Anatomy Of An Air Strike
Al Jazeera reported Wednesday,
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has brushed aside an appeal from the Quartet of international peace mediators to dismantle resistance groups, saying he knew best how to handle them.
“With regard to dealing with the Palestinian organisations, this is our affair,” Abbas said in the town of Rafah on Gaza’s border with Egypt on Wednesday.
“We know more and are more capable than others in dealing with our brothers.”
Two days later, Hamas rallied in the Gaza Strip, brandishing weapons as a sign of the success of their violence in driving “The Zionist Aggressor” out of Palestinian lands. No one told them, however, that it’s just plain stupid to drive around with missiles bumping about in the bed of your pickup. Horror ensues.
A truck carrying a group of armed men and makeshift weapons exploded yesterday during a Hamas rally in the Gaza Strip, killing at least 15 people and wounding more than 80, according to hospital officials and witnesses.
Hamas quickly blamed Israel for the incident:
Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zahari told reporters that he witnesses the events at the Hamas rally on Friday evening. He said that Israeli drone airplanes were flying overhead at fired four missiles at a convoy of cars during the rally. He added that as a convoy of cars neared the crowds, an Israeli drone fired four rockets and hit one of the cars directly.
He said, “Israel will pay a heavy price for this crime. We are certain that the explosion was not internal, and was not a result of a car full of explosives. The explosion was a result of targeting a resistance convoy by Israeli army drones.”
Abu Zahari continued, “I was on the stage, and I saw the drone firing four missiles at the convoy of the Hamas resistance cars.”
The allegation — which is not an impossibility but which is highly improbable — is being circulated as fact by the Arab press.
Unexpectedly, Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas was the first to cry bullshit:
“What happened yesterday is what we always feared would happen, and what we always warned against,” he said, referring to repeated appeals to gunmen not to flaunt their weapons in public. “Today, we are required more than ever to end this tragedy that resulted from chaos and military parades in residential areas,” he said.
Israel too denied responsibility.
Hamas upheld their promise to ‘make Israel pay’ Saturday by launching a barrage of Qassams at Sderot. Israel, in turn, retaliated by bombing the ever-living-fuck out of Gaza and arresting 207 suspected militants in the West Bank — notably killing and wounding less people with their airstrike than the shitheads in Hamas did with their little victory dance which was, at the end of the day, responsible for this entire incident.
Seems to me like Abbas’ strategy towards ‘reigning in terror groups’ is becoming pretty clear: Let them run wild. They’ll incur the wrath of Israel which will decimate them, which will in turn cause the militants to incur the wrath of the Palestinian street who will lose patience with the bastards that keep getting bombs dropped on them. Abbas’ political opponents will thus vanish and Abbas can then save face because Israel will be responsible for killing and imprisoning the terrorists rather than he himself.
Unless I’m missing something here…
or maybe, the PA doesn’t have enough power to handle with the biggest party in the gaza strip and can’t do alot to stop them becouse israel allready destroyed most of the PA infrustructre in the last 5 years.
and i guess abu mazen knows as much as israel that bombing the gaza strip will just increase the power of hamas and won’t help him in any way.
all of the events in the last three days seams to me much more tragic then conspirative.
if abbas was lamenting his lack of power, he would say to someone, i don’t have the power to stop them please help. instead he’s saying, “i got everything under control and don’t you tell me how to run my shop.” if you’re right, then he’s lying to protect his pride.
Of course Israel is not only doing Abbas’ dirty work (his police and Hamas-Jihad-Martyrs share rosters anyway). Consider the latest moderate rhetoric coming out of Jordan and Pakistan, and thawing of trade relations between Israel and some Gulf states. The trend does not favor the masked thugs and their green flags and bombs. But don’t expect any Arab League version of NATO to handle the Palestinian territories like Bosnia-Herzogovina. It’s much simpler to let Israel do the dirty work. Call it “moral economy.”
What’s important to focus on here is that Israel withdrew from Gaza, and then Hamas launches 40 missiles into residential areas in Sderot on Israel’s side of the green line.
