"While the PA and its benefiting classes are fighting a battle to keep the "process" alive, the Israelis have shown every indication that the "process" ended for them a long time ago. For them, the Oslo process was a necessary but historically finite step designed to co-opt the Palestinian leadership, solidify Israel's grip on stolen Palestinian lands, and normalise Israel's diplomatic status in the Arab world as well as globally. As the Israelis have achieved all these goals, the process no longer serves any purpose for them. At the moment, their continuing campaign to bomb and assassinate Palestinian civilians and pro- and anti-"process" politicians in the West Bank and Gaza has shown no sign of abating. As the Oslo process has brought calamity after calamity on the Palestinian people, its only reason for continuing is the survival of the PA classes that are its main and only beneficiaries.
Make no mistake about it, this is what the ongoing battle in the West Bank and Gaza is all about. What lies in the balance is the fate of nine million Palestinians." Massad
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And to think that I was actually hopeful about an end to this misery, an end that might have had a human face. What a fool! What a fool...
After Madrid and during the "honeymoon" phase I was enraptured. I could visit the Holy Land, not be harassed by the security creeps at Ben Gurion and drive around the countryside as I wished.
Now it is all gone. Dare I say "Gone with the Wind?"
As I wrote some time ago, the forces of Islamist irredentism and Israeli romantic nationalism are in charge and there will be no end.
Now I listen with impatience to the chatter from "returned pilgrims" who think all is well in the Holy Land because "they did not feel afraid." Chickens do not feel fear until the end.
Pat Lang
PL,
You summed it all up in a sentence! "As I wrote some time ago, the forces of Islamist irredentism and Israeli romantic nationalism are in charge and there will be no end". Given the subject matter that is an impressive feat.
And yes, you may "dare say...gone with the wind". Because it is. I think the dye was cast with Rabin's murder. But who knows...perhaps it was doomed anyway. Did you see the blip about Iranian 'forces' being contemplated for the Syrian border? You buy it?
Posted by: jonst | 19 June 2006 at 11:16 AM
jonst
No. What is the citation? pl
Posted by: W. Patrick Lang | 19 June 2006 at 11:46 AM
DebKAfile...which, believe me, I always take with a huge grain of sand. Still....some times they get things right.
http://www.debka.com/
Posted by: jonst | 19 June 2006 at 01:14 PM
Make that SALT PL...sorry. Interesting slip.
Posted by: jonst | 19 June 2006 at 01:14 PM
The official IRNA report. Seems to be part of a general diplomatic offensive from Iran. Like the recent deals with Turkey and Ahmadinejad in China.
http://www.irna.ir/en/news/view/menu-236/0606124306152735.htm
Posted by: ckrantz | 19 June 2006 at 02:38 PM
ckrantz
The Iranians are really feeling frisky. They have outplayed us in Iraq, have us running around like fools over their coming nucs and are now going to solidify the old alliance with Syria.
We caused this by our insistaqnce on treating the Syrians as "awlad Shaitan." pl
Posted by: W. Patrick Lang | 19 June 2006 at 04:01 PM
The Palestinian issue is one of the more vexing situations. Now there seems to be a brewing civil war between Hamas and Fatah with the Israeli's arming Fatah.
The Palestinian people have been let down by their leaders from Arafat on down. I never understood why Arafat didn't take the deal which Clinton brokered. In any case their life is pure misery caught between a militarily strong Israel with iron-fisted tactics and a divided and corrupt Palestinian political leadership only concerned with shaking donors for their personal benefit.
And unfortunately there can be no real debate and an even handed consideration of potential solutions here in the US since that provokes immediate rhetoric of being anti-semitic and forgetting the holocaust by the likudnik sympathizers.
I feel for the innocent Palestinians and Israelis with such a history of bloodshed, yearning for peace and getting on with their lives. I think the Palestine-Israel situation is a blot on western powers who have failed in coalescing a post-colonial compromise and transition.
Posted by: zanzibar | 19 June 2006 at 07:04 PM
Zanji
Arafat was not authorised by the Arab consensus to bargain over Jerusalem, only to rule from there. pl
Posted by: W. Patrick Lang | 19 June 2006 at 07:15 PM
"Arafat was not authorised by the Arab consensus to bargain over Jerusalem, only to rule from there." pl
I guess the Arab "consensus" miscalculated big time!
Posted by: zanzibar | 19 June 2006 at 07:27 PM
PL:
'The Iranians are really feeling frisky. They have outplayed us in Iraq, have us running around like fools over their coming nucs and are now going to solidify the old alliance with Syria.'
Yes. Which has me really worried. All the current trends seems to point to fullscale war over control of the Middle East nucs or not. And it's interesting to see how the locals are starting to accommodate the new Iranian powerbase.
Posted by: ckrantz | 20 June 2006 at 12:02 AM
So what was it I predicted? Hamas will not pick up a fight without thinking and actually try to manage daily problem of running a country.
And just about all second rate analysts went banana about the potential of Hamas going berserk.
Also notice Israel has tried 3 times trying to pick a fight. (bombing civilian targets, attacking hamas leadership, etc)
And Hamas has maintained discipline. Far more so than Fatah. (Ya got to hand it to them for that one.)
And somebody should pull the plug on Israel. They really know how to eff everything to meet their end. (not that I wouldn't do it if I were them)
Bombing stuff near negotiation time with Iran and Iraq needing some stability.
Posted by: Curious | 23 June 2006 at 09:38 AM