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ISRAEL
VS. HAMAS |
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Palestinians Caught In Another Blood Bath As Israel And Hamas
War Rages On. |
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Updated 1/28/2009
The ceasefire may be in place but it is as shaky as a three hundred
pound man on stilts. The Hamas lobbed rockets will continue and
Israel will respond with force. The force will be more than the
world would like, but a one sided ceasefire can never last unless it is
by the one that is initiating the rocket fire into Israel. Keep
up with the latest on the Israel-Hamas Conflict on our
Middle East Front |
| It is a scene I have seen too many times in my
life already. It is the secret that Israel wants to forget
and Hamas will not let go of. In the end, it is the
Palestinian people that incur the heaviest losses time after time.
What secret am I contemplating about. It is the fact that the
World has forgotten what the conflict is really about. It is
the fact that one nation was created at the expense of another.
In
1948, almost 26 years after the
passage of the League of Nations Mandate of 1922, the state of
Israel came into existence. The 1922 ruling gave Britain a mandate
to create a "National Home" for the Jews of Palestine. At
the same moment that Israel was created Palestine ceased to exist.
This birth of a new nation was controversial and difficult from
the moment of inception. Arabs were not pleased with the idea of a
non Arab state in the region nor the partitioning of Palestine
into Jewish and Palestinian separate states.
The British concluded that
they could no longer manage Palestine and on November 29, 1947,
after much debate and discussion, the UN recommended the partition
of Palestine into two states one Jewish and one Arab. The Jewish
delegation accepted the UN resolution while the Arabs rejected it.
On May 15, 1948 Britain ended it's mandate over Palestine and
ushered in the birth of Israel and the end of Palestine.
There has never been a power sharing of the former country known as
Palestine ever since. Israel got their promised homeland and
also ended up with the Palestinian partition as well as a result
of interfering regional Arab States that actually lost more land
for the Palestinians than they have actually ever gained.. The
Palestinian people are left with over a half of century without a
homeland of their own in their own lands. The result has led
to war after war as Israel was propped up by Western powers it
became a ridiculous lopsided struggle of modern war machinery
against pre-historic weapons such as rocks. Even today the
Palestinian group Hamas utilizes
rudimentary home made rockets and mortars..
I am not defending Hamas. As
long as Hamas exists there will be no peace for the Palestinian
people. There entire charter is based on the destruction of
Israel. If there is peace, there is no Hamas. I am not defending Israel either. Israel has
been as savage in their treatment of the Palestinians as a
conqueror in history can be. The Palestinians have been
prisoners in their own homeland since the birth of Israel.
It is easy for the Palestinians to feel that Israel is an
illegitimate occupier of their lands. It is also easy for
Israel to say that they have a right to have a homeland as well.
After all they shared Palestine with the Palestinians for hundreds
of years. The problem arises in that as a result of the way
Israel was created the two peoples cannot have a homeland at the
same time in the same place. Before we get into the latest
conflict in Gaza it is important to understand that at some point
in time it is paramount that Israel and Palestine both exist at
the same time as neighbors or there can never be peace in the
Middle East and in all reality peace between Islam and the West
itself and this solution is not a secret to anyone. |
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What Started
The Latest Round Of Violence? |
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| It is hard to determine when the previous violence
ends and new wave begins in the conflict between Hamas and Israel.