Where are the human rights organizations clamoring for the human rights of Sderot residents? There are none. What we see from this is that there is no human rights community, only a pro-Palestinian community that has co-opted the “human rights” name as cover for its pro-Palestinian advocacy.
Where are all the international peace groups? Where is Yesh Gvul or B’tselem? There is no “peace” movement. Because it there were a peace movement, it would be looking for ways to strengthen the PA and weaken Hamas. It would condition support for the Palestinian position on democratization and an end to terror, especially terrorism from Gaza directed at Israeli residential areas. It would withdraw support from the Palestinians if terror didn’t end.
The international community could also lend a hand here. Instead of making statements about the need to disarm terrorists, they could warn the PA that if they can’t or won’t do it, then Israel will have a green light to try. And if that’s no good, it would offer UN, EU, or US troops to disarm the terrorists.
If only there was a human rights or peace camp that cared about people, instead of only caring about Palestinians…
Gen William Ward warned that the PA had been left defanged and was overmatched by the armed groups. But Israel refused to allow it to arm itself better. Israel, with its superior firepower and organization, could not destroy Hamas, yet expects the PA to be able to do it with one hand tied behind its back.
The truth is Israel doesn’t want Hamas destroyed. Hamas in the government will provide an excuse not to negotiate with the PA, and Israel can continue to make unilateral moves, which it prefers.
http://www.iht.com/articles/20…
The report’s picture of the state of the Palestinian security forces is sobering, even as senior Israeli military officials and Israeli politicians insist that Abbas has sufficient manpower and arms to dismantle Hamas and Islamic Jihad if he would only decide to do it.
Israel has refused requests by Ward to allow the Palestinians to import new armored vehicles and other armament.
When Israel went to war against the Palestinian security forces in the spring of 2002, it destroyed much of their infrastructure; the current quality of arms and ammunition is low.
“The current ratio of personnel to weapons is 4:1,” the report says. “Meanwhile, nonstate factions” like Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the fighters of the Al Aksa Martyrs Brigades and local groups like the Tanzim and the Popular Resistance Committee “are, by contrast, relatively well-armed,” it says.
Ammunition “is in very short supply and much of what is available is in poor condition and unreliable,” the report says.
Given the tradition of rivalry and personal command, the security forces have considerable embezzlement, little uniformity in equipment or training, few all-terrain vehicles, few radios and no coherent communications network other than the mobile phone system.
Still, there have been significant reforms already, Chopra argued, including an age limit on service, the appointment of Youssef, the reorganization of institutional hierarchies and the firing of some long-serving commanders.
In the longer term, he said, continuing structural reform is the only way to build both a credible Palestinian security force that can provide internal order and a reliable relationship with Israel that could finally lead to a permanent peace.
JERUSALEM The security forces of the Palestinian Authority are divided, weak, overstaffed, badly motivated and underarmed, and more attention must be paid to building up institutions rather than personalities, according to the first independent survey of the complicated Palestinian security environment since the death of Yasser Arafat.
The survey, a copy of which was given to The New York Times, was prepared in close coordination with Lieutenant General William Ward, the U.S.-appointed coordinator for reform of the chaotic Palestinian security apparatus, and the Palestinian Authority. It has been read by senior U.S. and Palestinian officials, including those in the office of the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas.
It is an effort to analyze the current deficiencies of the Palestinian security forces while suggesting a long-term program of reform to help guide foreign donors and the Palestinians themselves.
The report also represents an effort to plan Palestinian security cooperation with Israel before, during and after the Israeli pullout of settlers from Gaza, which is set to begin in mid-August.
Ward, who was scheduled to testify Tuesday in Washington before the Appropriations Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives, is also the international coordinator for security during the pullout.
The report sees the biggest risks to successful Israeli disengagement as coming from rocket or mortar attacks by the radical group Islamic Jihad or smaller, local militant groups that are not invested in Palestinian politics; from the risk of Israeli settler incursions designed “to provoke a violent Palestinian reaction” and pull in the Israeli Army; and from the continuing lack of clarity about the Israeli Army’s intentions, making planning difficult.
