendum on any agreement signed with the occupying [Israeli authorities] is rejected by the Hamas movement," Sami Abu Zuhri was quoted by the Qatar-based television network as saying. "No poll on the basic rights [of Palestinian people]. Is it possible for us to carry out a poll on al-Quds [Jerusalem] if such an agreement affects our rights in al-Quds?" he asked. [from Haaretz]
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2. Carter: Hamas Willing to Accept Peace Deal With Israel If Approved by Palestinian Vote
By VOA News 21 April 2008
Jimmy Carter in JerusalemFormer U.S. President Jimmy Carter says the leaders of the Palestinian militant group Hamas have told him they will accept a peace agreement with Israel, if one is approved in a Palestinian referendum.
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu-Zuhri on Sunday rejected an Egyptian plan for a cease-fire agreement with Israel, Al Jazeera reported. ... Egypt's plan ...[is] to put a peace agreement, if reached this year, to a Palestinian public vote.
"The idea of a referendum on any agreement signed with the occupying [Israeli authorities] is rejected by the Hamas movement," Sami Abu Zuhri was quoted by the Qatar-based television network as saying. "No poll on the basic rights [of Palestinian people]. Is it possible for us to carry out a poll on al-Quds [Jerusalem] if such an agreement affects our rights in al-Quds?" he asked. [from Haaretz]
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2. Carter: Hamas Willing to Accept Peace Deal With Israel If Approved by Palestinian Vote
By VOA News 21 April 2008
Jimmy Carter in JerusalemFormer U.S. President Jimmy Carter says the leaders of the Palestinian militant group Hamas have told him they will accept a peace agreement with Israel, if one is approved in a Palestinian referendum.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Multi-phase Hamas attack at Gaza crossing deemed 'worst since pullout'
[Jpost.com] Two IDF soldiers were moderately wounded and 11 others were lightly wounded Saturday morning at the Kerem Shalom crossing in the southern Gaza Strip, when Hamas gunmen initiated a coordinated attack on the Israeli side of the crossing, which included heavy gunfire, mortar shell barrages and two car bombs.
The attack began close to 7 a.m. when two vehicles arrived at the crossing under the cover of heavy fog and one of them detonated near army forces, wounding the 13 soldiers. The second booby-trapped car was spotted by troops after the initial explosion and did not go off, the army said.
Immediately afterwards, an armored car - which may have once belonged to Fatah security forces - arrived at the scene, and its occupants began firing at the soldiers, backed by heavy mortar shell barrages.
Four gunmen, including the driver of the car bomb, were believed to have been killed in the explosion and the exchanges of fire that ensued. Forces then entered Gaza in order to search for remaining members of the cell.
'Most ambitious attack since pullout'
Meanwhile, another armored vehicle was identified approaching the Kissufim crossing, north of Kerem Shalom. An IDF tank fired at the vehicle and hit it, apparently preventing a second attack.
Hamas later released a farewell video of four attackers. Hamas also organized two protests by women and children near two other Gaza crossings
[Jpost.com] Two IDF soldiers were moderately wounded and 11 others were lightly wounded Saturday morning at the Kerem Shalom crossing in the southern Gaza Strip, when Hamas gunmen initiated a coordinated attack on the Israeli side of the crossing, which included heavy gunfire, mortar shell barrages and two car bombs.
The attack began close to 7 a.m. when two vehicles arrived at the crossing under the cover of heavy fog and one of them detonated near army forces, wounding the 13 soldiers. The second booby-trapped car was spotted by troops after the initial explosion and did not go off, the army said.
Immediately afterwards, an armored car - which may have once belonged to Fatah security forces - arrived at the scene, and its occupants began firing at the soldiers, backed by heavy mortar shell barrages.
Four gunmen, including the driver of the car bomb, were believed to have been killed in the explosion and the exchanges of fire that ensued. Forces then entered Gaza in order to search for remaining members of the cell.
'Most ambitious attack since pullout'
Meanwhile, another armored vehicle was identified approaching the Kissufim crossing, north of Kerem Shalom. An IDF tank fired at the vehicle and hit it, apparently preventing a second attack.
Hamas later released a farewell video of four attackers. Hamas also organized two protests by women and children near two other Gaza crossings
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