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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Hamas appears close to taking over entire Gaza Strip |
| 2007-06-14 |
| Hamas fighters launched a fierce offensive on Gaza City on Wednesday, attacking the main security bases and the Palestinian Authority chairman's compound with mortars and rockets and sending some of the rival Fatah forces fleeing in disarray as the Islamic group appeared close to taking over the entire Gaza Strip. With the fighting raging on rooftops and streets in nearly all corners of Gaza, residents huddled in fear in their homes, hoping to keep their families safe from stray bullets and shrapnel. Fayez Abu Taha, 45, a businessman in the southern town of Rafah, said he was trapped in his apartment building with his family after Hamas fighters took over a nearby rooftop and Fatah responded by taking over the roof of his building. "I don't know what they are battling for now," he said. "I can see the bullets flying from my windows. Coming and going." PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah called the fighting "madness" and pleaded with Hamas's exiled leader for a halt to the violence. Abbas's forces - desperately trying to cling to their besieged bases in Gaza - lashed out at the president, saying he left them with no directions and no support in the fight. Abbas and PA Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas issued a joint statement after nightfall, calling on all sides "to halt fighting, and to return to language of dialogue and respect of agreements," according to a statement from Abbas's office. The call was broadcast on Palestinian TV. The two have made numerous calls for an end to the fighting in the past, to no avail. No one was listening to the elected leaders as the focus of power passed to street militias. Hamas gunmen neutralized recognized security forces linked to Fatah in frontal assaults on their strong points, ruling the streets and taking control of large parts Gaza in the process. The rout of the security forces was so bad that 40 Palestinian security officers broke through the border fence in Rafah and fled into Egypt seeking safety, Egyptian police said. "What I can I say? This is a fall, a collapse," said Col. Nasser Khaldi, a senior police official in Rafah. In Washington, US officials condemned the fighting. "Violence certainly does not serve the interest of the Palestinian people, and it's not going to bring the peace and prosperity that they deserve," White House spokesman Tony Snow said. At least 15 people were killed in fighting Wednesday, bringing the total in the four-day campaign to nearly 60. Among those killed Wednesday was a man shot when Hamas gunmen fired at a peaceful protest against the violence, witnesses said. In one dramatic battle, hundreds of members of the Fatah-allied Bakr clan, which had fought fiercely for two days, surrendered to masked Hamas gunmen and were led, arms raised in the air, to a nearby mosque. Footage broadcast on Hamas' Al Aqsa TV showed some of the Bakr women trying to enter the mosque. Hamas gunmen later drove off with some of the Bakr fighters, witnesses said. Two women from the clan tried to leave the area to take a sick girl to a hospital and were shot and killed by jittery Hamas gunmen, a clan member said. After nightfall, Hamas militants blew up the house of one of the Bakr clan's leaders, witnesses said. Hamas, already in control of much of northern Gaza, seized the southern town of Khan Younis on Wednesday and began a coordinated assault on the town of Rafah, security officials said. On Wednesday afternoon, they launched attacks on the three main compounds of the Fatah-allied forces in Gaza City - the headquarters of the Preventive Security, the Intelligence Service and the National Forces - in what could usher in the final phase of the battle. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #14 :-) |
| Posted by: Frank G 2007-06-14 23:54 |
| #13 I don't think Iran will launch missiles. Bless you for that, Pappy. I've been having not-quite-nightmares about the missiles. Truly, I read your words and it was like a weight I hadn't realized was there dropped from my shoulders. As for the rest of your post, thank you for being gentle. ;-) Frank, in the frenzy, a great deal more than there/their went awry. On the other hand, I used to have perfect spelling and grammar, do you remember? Now I'm happy if readers can figure out what I meant while ignoring what I actually typed. ;-) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-06-14 23:34 |
| #12 Their are now two states - plus Israel. Yup, talk about a "two state" solution to the Palestinian crisis! Make Gaza the living hell the populace voted in - consequences of Democracy, asshats? Deal favorably with the WB and Fatah as much as possible to show the carrot and stick What's not to like? Much as I said as well. This is the perfect time to bring home the consequences of democratically empowering Islamic terrorism. Iraq should be taking notes from the sidelines if they have a brain (which they may well not). |
| Posted by: Zenster 2007-06-14 22:00 |
| #11 Their not there? Jeebus! PIMF is ignored in a frenzy, no? |
| Posted by: Frank G 2007-06-14 21:44 |
