Fayyad Resigns To Make Way For Unity: Time To Drop Three Conditions Banning US Dealings with Hamas
Good news. Palestinian #2, Salam Fayyad, has resigned in order to facilitate a Fatah/Hamas unity government. This is an important step toward advancing an end to the split which makes any kind of Israeli/Palestinian deal impossible.
This is all the more reason for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who did an outstanding job on her Middle East trip, to drop the three conditions banning US dealings with Hamas.
They are, not surprisingly, ridiculous (they came from Bush) and will, unless dumped, will prevent any kind of solution to the Israeli-Palestinian comflict.
Even the Israelis understand that the Gaza war was not only a humanitarian disaster; it utterly failed. Hamas is stronger than ever.
It's time to deal. Here is what I wrote in IPF Friday.
AND HERE Sen. Jon Kyl (F-AZ) puts forth an amendment to ban Gaza refugees from coming here. Read Phil Weiss.
First off I do think the resignation is a promising development and the Gaza actions were a disaster. The power which the terrorists who call themselves Hamas wield in Palestinian society might be the biggest obstacle to peace. But I am wary that some in Israel might view the latest military action in Gaza and their election of a hard right government might have helped in bringing about this change...and therefore be even less predisposed to strive for a negotiated peace.
March 7, 2009 11:25 AM | Reply | Permalink
It looks like Bibi's boys are trying to stay as far under the radar as possible
Hillary mildly rebuked them and predictably caught some grief for it
The EU isn't being so gentle. A confidential report bluntly charges the Israelis with attempting to annex East Jerusalem, flatly branding this a violation of international law
Israel is a rogue state and increasingly we'll see them called out for it
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/07/israel-palestine-eu-report-jerusalem/print
March 7, 2009 12:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
Calling Israel a rogue state is a highly inflammatory comment which doesn't at all forward the discussion.
How about some thoughtful analysis, and less name calling?
March 7, 2009 8:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Israel hammers Gaza, now Hamas is stronger than ever.
Thirty months ago, Israel hammered Lebanon. Now Hezbollah is stronger than ever. To jam home that point, the British are reconnecting with this "terror cell". Has to. Hezbollah is pretty much the honcho in the land of cedars and edgy nerves.
Now, Israel mutters about attacking Iran. So... in a decade we'll spin our astrolobes to the Levant and point out to curious tots the United Mullahdom of New Persia?
Stepping back, we see the old strategy at work: Israel stokes the fire of a phantom crisis, its hard-charging lobby stampedes in Washington, and the U.S. is PR'd into yet another counterintuitive policy blunder. We'll support this militant stupidity, or we'll bring pressure on... whoever... and we'll end up, with our brave li'l ally, back at square one.
But on this "pressure" thing... How much can a debtor nation leverage from the rest of the world? They may just tell us to screw off; if they do, we'll shield with our haggard face any international eggs aimed at Israel. The alliance of the unthinking.
March 7, 2009 2:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
MJ - Could you elaborate on why the resignation of a Palestinian official should lead to the US dealing unconditionally with Hamas?
Seems a bit of a non-sequitur to me, although I'm sure you have some logic in your mind that you didn't explain.
March 7, 2009 8:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
Fayyad resigning? It's hard to keep track of the machinations going on behind the curtain.
U.S. warns it won't recognize PA unity gov't sans Fayyad
March 7, 2009 10:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
Prediction: If the Palestinian Legislative Council is coerced into reappointing the World Bank Official known as Fayyad, the USG will hail it as a victory for "democracy."
March 9, 2009 12:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
Sure doesn't seem to me like Israel lost. Gaza was devastated, and Hamas has been rather thoroughly discredited, at least in the eyes of most of the world, the same as Hezbollah. Neither group constitutes any kind of military threat any longer, and neither one has much left in terms of outside support. Nasrallah, for instance, is basically in hiding, and hasn't done anything at all since Hezbollah's defeat. The people criticizing Israel and claiming it was defeated were the same ones criticizing it before its act of self-defense. They've been saying that Israel is being defeated for 60 years, and yet Israel keeps getting stronger and stronger. It's never been as strong as it is now, nor has it ever had stronger support from the global Jewish community. Critics of Israel are anti-semites (well, at least 90-95% of them, the rest are just uninformed) and will always criticize Israel no matter what it does, and will always say that the Palestinians are winning, no matter how devastated they are. They live in a fantasy world, not the real one that the rest of us live in. But the majority of the world realizes that Israel had no choice, and acknowledge that they would do the same thing if they were attacked. Meanwhile, the Palestinians are starving, and Israelis are eating. That's the definition of victory.
March 8, 2009 3:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm a critic of Israel - and this country as well - but I'd never assume Israelis ascribe to standards of "victory" as demented as this.
March 8, 2009 5:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
Winning and losing as defined on what effect it had on Hamas or the toll it took on the Palestinian people in Gaza generally speaking? Hamas is stronger than ever. So if the goal was to weaken them then the Israeli actions didn't achieve their objectives and would thus would have to be considered a failure. Now if it was to take a heavy toll on the Palestinian people it was rousing success...
March 8, 2009 8:07 PM | Reply | Permalink