Continuing violence against Israeli targets by Palestinian militants in Gaza could also prompt the Israeli Army to move into Palestinian areas ahead of time to create a wide buffer zone, with the likelihood of fierce clashes, civilian casualties and a collapse of effective coordination between the two sides.
The report was prepared by a Washington-based group called Strategic Assessments Initiative, which has worked in places like Kosovo, East Timor and Macedonia. The study was funded by the Dutch and Canadian governments, and it was made a part of the coordination mandate given to Ward in March 2005, according to Jarat Chopra, who heads the group’s Jerusalem office.
The essential problem for the Palestinian Authority, the report says, is that its security forces were established on “an ad hoc basis without statutory support and in isolation of wider reforms,” a lasting legacy of Arafat’s policy of duplication and rivalry.
The security forces are somewhat stronger in Gaza than in the West Bank, but suffer from lack of coordination.
“The critical gap is in command and control,” Chopra said. “There’s a blurring between state actors and nonstate actors, and that’s very difficult, from the military point of view.”
Despite recent changes by Abbas, centralizing most forces under the interior minister, that formal structure is not yet reflected in the realities of power, which must include former chiefs of preventive security like Jibril Rajoub and Mahmoud Dahlan, who have no line authority over security forces but have powerful influence over them and who play an important security coordination role with Israel.
The current head of preventive security, General Rashid Abu Shbak, is considered a Dahlan loyalist with weak ties to Nasser Youssef, the interior minister, and divisions between the West Bank and Gaza are deep.
There are also largely unintegrated forces like General Intelligence, Military Intelligence, Special Security, Special Forces and the Political Direction Department, a communist-style group charged with political orientation.
The report’s picture of the state of the Palestinian security forces is sobering, even as senior Israeli military officials and Israeli politicians insist that Abbas has sufficient manpower and arms to dismantle Hamas and Islamic Jihad if he would only decide to do it.
Israel has refused requests by Ward to allow the Palestinians to import new armored vehicles and other armament.
When Israel went to war against the Palestinian security forces in the spring of 2002, it destroyed much of their infrastructure; the current quality of arms and ammunition is low.
“The current ratio of personnel to weapons is 4:1,” the report says. “Meanwhile, nonstate factions” like Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the fighters of the Al Aksa Martyrs Brigades and local groups like the Tanzim and the Popular Resistance Committee “are, by contrast, relatively well-armed,” it says.
Ammunition “is in very short supply and much of what is available is in poor condition and unreliable,” the report says.
that’s another way of looking at it.
kalman — these attacks happened saturday morning for americans. no one’s in the office til tomorrow. give ’em a minute.
xisnotx – “The truth is Israel doesn’t want Hamas destroyed.”
Well, thanks for telling us the truth. I’m sure Israel didn’t want to assassinate Yassin or Rantisi or any other Hamas guys either. I’m sure they’re still kicking themselves over the four terrorists they killed on Saturday. No, I’m sure you’re right. Israel wants Hamas to grow big and strong and fulfill its goal of pushing Israel into the sea. That makes a lot of sense. Thanks for the insight.
“When Israel went to war against the Palestinian security forces in the spring of 2002, it destroyed much of their infrastructure; the current quality of arms and ammunition is low.”
Its hard to know if you are being intentionally dishonest or simply ignorant. I’ll give you the benefit of the doubts and assume you are not being deceitful. You just don’t seem to understand that Operation Defensive Shield took place in the West Bank and Israeli forces did not enter Gaza (except in spot operations). That means what the PA had in Gaza remained intact.
The Palestinians may not have a lot of weapons, but they have plenty of armed terrorists on the docks. How can Israel give arms to the “official” armed forces when those same individuals are also members of terror groups, sometimes carrying out attacks while still in uniform?
