Why was there war in Gaza?
WASHINGTON — Why was there an Israel-Gaza war in the first place? Resistance to the occupation, say Hamas and many in the international media.
What occupation? Seven years ago, in front of the world, Israel pulled out of Gaza. It dismantled every settlement, withdrew every soldier, evacuated every Jew, leaving nothing and no one behind. Except for the greenhouses in which the settlers had grown fruit and flowers for export. These were left intact to help Gaza’s economy—only to be trashed when the Palestinians took over.
Israel then declared its border with Gaza to be an international frontier, meaning that it renounced any claim to the territory and considered it an independent entity. In effect, Israel had created the first Palestinian state ever, something never granted by fellow Muslims—neither the Ottoman Turks nor the Egyptians who brutally occupied Gaza for two decades before being driven out by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War.
Israel wanted nothing more than to live in peace with this independent Palestinian entity. After all, the world had incessantly demanded that Israel give up land for peace.
It gave the land. It got no peace.
The Gaza Palestinians did not reciprocate. They voted in Hamas, who then took over in a military putsch and turned their newly freed Palestine into an armed camp from which to war against Israel. It has been war ever since.
Interrupted by the occasional truce, to be sure. But for Hamas a truce—hudna—is simply a tactic for building strength for the next round. It is never meant to be enduring, never meant to offer peace.
But why, given that there is no occupation of Gaza anymore? Because Hamas considers all of Israel occupied, illegitimate, a cancer, a crime against humanity, to quote the leaders of Iran, Hamas’ chief patron and arms supplier. Hamas’ objective, openly declared, is to “liberate”—i.e. destroy—Tel Aviv and the rest of pre-1967 Israel. Indeed, it is Hamas’ raison d’etre.
Hamas first killed Jews with campaigns of suicide bombings. After Israel built a nearly impenetrable fence, it went to rockets fired indiscriminately at civilians in populated areas.
What did Hamas hope to gain from this latest round of fighting, which it started with a barrage of about 150 rockets into Israel? To formally translate Hamas’ recent strategic gains into a new, more favorable status quo with Israel. It works like this:
Hamas’ new strength comes from two sources. First, its new rocketry, especially the Fajr-5, smuggled in from Iran, that can now reach Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, putting 50 percent of Israel’s population under its guns.
Second, Hamas has gained strategic strength from changes in the regional environment. It has acquired the patronage and protection of important Middle Eastern states as a result of the Arab Spring and the Islamist reversal in Turkey.
For 60 years, non-Arab Turkey had been a reliable ally of Israel. The vicious turnaround instituted by its Islamist prime minister, Recep Erdogan, reached its apogee Monday when he called Israel a terrorist state.
Egypt is now run by Hamas’ own mother organization, the Muslim Brotherhood, of which Hamas is simply the Palestinian wing. And the emir of Qatar recently visited Gaza, leaving behind a promise of a cool $400 million.
Hamas’ objective was to guarantee no further attacks on its leaders or on its weaponry, launch sites and other terror and rocket infrastructure. And the lifting of Israel’s military blockade, which would allow a flood of new and even more deadly weapons. In other words, immunity and inviolability during which time Hamas could build unmolested its arsenal of missiles—until it is ready to restart the war on more favorable terms.
Yet another hudna, this one brokered and guaranteed by Egypt and Turkey, regional powers Israel has to be careful not to offend. A respite for rebuilding, until Hamas’ Gaza becomes Hezbollah South, counterpart to the terror group to Israel’s north, with 50,000 Iranian- and Syrian-supplied rockets that effectively deter any Israeli pre-emptive attack.
With the declaration of a cease-fire on Nov. 21, Israel seems to have successfully resisted these demands, although there may be some cosmetic changes to the embargo. Which means that in any future fighting, Israel will retain the upper hand.
Israel has once again succeeded in defending itself. But, yet again, only until the next round, which, as the night follows the day, will come. Hamas will see to that.
Charles Krauthammer is a columnist for the Washington Post. His email address is letters@charleskrauthammer.com.
Nov 25, 2012 at 8:32 a.m.
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The anti-Israel comments on this story are pure, unadulterated anti-semitism: Jew hating. How can you people be so blind to that? You've been worn down by a terrorism that wants to annihilate Israel and all its men, women, and children.
Nov 25, 2012 at 8 a.m.
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Some of the comments on this story could be the foundation for the next Holocaust.
Those comments are made by people who've been so psychologically beaten down by our enemies, that they are saying things that our enemies would approve of.
Nov 25, 2012 at 12:07 a.m.
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Bill, that in itself is the enigma. A solution seems almost impossible, unless people can compromise, sound familiar?
I don't have a suggestion for a viable solution, I just cannot accept the people that ignore one half of the equation as if some lives are worth more than others because we agree with their culture more? Because we have supplied their military? I have no solution, admittedly, but will not stand for ignorance on the topic that just calls all arabs barbaric terrorists, and the Israelites saints. Its just not reality.
Nov 24, 2012 at 11:42 p.m.
