ID | 087372 |
Title Proper | Gaza, Israel, hamas and the lost calm of operation cast lead |
Language | ENG |
Author | Zuhur, Sherifa |
Publication | 2009. |
Summary / Abstract (Note) | aspect of the Palestinian experience has been easy or well communicated to the global public, but it does seem that post-9/11 Western discourse on Arabs and Muslims has led to particularly biased reporting of the confl ict, a glib assumption by major networks that their American viewers see the world just as Benjamin Netanyahu or Michael Oren do. Comprehensive reportage was really impossible; the Israelis barred journalists from Gaza, and the wildest sorts of allegations are being made. Still, we have an idea of the human impact: more than 1,300 Palestinians have been killed and more than 5,300 wounded, compared to thirteen Israeli deaths (some by friendly fi re), as of January 18, 2008. The "why" of this latest adventure is harder to fathom, unless Israel truly desires to remain in a state of confl ict, and for that confl ict to worsen. This ought to be given serious consideration; it is not for nothing that Israel has become an exporter of weapons, security systems and "security training." Moreover, most Israelis remain physically segregated from Palestinian suffering and many maintain a comfortable and secure lifestyle that may not be much of an incentive to peace. Others live far less comfortably, travel by public transport but lack any sympathy for Palestinians, not only due to their separation from or ignorance of them, but due to fear, enlarged by the media. Declarations like "Hamas has to be taught a lesson" belie the fact that Hamas is a movement located throughout the Palestinian national body, just as Hizbollah represents large numbers of Shii Muslims in Lebanon, and as an accepted political party, cannot be easily extricated from the nation. Most curious are Tzipi Livni's declarations of "success," which were implicitly, if subtly, challenged by Fareed Zakaria and others who have questioned the real military intent of reconquering Gaza. If by "successful" Livni means that there will be an end to Hamas, she is wrong. To claim that the goal is to reduce the numbers of rockets (which have killed very few Israelis) fi red into southern Israel from Gaza since long before Hamas actually assumed political control of that area, is also clearly nonsense. That is not the goal of a mas- |
`In' analytical Note | Middle East Policy Vol. 16, No. 1; Spring 2009: p40-52 |
Journal Source | Middle East Policy Vol. 16, No. 1; Spring 2009: p40-52 |
Key Words | Gaza ; Israel ; Hamas ; Lost Calm of Operation Cast Lead |