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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| PA Offensive Capabilities Increasing, With US Help |
| 2006-11-01 |
| by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz Fatah terrorists are receiving US arms & training, while Hamas terrorists are preparing missile & anti-tank divisions. IDF officer criticizes: IDF's operations are not targeting the Hamas build-up. Speaking before the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Tuesday, the IDF Southern Command chief warned that the Palestinian Authority's ruling Hamas organization is planning to establish missile and anti-tank units. The new units were decided upon in light of the lessons Hamas learned from the Hizbullah's successes against Israel during the recent war in Lebanon, the IDF commander explained. "Hamas is establishing an organized division with anti-tank capabilities and with missiles that could reach threatening distances," Maj.-Gen. Yoav Galant told the Knesset committee. Anti-tank missiles caused about a third of the IDF casualties in Lebanon during the recent campaign against the Hizbullah. Military analysts, as well as Hamas propagandists and strategists, have noted that long-range missiles of the type used by Hizbullah deployed in Judea, Samaria and Gaza would place many Israeli strategic facilities in danger. In an initiative presented as an effort to counter the growing strength and influence of Hamas, the United States has been arming and training a militia affiliated with the Fatah terrorist group, headed by Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas. The premise for the American support is that Fatah and Hamas are headed for a violent civil war, and the US prefers a Fatah victory. Maj.-Gen. Galant told the Knesset Committee that IDF operations in Gaza, no matter how extensive, have all been part of general security operations, "and were not specifically intended to degrade the strengthening Hamas or its building up of its forces." Overall, he said, "the strength of Hamas has grown immensely and significantly since the Disengagement." Smashing success. The IDF commander described a complex system of tunnels along the Philadelphi Route, "most of which are camouflaged and not even dug up. The minute there is an order for smuggling, they dig out an opening and connect to a preexisting tunnel; and after the smuggling is completed, they cover it over." He said that Hamas has begun building an army-like hierarchical infrastructure, including special forces, brigades and battalions. In part, these units are meant to counterbalance such forces currently under the command of the Fatah organization, headed by Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen). "It is reasonable to assume that, in the future, Hamas will put into the field a force of thousands of terrorists, organized and well armed... with weapons systems and night-vision systems, which will form a division. In addition, Hamas is constantly working to increase the range of the Kassam [rockets] - and the technology is within reach." According to security analyst Aluf Benn, American security coordinator General Keith Dayton presented Quartet representatives in London last week with a program for training the PA's presidential guard - Force 17, controlled by Abbas - using Egyptian, British and Jordanian instructors. PA sources say the training by Americans started more than a month ago, at a compound near the Intercontinental Hotel in Jericho. In the past, official PA militias were found to have used weapons provided by the US and Israel in terrorist attacks on Jewish targets. Earlier this month, in an interview with WorldNetDaily's Aaron Klein, a Force 17 terrorist implied that weapons supplied to Fatah from the United States would be transferred to the Al-Aksa Martyrs Brigades, which is recognized as a terrorist organization under US law. |
| Posted by:anonymous5089 |
| #14 Fatah has demonstrated, to my satisfaction at least, that they aren't as smart as that, Shieldwolf, although they are marginally smarter than their competition. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2006-11-01 21:56 |
| #13 Basically, all we have done with this is decide which one of the two street gangs present in the Paleo areas is the one we can work with, once the other is wiped out. So we give them some basic training, light weapons, ammo, and comm systems; they then go out and wipe out the other gangbangers. If Fatah then is smart enough, they will then cut a deal with the Israelis where the US and Israel leaves them alone to loot and pillage the Paleo treasury, in exchange for them stomping on the local terrorists. Street bangers writ large with keffiyehs is what Fatah is, and street bangers will kill anyone who gets in the way of that kind of deal for them. They would then effectively be the only mob left in town, looting and pillaging to their heart's content. |
| Posted by: Shieldwolf 2006-11-01 21:39 |
| #12 "Let's you and him fight!" |
| Posted by: mojo 2006-11-01 16:21 |
| #11 I think RWW is basically making a correct point. A small percentage of the arms to Fatah being used probably unsuccessfully against Israel is an acceptable risk in return for the use of the preponderance of them against Hamas. AAMB uses weapons across the border against Israel mainly for PR - the fight with Hamas MAY be on the point of becoming a life and death struggle. It is not unreasonable to think the US and Israel have a dog in this fight. What remains questionable is if Abbas really has the cojones for it. Years ago I was sure he did. Events have led me to question it. But we shall see what we shall see. |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2006-11-01 15:48 |
| #10 This is stupidity at the highest level if true. Why do I smell State Department ? Oh, I see, Maumoood said they'd never be used against Israelis. Oh, perfectly safe then. |
| Posted by: SpecOp35 2006-11-01 15:32 |
| #9 Zenster, I am sure they will, but being Arabs it is doubtful that they will be able to hit anything with them. The rifles will most likely be used for gun sex or, if absolutely necessary, spray and pray fire. Personally, I would like to see the Israelis go Roman on Gaza and then salt the earth, but realistically, the proprieties must be observed. |
| Posted by: RWV 2006-11-01 14:51 |
| #8 Why is Olmert still there ? |
| Posted by: wxjames 2006-11-01 14:25 |
| #7 Do you really believe that Fatah will hesitate to fire those weapons at Israel? |
| Posted by: Zenster 2006-11-01 14:09 |
| #6 As for US arms to the Fatah terrorists, I believe this refers to the rifles, handguns, and ammunition provided to the PA police force and does not include any heavy weapons. |
| Posted by: RWV 2006-11-01 13:56 |
| #5 The moment a single one of the Palestinian Authority's thugs fires even one American bullet at Israel, we'd better have the moral fortitude to go in and bomb them ourselves. Arming Palestinians of ANY stripe is an incredibly profound mistake. You might as well fill your swimming pool with pirahna. I can only hope that Israel will act in a far more decisive manner this time around. Nothing of Hamas or the al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade should be left standing. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2006-11-01 13:56 |
| #4 When you make it too costly to apply precision fire from tanks and air, the result is that the enemy reduces the area with artillery. If that is what the Paleos want, they had best evacuate any women and children they would like to survive to the beach and keep them there. |
| Posted by: RWV 2006-11-01 13:55 |
| #3 I doubt any of these "new" brigades would stand up well to a mixture of high explosives and napalm. Israel needs to get serious about cleaning out the cesspools known as the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Screw the "paleostinian" ayrabs. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2006-11-01 12:55 |
| #2 How could the PA become any more offensive than they already are? |
| Posted by: Iblis 2006-11-01 12:05 |
| #1 I'm speechless. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2006-11-01 10:48 |