Giving more guns to terrorists isn’t going to bring peace. But if Israel did that, you’d probably turn around and say Israel is arming terrorists intentionally because wants more attacks so it could continue operating unilaterally.
People like you have some sort of reflex to blame Israel. When terrorism happens, Israel wanted it. When Israel pulls out unilaterally from Gaza, as all the peaceniks have demanded for years, its bad because its acting unilaterally. Meanwhile, terrorists continue to fire missiles at Israeli civilians in areas not under dispute, in your whole (long) post, you fail to mention that at all. As far as you’re concerned, it didn’t happen.
CNN and Dateline NBC put the final nails in the coffin of their pretense to impartiality. They reported, with a straight face, Hamas’ claim that the explosion was an Israeli airstrike, side by side with Israel’s denial– IN SPITE OF ABBAS’ clear refutation that it was Israel’s action. There is a point beyond which ‘objectivity’ becomes ludicrous. One can’t even dignify this by calling it anti-semitism. It’s just severe brain malfunction and an insult to all of our intelligence and morality.
Demand that media be intelligent!!!
matthew, named the program and what time it happened and i’ll send a complaint to media matters.
oh wait, why bother… camera, fair & honestreporting will be all over it.
mobi:
Seems to me like Abbas’ strategy towards ‘reigning in terror groups’ is becoming pretty clear
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
“reining” is the word you were looking for.
Or maybe it isn’t a typo after all… inadvertent prophecy, anyone?
“CNN and Dateline NBC put the final nails in the coffin of their pretense to impartiality. They reported, with a straight face, Hamas’ claim that the explosion was an Israeli airstrike, side by side with Israel’s denial– IN SPITE OF ABBAS’ clear refutation that it was Israel’s action.”
That could be because they were trusting the public to realise that this was *Hamas* talking here. Did they say “Palestinians accused Israel of …”? No, they said Hamas was doing the talking, assuming, I thought rightly (before reading your comment), that their audience could figure out just how much to trust the statement.
Kalman: after the link, that was an article about Gen Wm Ward from NYT that I posted. I doubt he is being deceitful or dishonest. that was his professional assessment.
xisnotx & Kalman Rushdie,
General Ward is a White House appointed security coodinator. Karen Huges is in the Middle East right now in a PR effort to boost the US image. Why aren’t these missions coordinated enough to get substancial backing by the Arab establishment to assist the Palestinian Authority in securing a monopoly on violence and emerge as the viable Palestinian state they want us all to believe they desire? This is at least as important a mystery as the authenticity (or lack thereof) of any self-described peace and human rights movement.
Hamas’s claim that Israel was responsible for the airstrike was reported on CNN and the BBC’s websites; those were both still there last i checked this afternoon. Given that much of the world buys into the ‘evenhanded’ reporting, and writes off much of what happens as ‘cycle of violence’ (the explicit BBC narrative today), I find such distinctions quite meaningful.
As not only the tabloids but CNN et al well know, with accusations in general, the damage is done by the time a source is named. “Israeli airstrike kills 19, Hamas claims. Israel denies involvement.” Just read it as if you have no previous context: you will assume there is a basic veracity to the claim, as even if you mistrust Hamas, you probably also mistrust the Israeli government. While I don’t have to make the ludicrous claim that the Israeli government NEVER is inaccurate or lies in its statements, I can safely say that the Israeli government is far more open in its public record and accountability than Hamas and/or the PA.
This story was worthwhile because the PA took Israel’s side openly against Hamas, undermining Hamas’ claim and credibility to the point of virtually making it a joke (for those out there who didn’t think so already.) What should have been reported was “Even the PA blames Hamas for the death of 19 Palestinians in parade”, with a footnote way down that Hamas still tried to blame it on Israel. That still would have been objective.
I like how ‘we’ all judge the Palestinians using western standards.
IMO, it’s quite arrogant and ignorant too at the same time.
Palestinians are Arabs, not American/British politicians/activists/b lue collar workers.
Josh,
could you say more? how would a less arrogant and ignorant discription of this go?
thanks.