If you do a google news search of "Hamas fires rockets into Israel"
there are very few months that will not be returned with news
results. It is a regular occurrence no matter the year or
month. This time around in Gaza, Israel insists it is aiming to
end rocket-fire from Hamas-linked groups into its territory, which
began again on December 19th when a six-month Egyptian-brokered
truce ended. Middle Eastern experts
sees Egypt's status as a mediator under threat as well. When
an Arab nation stands in as a mediator in the Palestinian conflict
there are great risks for the mediating nation. Here
Egypt looks very weak, it looks like it is not doing anything to
pressure Israel into protecting Palestinians as Hamas baited
Israel into the current conflict with home made rockets and mortar
attacks into Israel from Gaza. In the Arab world it looks like
Israel is negotiating from a position of power greater than that
of Egypt which has itself fought in a series of wars that led to
demoralizing defeats for the Arabs. To see Israel roll into
Gaza and kill hundreds of Palestinians in attacks not only makes
Egypt look weak in restraining the Jewish state but has the
appearance of a lack of respect toward the Cairo government from
Israel. Egypt's diplomatic efforts are under heavy attack by Syria
and radical elements and are being accused of acting as an Israeli
collaborator, threatening its role as the mediator between the
Palestinian factions.
Why did Hamas fire the rockets into
Israel? The answer is pretty simple. They always have
fired rockets into Israel. Hamas needs conflict to gain
support internationally both monetarily and morally. Hamas
wants an end to Israel and for Palestine to be reborn under their
control. There is no other objective other than an Islamic
Palestinian state where Israel exists today for Hamas.
Islamic extremists in Gaza and elsewhere mainly view the
Palestinian conflict as more of a religious world wide struggle
than a war for independence of Palestinians. A win over
Israel would be a major victory in the attempt to create a world
wide Islamic Caliphate. This is the vision of the Muslim
Brotherhood and other groups including al Qaeda.
Iran has become more influential with Hamas and is increasingly
playing a major role in the conflict between the terrorist group
and Israel. Iran is clever and is using Hamas and Hezbollah to
test the resilience and defenses of Israel as tensions continue to
mount over Tehran's nuclear program. In addition to funding
Hamas, they also share one important end result that Iranian
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's has stated openly of “wiping
Israel off the map”. This is the solution that both Iran and Hamas
embrace for the basis of their relationship. The Iran -
Hamas link is more important for Tehran now than in the past
because of the new role that Hezbollah plays in the Lebanon
government. In their power sharing agreement in Lebanon
Hezbollah has agreed not to launch unprovoked attacks against
Israel or risks it political gains in the Lebanese government.
Tehran's investment in Hamas is large enough to have given it a
decisive say in shaping the group's strategy. Israelis see Hamas
as one of the three fronts that Israel would have to face if
Israel attacks Iran., the third front in such a conflict is
Hezbollah from Lebanon, who under such circumstances would take a
political risk in response to an Israeli attack on Iran.
Hezbollah would enter a conflict of this magnitude.
The Palestinian struggle in the Middle East has been like a
card game. Each time the cards are reshuffled a new hand is
presented. This time it appears that Israel has been dealt
the troubling hand of Hamas, Iran, and Hezbollah as tensions mount
and the world once again watches a troubled region.
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More Background
Information and Links for Understanding the Israeli and
Palestinian Struggle |
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Israel
The
State of Israel was established 60 years ago on May 15, 1948.
For 60 Years the World has lived with the Arab - Israeli
Conflict. A look into the history of the conflict. In 1948,
almost 26 years after the passage of the League of Nations
Mandate of 1922, the state of Israel came into existence. The
1922 ruling gave Britain a mandate to create a "National Home"
for the Jews of Palestine. At the same moment that Israel was
created Palestine ceased to exist. This birth of a new nation
was controversial and difficult from the moment of creation.
Arab states immediately sought to destroy the fledgling
nation. The new Jewish state was occupied with fighting a war
and facing the dilemmas created in organizing a society. |
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Is War Between Israel
And Iran Inevitable?
Will Israel
gamble on it's very existence by not stopping Iran from going
nuclear or will they follow through on promises and attack
Iran to end the Threat? Does Iran plan on using a nuclear
weapon or is their program peaceful? In the past few years
Israel, the United States and many other members of the world
community have been working very hard to stop Iran from
enriching the uranium that have until a deal can be worked out
to safe guard the region from nuclear proliferation. Iranian
officials have stated that there is no stopping a nuclear
Iran. Israel has stated that they can not allow a nuclear Iran
in the region. The one thing that has hindered Iran and has
stopped them from having more widespread support in the world
community are their statements and actions |
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The Muslim
Brotherhood
In depth article explaining who the Muslim Brotherhood is,
there stance in America and there connection to terrorism.