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Wow! We all voice our opinions and have many valid points. That is something that the Gazette allows us to do. However, if anyone here really has a viable solution to the problems in the Middle East, the USA and every place where this shinola exists, I would love to read your plan. Are you up to the challenge? Please separate opinion from a truly authentic solution. Intelligent responses, please.
Nov 24, 2012 at 7:06 p.m.
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Sure Bob,anyone who questions Israel must be pro-"the other side". That is like saying Hamas just hates people because they are Jews. Again do you think Hamas just appeared out of nowhere? Do you really believe that Israel only acts in self-defense? Have you read about the sttlements in Gaza and the West bank that pushed thousands of Palestinians out of their homes? Again, maybe you should do some reading instead of just talking about the terrorists vs the saintly Iraelites.
I am not "pro" ANY organization that kills innocent people, INCLUDING the United States Military, which has killed as many innocents throughout history as any terrorist organization. Where is your outrage there? Again, I am for HUMAN Rights, not just for Americans, or israelites, or Christians, or Jews, FOR all human beings.
Your argument is almost like saying that the brutal attacks against our nation on 9/11/2001 were completely out of the blue, for no reason at all, or that they were just extremists attacking us because we are free and educate women. Do you really believe that? I certainly hope not!!
Hamas is no organization I could be for, but just like the Israelis they feel as if they are defending themselves, the worst part is that we fail to see the other side of the argument, because if you try to then you are some kind anti-semite. Just ignorance of the situation as a whole. Part of being human is understanding culture.
Nov 24, 2012 at 5:51 p.m.
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Mooshoo, can you tell me what a couple of weeks in Israel would show me? I work with a company in Tel Aviv and I have seen nothing that would indicate hate toward Palestine or anyone.
All men in Israel are required to join the military and two of the guys I work with had leadership roles when they were active. Neither of them want anything to do with hatred or fighting. They do hate the uncertainty of their family's safety. They have commented on that.
What have you seen that would be contrary to what I have seen? The blockades? Without those in place violence was higher than today.
Nov 24, 2012 at 2:04 p.m.
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Benghazi you need to better understand history, cause and effect. Do some reading into the creation of Israel, etc.... Modern terrorism is almost completely a creation of decades of American policy.
Look down the line, Sadaam? The USA supported him, sold im chemical/biological weapons, how did we KNOW he had them?
Osama Bin Laden? We provided 6 Billion dollars in weapons and training for the Muja Hadeen to try and push out the Soviets, whom we percieved as a bigger enemy at the time.
The Shah in Iran?, etc, etc, etc.....
The funniest thing is that so many believe the propaganda that is put forth by the government, that Muslims simply hate us because of our freedom, HOGWASH. You should really try and educate yourself.
Jews deserving of the Holocaust? That is one of the most ridiculous statement I have ever read in my life. No one has EVER said anything like that. The failure to recognize the re-location of another culture because of genocide committed has created another crisis. Imagine a Muslim state in the middle of the south in America? How would that be viewed? Lets say Florida was given to Arabs as a form of reparation for the hundreds of thousands of innocent dead Arabs since our 1993,2003 invasion? Wonder how the tolerant people of Georgia , Alabama, Mississippi would react? The same people that are signing secession petitions because we have a black president. I know this is a hypothetical, but you have to have an unbiased perspective, unfortunately Kraut does not. Most Americans dont care about Arabs human rights, as long as Israel is strong.
Heres the catch, Israel is there, thet are staying there and America will never tolerate a non-Israeli state solution. SO now what MUST happen is a peace deal brokered so that both nations are recognized soveriegn states. At some point some common sense has to reign here. Israel is and always will be a state, as is Palestine. Now the difficult part is to find a solution that satisfies both parties.
Nov 24, 2012 at 9:01 a.m.
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The quicker people realize we are all human beings and disregard religion and belief, the faster these things will end. There is no good ending.
Israel is a completely artificial country. On what planet can you convert to a religion, then apply for citizenship to a country who's completely modern military, including nukes, are bought and paid for by American tax payers? The Holocaust was a horrific part of our past, and there is no reparations that can pay for murdering millions of people.
What you do is create the conflict that we have today. You kicked people off of the land they called home, and in the not so distant past, and of all places, you give them the Holy Land? Wow. Why not Alabama, or N. Dakota? You don't think that there are going to be violence for generations as people fight over belief systems? We created the problem ourselves.
Nov 23, 2012 at 11:01 p.m.
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Nice to see a factual article regarding Israel. They need to be allowed to defend their sovereignty. They have given the Arab people concessions time after time, yet as no surprise the Arabs only want the elimination of Israel and the Jewish people. The so-called Palestinians were given the state of Jordan, and those left behind were rejected by their own people. They do not care about the land, only to destroy Israel. What a sad state of affairs. This is why their will never be true peace in this region.
Nov 23, 2012 at 10:04 a.m.
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http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast...
Nov 23, 2012 at 10:02 a.m.
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This idiot has no understanding of the economic restrictions placed on Gaza Palestinians. The Israelis have done everything in their power to promote a devastating "economic occupation" of these people which keeps them in abject poverty. And by denying the Palestinians statehood, there is an ongoing sense of complete hopelessness. Being Jewish, I am sure that Kraut finds it quite difficult to demonstrate any objectivity.
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