| #10 Also, I'm not sure how much a distraction either the West Bank or Gaza will be in the face of a real war with Hizb'allah in Lebanon or Iran getting frisky with its missiles. Because Israel can completely shut down the crossings out of the Territories, and Palestinian rocketry, while destructive of property and in the nearby Israeli communities being hit, is not an effective war weapon, as far as I can tell in my ignorance of such things. I don't think Iran will launch missiles. As for Gaza, what trouble Hamas can create depends what Hamas has on hand, and who is calling the shots. The intent would be to tie down a significant portion of the IDF and border forces. I don't believe the crossings are where Hamas would intend to come through. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2007-06-14 21:39 |
| #9 Jenifer -absolutley on the money. Israel can/should shut off all commerce, water, power, and phones to the animals in charge in Gaza. Egypt needs to decide whether they want this boil on their border and shut off the tunnels. Raise the heat...and kill all the Hamas members in the WB. Their are now two states - plus Israel. Make Gaza the living hell the populace voted in - consequences of Democracy, asshats? Deal favorably with teh WB and Fatah as much as possible to show teh carrot and stick, and when the Qassams fly from Gaza? Destroy 10 sq blocks for every rocket. Start on the boder and intermittently announce, then follow through with the leveling of Hamas big's neighborhoods...a 10 block sq at a time |
| Posted by: Frank G 2007-06-14 21:37 |
| #8 while destructive of property and morale in the nearby Israeli communities PIMF!! |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-06-14 20:59 |
| #7 After that comes the takfir game, when all those less pure have to be removed from the scene... A double feature at matinee prices? Kewl! |
| Posted by: Zenster 2007-06-14 20:54 |
| #6 Oh, good -- all the people who actually understand the subject answered Zenster's call, saving me from looking silly. Thanks, guys! My two cents anyway, mostly stuff y'all already know: the West Bank and Gaza always were two somewhat distinct populations claiming the name of Palestinian for convenience. Palestinian ties are primarily those of blood (family, clan, tribe, whatever) and religion (Sunni, Shiite, atheist national socialist "Arab Nation"); the primary political factions follow those lines, then split off by age (all the fighting arms are younger and more radical than the main groups) and by individual need to be an emir. So even though Hamas will have cleansed their territory of Fatah, they still have to erase enough of the other groups to cement their overlordship. After that comes the takfir game, when all those less pure have to be removed from the scene... Fatah will have to do the same in the West Bank, I think, just to ensure their own safety. In the meantime -- and y'all must remember that I really don't understand how mean people think, let alone truly evil ones -- I don't think there's going to be much more than lobbing kassem rockets over the fence and the occasional attempt at suicide bombing, like the two charming Islamic Jihad ladies whose capture is reported in these pages, no matter how much the erstwhile puppeteers in Iran, Syria and Saudi Arabia may push them to provide second and otherwise fronts this summer. Also, I'm not sure how much a distraction either the West Bank or Gaza will be in the face of a real war with Hizb'allah in Lebanon or Iran getting frisky with its missiles. Because Israel can completely shut down the crossings out of the Territories, and Palestinian rocketry, while destructive of property and in the nearby Israeli communities being hit, is not an effective war weapon, as far as I can tell in my ignorance of such things. There! Feel free to gently show me where I've erred in my analysis, my dears. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-06-14 20:46 |
| #5 Pappy---It seems to me that Hamas in Gaza will keep Israel occupied, and that you are right about the Syrian-Iranian assault on Beiruit. If northern Lebanon is neutralized by Hizb'Allah, then they have the run of Lebanon, and Israel is further boxed in. It sounds like Israel is going to have to do something preemptive like they did in 1967 to take out these threats. A Hamas run Gaza will become rocket or missile city, just southern Lebanon. Israel needs a Moshe Dyan, not an Olmert, for her survival. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2007-06-14 15:41 |
| #4 Assad may be smart enough to try to restrain them, but maybe not, and even if he were, could he? That depends on whether it's just the Syrians that are in Gaza, or other parties as well. To my semi-trained eye, there is a push on (Gaza, Lebanon, Iraq). The question is if it's a ploy to buy negotiating power on behalf of Syria's cohort (Iran). Given the increased activity in Iraq, that's a possibility. The other possibilities are: 1) Whether it's a move to set up a two-front attack on Israel when Hezb'allah tries 'round two'. or 2) Gaza will act as a distraction (to prevent a move by Israel against southern Lebanon)while an Syrian/Iranian-sponsored assault on Beirut is made. This seems the most likely to me. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2007-06-14 10:03 |
