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| Israel-Palestine |
| Rantissi: A day in the (increasingly nervous) life |
| 2004-03-28 |
| Long article, edited for evidence of looking over one’s shoulder. Calibrate your sympathy meters... Two years ago, when I wanted to interview Abdel Aziz Rantissi, I would go to his house in Gaza City. But when I was assigned to find him or Mahmoud Al Zahar on Tuesday, the day after Sheikh Yassin was killed in an Israeli air strike, I did not go to his house. I knew he would not be there. In the two years since I had interviewed Rantissi, his lifestyle has changed dramatically. Now, Rantissi lives on the move, in secret. He doesn’t answer a phone for fear the Israeli Air Force can use the telephone signal to track and kill him. Rantissi still appear[s] in public, but only where there is a thick crowd, as he knows that while Israel is after him, the country does not want to be held accountable for firing into a crowd. So, when he stands in a sea of Palestinians, the people Rantissi claims to represent become his human shields. Rantissi travels on foot these days because, as he knows better than most, cars make good targets for missile strikes. There was a brief moment of tension at the mourning tent when a couple of fixed-wing aircraft were spotted flying overhead. Everyone knew they were Israeli; the only aircraft that fly over the Gaza Strip are Israeli. My best guess was that they were drone aircraft keeping an eye on the Hamas leadership. Apparently, Israel was not backing off its promise to assassinate the leaders of Hamas and Islamic Jihad and tracked them down here. When Rantissi and his security detail arrived [at the author’s office, for this interview], they skipped the elevator and walked up fourteen floors to the office. For some reason, Rantissi doesn’t like elevators. Rantissi’s security aide vetoed that location because it was next to a window. He was afraid Israeli aircraft could target his employer and new leader through a window. In fact, at one point he made Abed close a door two rooms away, because he spotted a window. The next night, Rantissi was back in a crowd of militants who had put down their differences to support their new leader. This article also has intersting commentary on Rantissi’s state of mind and thought on the future of Palestine. |
| Posted by:Seafarious |
| #11 *** Dumpster *** What's with posting on all these old stories? You gonna go back in time and create some pointless legacy that maybe ONE or TWO people will ever read? This post of yours is MUCH more interesting: "Jen, only when and if he is ever properly elected will I then be grudgingly obliged to address him as you wish I would. His intentional blurring of the separation between church and state while simultaneously attempting to constitutionalize discrimination gets nothing but scorn from me. Thank goodness we live in a country where we can disagree on this matter. Please know that you indeed have the privilege to dislike me for what I say, that is entirely your right. Understand one thing though, I don't do this to intentionally anger or offend you or anybody else. As a proud American I cannot abide the White House's ham-fisted tampering with both the duties of executive office or our beloved constitution. Whatever proper intransigence might be shown for terrorism (as is demanded of all worthy commander in chiefs) still in no way confers any right to enshrine religious commandment as constitutional law, especially not in a nation wholly founded upon secular ideals. This is what he's attempting and my own ethicality demands that I consider it to be nothing less than malfeasance of office. Hence my scorn." Oh, Dumpster, you're a treasure. What a load of juicy bullshit. He IS the duly elected President of the United States, fucktard. Proof that all else you may say is at the very least suspect, if not outright total fucking bullshit. You're full of shit. Your notion that he is "constitutionalizing discrimination" is truly insane. Proof? You're full of shit. You provide no proof of any "ham-fisted" actions - or anything even remotely associated. You're full of shit. As an atheist, I know he has not done anything that hasn't been done before for the last 30 years to "enshrine religious commandment as constitutional law". I most certainly would've noticed. You're full of shit. The phrase "my own ethicality demands that I consider it to be nothing less than malfeasance of office" is so utterly asinine and disingenuous as to be breathtaking. You couldn't prove any aspect of that charge if your worthless life depended upon it. You're full of shit. It is clear that you're one thoroughly conflicted and fucked up induhvidual - and given your comments, so anti-Bush that you'd remove him from office if you could. You obviously think President Gore is being denied his constitutional rights. You're fucking insane. It is not unreasonable to presume you will vote against Bush, therefore, so you are in league with the enemy - there is no sane RBer who could possibly believe Skeery would be worth warm spit in the Wot - your pathetic little aside about Commanders in Chief notwithstanding. You are unbelievably amazingly self-defeatingly massively full of shit. You're a troll. |
| Posted by: .com 2004-04-05 1:17:16 AM |
| #10 Recent reports say he's now wearing shirts with lots of bright red little polkadots so it's harder to draw a bead on him. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-04-05 12:57:30 AM |
| #9 If they keep him walking up 14 stories all the time maybe the fucker will die of a heart attack. Hey, dead is dead. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2004-03-28 7:01:43 PM |
| #8 Col. Mustard from a rooftop at 1000 meters with the sniper rifle. You DO mean Gunny Yigal from a rooftop at 1000 meters with the sniper rifle, don't you, steve? 8^) My personal preference would be Captain Hugh Black with a JDAM from a B2 at 25,000 feet, but that's another story (If you want to know who Hugh Black is, email me - it's funny!). |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2004-03-28 1:46:29 PM |
| #7 [Off-topic or abusive comments deleted] |
| Posted by: Anonymous TROLL 2004-03-28 1:37:55 PM |
| #6 Col. Mustard from a rooftop at 1000 meters with the sniper rifle. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2004-03-28 11:57:52 AM |
| #5 Target in a crowd? BLAM! |
| Posted by: Lux 2004-03-28 10:07:15 AM |
| #4 I know the Joooos are famous for their rubber bullets.... I wonder if they could whip up a rubber HellFire or 2.5 FFR and commence to scare the sh*t out of everybody. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-03-28 9:49:32 AM |
| #3 Hamas would consider Sharon in a big crowd of Israeli civilians to be a very very good bombing target. A big crowd of Israeli citizens is just a very good bombing target. |
| Posted by: Mike Sylwester 2004-03-28 9:13:13 AM |
| #2 Seems like he wants to lead an even more nervous life : Rantissi: Bush Is 'Enemy of God' |
| Posted by: Lux 2004-03-28 7:57:38 AM |
| #1 Anyone noticed? A crowd is an adequate shield against Israeli attacks while the Palestinans would not hesitate one second in putting a bomb in an Isreali crowd. May Rachel Corrie, may all the chic left burn in hell for their moral depravation. |
| Posted by: JFM 2004-03-28 4:00:00 AM |