The Muslim Brotherhood is the most influential Muslim Groups
in the World. The Muslim Brotherhood was founded in 1928 by
Hasan al-Banna, a 22-year-old elementary school teacher. The
brotherhood was to be an Islamic revivalist movement following
the banning of the caliphate system of government that had
ruled the Muslims for centuries until the fall of the Ottoman
Empire. The organization was created to promote a return to
fundamental Islamic beliefs and practices and to fight Western
colonialism in the Islamic world and an opposition movement to
the British-backed Egyptian monarchy. The Muslim Brotherhood,
founded in Egypt more than seven decades ago, is among the
most powerful political forces in the Islamic world today.
Today there are Brotherhood franchises throughout the Middle
East and in many Western countries, including the United
States |
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Hizballah
Formed in 1982 in
response to the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, this
Lebanon-based radical Shia group takes its ideological
inspiration from the Iranian revolution and the teachings of
the late Ayatollah Khomeini. The Majlis al-Shura, or
Consultative Council, is the group’s highest governing body
and is led by Secretary General Hasan Nasrallah. Hizballah is
dedicated to liberating Jerusalem and eliminating Israel, and
has formally advocated ultimate establishment of Islamic rule
in Lebanon. Nonetheless, Hizballah has actively participated
in Lebanon’s political system since 1992. Hizballah is closely
allied with, and often directed by, Iran but has the
capability and willingness to act independently. Though
Hizballah does not share the Syrian regime’s secular
orientation, the group has been a strong ally in helping Syria
advance its political objectives in the region. Hizballah
operates in the southern suburbs of Beirut, the Beka’a Valley,
and southern Lebanon. Has established cells in Europe, Africa,
South America, North America, and Asia.
More |
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Hamas
HAMAS was
formed in late 1987 as an outgrowth of the Palestinian branch of
the Muslim Brotherhood. Various HAMAS elements have used both
violent and political means, including terrorism, to pursue the
goal of establishing an Islamic Palestinian state in Israel.
Hamas, the terror group turn political party, was created in 1987
by Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.. HAMAS was formed in late 1987 as an
outgrowth of the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Various HAMAS elements have used both violent and political means,
including terrorism, to pursue the goal of establishing an Islamic
Palestinian state in Israel. It is loosely structured, with some
elements working clandestinely and others operating openly through
mosques and social service institutions to recruit members, raise
money, organize activities, and distribute propaganda. HAMAS’
strength is concentrated in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The
Hamas and Muslim Brotherhood continues to share good
interrelationships. Hamas has been in a violent confrontation
since the organizations inception against Israeli forces that have
resulted in the death of many Palestinians that have unfortunately
been caught in the crossfire. Many upper echelon members of Hamas
have been the target of Israeli air strikes.
More |
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Al Aqsa Martys Brigade
The
al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade consists of small cells of terrorists
aligned with
former Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat’s al-Fatah faction. Arafat
is given credit for creating the Al-Aqsa to provide a show of
force to Israel's attacks on Palestinians. While the group
initially vowed to target only Israeli soldiers and settlers in
the West Bank and Gaza Strip, in early 2002 it began a spree of
terrorist attacks against civilians in Israeli cities. In March
2002, after a deadly al-Aqsa Brigades suicide bombing in Jerusalem
the United states added them to their list of terrorist entities.
Al-Aqsa emerged at the outset of the 2000 Palestinian intifadah to
attack Israeli targets with the aim of driving the Israeli
military and settlers from the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and
Jerusalem, and to establish a Palestinian state. Al-Aqsa operates
in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza Strip, and has only claimed
attacks inside these three areas.
More |
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