| #3 "With Fatah shoved aside, the only responsible party remaining is Hamas. This would seemingly permit Israel much greater latitude in prosecuting all further missile launches and terrorist attacks. It might be best that Fatah retire to the West Bank and give Israel a clear field to do some serious house cleaning in Gaza. Not only could Fatah generate some badly needed credibility with Israel, but also they would have their heavy lifting done for them free of charge." Israel wont get a clear field. First off, Fatah can hardly ok the clear field, without alienating the population in the West Bank, who may not like Hamas, but will sympathize with any civies hurt in Gaza by Israelis, even if the Israelis are going after Hamas. Second, even if Fatah DID give its ok, in large parts of the arab and muslim worlds, and some parts of the Euro left, that will only lead to dismissing Fatah. Fatah in that case would provide only minimal cover for the Israelis. Anything "disproportionate" will still lead to UN resolutions, boycotts, etc. And most important, embarassment to the US, which will pressure Israel to react with "restraint". Maybe they will be somewhat tougher than theyve been, but I wouldnt expect it to be by an order of magnitude. "I also think that an ensuing round of murderous Hamas led purges within the Gaza strip might give the Palestinians a better idea of just what they've gotten themselves into. Several hundred more brutal deaths would only serve to cement Hamas' reputation as a genuine terrorist organization." Here I think you are on more solid ground. We've seen a taste of that already this week in Gaza. With no more political game to play with Fatah, it will be tempting for Hamas to unbare their fangs completely, esp given the makeup of whos running Hamas in Gaza now. Assad may be smart enough to try to restrain them, but maybe not, and even if he were, could he? This would be important not so much in Gaza (what are the Gazans going to do, maybe a guerilla campaign?) but in weakening the image of Hamas around the world. "Another benefit of this is that, by rights, with Hamas in total control, all foreign funding to the Gaza strip should be shut down entirely. Special separate financial conduits should be set up to provide for the West Bank only. This would represent yet one more lever to force recognition of just what a truly bad decision it was to have elected Hamas." Hard to pull off, as Hamas as over a million Pal hostages, and an unlimited ability to play their suffering before the cameras. "Israel has a sterling opportunity to play the "Good Cop/Bad Cop" role to the hilt. They can assume a slightly more benevolent posture towards the West Bank while unleashing the harshest retaliations against Gaza. They could easily turn this into a huge win-win situation. " Maybe marginal gains, I dont see a huge win-win. "Provided, that is, if Olmert has both the wisdom and ostiones to seize this possibly golden opportunity." Olmert is history. Once the full Winograd report is out, he will almost certainly step down, and Kadima will select a new leader. Depending on the polls, Kadima and Labour might go for new elections, or more likely Ehud Barak, the new head of Labour, and whoever is the new head of Kadima, will try to hang on longer. Barak will likely be the new Defense Minister. Unlike Peretz, Barak is quite experienced in security matters, and willing to take risks, both in war and in diplomacy. He would be eager to try something big, but whether a still weakened govt will have the oomph to pull it off remains to be seen. |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2007-06-14 09:26 |
| #2 Another benefit of this is that, by rights, with Hamas in total control, all foreign funding to the Gaza strip should be shut down entirely. Won't happen Zenster. Euros* may get to the state of running concentration camps for their Muzzi population, and they'll still be funding Paleos. *For the purpose of this discussion: USDS is a European institution. |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2007-06-14 05:00 |
| #1 I'm thinking that this may not be such a bad thing after all. With Fatah shoved aside, the only responsible party remaining is Hamas. This would seemingly permit Israel much greater latitude in prosecuting all further missile launches and terrorist attacks. It might be best that Fatah retire to the West Bank and give Israel a clear field to do some serious house cleaning in Gaza. Not only could Fatah generate some badly needed credibility with Israel, but also they would have their heavy lifting done for them free of charge. I also think that an ensuing round of murderous Hamas led purges within the Gaza strip might give the Palestinians a better idea of just what they've gotten themselves into. Several hundred more brutal deaths would only serve to cement Hamas' reputation as a genuine terrorist organization. Another benefit of this is that, by rights, with Hamas in total control, all foreign funding to the Gaza strip should be shut down entirely. Special separate financial conduits should be set up to provide for the West Bank only. This would represent yet one more lever to force recognition of just what a truly bad decision it was to have elected Hamas. Israel has a sterling opportunity to play the "Good Cop/Bad Cop" role to the hilt. They can assume a slightly more benevolent posture towards the West Bank while unleashing the harshest retaliations against Gaza. They could easily turn this into a huge win-win situation. Provided, that is, if Olmert has both the wisdom and ostiones to seize this possibly golden opportunity. I'd really enjoy hearing what trailing wife and other more-well-versed contributors have to say about the above observations. This could represent a unique chance for Israel to, for once, significantly differentiate in how they deal with Fatah and Hamas. Of course, the entire foregoing also relies upon Fatah acting in good faith as well, and we all know just how extraordinary that would be. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2007-06-14 00:47 |