Criniit

hey guys, I didn't see any threads on this, i've been following this conflict since it started a little while ago. Well see if the peace treaty holds...

BBC NEWS
Palestinian groups call new truce
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has announced a new ceasefire deal between his Fatah faction and the Hamas group that aims to stop fighting in Gaza.

The move comes after a week of escalating violence which has brought the territory to a standstill.

News of the breakthrough followed a day of street battles in which at least five people were killed and more hurt.

Schools were closed after five children were among the injured. A truce agreed on Sunday failed within 24 hours.

Mr Abbas told reporters in the West Bank city of Ramallah that the latest ceasefire would come into effect at 2300 local time (2100 GMT).

"We hope all will abide by this agreement," he said.

Mr Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniya, of Hamas, have been invited to Jordan by King Abdullah for talks.

King Abdullah said his country would do all it could "to help the Palestinians overcome their differences".

Abbas and US blamed

In a televised address in Gaza City on Tuesday, Mr Haniya said Palestinians would "remain united" in the face of the Israeli occupation.

Both sides used to fight the Israelis together. Now they are directing their weapons toward each other
Suleiman Tuman
Palestinian shopkeeper

"The smallest drop of Palestinian blood is dear to us and it should not be spilled except to defend our land. We are all aboard the same boat," he said.

On Saturday, Mr Abbas said he would call early elections, in a bid to end the deadlock following the collapse of talks on forming a national unity government.

On Tuesday, Mr Haniya repeated his opposition to the president's move, on the grounds it was "unconstitutional".

He said he blamed Mr Abbas, and the US government in particular, for undermining efforts to form a unity government.

Mr Haniya also reiterated an appeal for a long-term truce with Israel and the formation of a temporary Palestinian state alongside the Jewish state.

In Tuesday's violence:

* An attempt to take an injured Fatah militant to a Gaza hospital sparked a battle between Fatah intelligence officers and Hamas militiamen; one Hamas fighter was killed and several injured

* There was a tense stand-off between Hamas militants and forces loyal to Mr Abbas at the headquarters of the pro-Fatah intelligence service near Gaza City

* A convoy of pro-Fatah militants was ambushed in Gaza City; two Fatah militants were killed and nine bystanders injured, including five children, medical sources said

Gaza shopkeeper Suleiman Tuman, who witnessed some of the violence, told the Associated Press news agency: "I've been praying to God that this is going to end.

"Both sides used to fight the Israelis together. Now they are directing their weapons toward each other."

Factional rivalry

While Fatah, through Mr Abbas, controls the presidency, Hamas, which won elections in January, runs the government.


GROWING TENSIONS
9 Dec - Mr Abbas suggests early polls; Hamas denounces the idea
11 Dec - Three sons of a Fatah security chief are shot dead on their way to school
14 Dec - Hamas PM Ismail Haniya's convoy comes under fire as he returns from Egypt, killing a bodyguard; Hamas blames Fatah
16 Dec - Mr Abbas says he will call early elections; Hamas calls the move a "coup"
17 Dec - A truce is called after street battles between Hamas and Fatah, but violence continues

Fighting between the factions has paralyzed the Hamas administration, which has also been crippled by an international embargo against it.

Hamas refuses to renounce violence or recognize Israel - a crucial demand of the international community.

Fatah believes that ending attacks on Israel is the key to forcing the Jewish state into negotiations on an independent Palestinian statehood.

Increased poverty and months of Israeli operations have polarized Palestinian factional rivalry further, correspondents say.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/h...st/6195263.stm

Published: 2006/12/19 21:21:47 GMT

© BBC MMVI
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And now Al-Qadea has responded with this.
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BBC NEWS
Al-Qaeda attacks Palestinian poll
Al-Qaeda's second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahiri has appeared in a new video to speak out against elections in the Palestinian territories.

The deputy to Osama Bin Laden said in the video, aired on al-Jazeera television, that only jihad, or holy war, would "liberate Palestine".

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas last weekend called for new elections.

His Fatah party is locked in a struggle with Hamas, which won elections in January and opposes new polls.

Second truce

Zawahiri says in the video: "Any road other than jihad will only lead to loss.

"Those trying to liberate the land of Islam through elections based on secular constitutions... will not liberate a grain of sand of Palestine."

In the video, Zawahiri wore a white robe and black turban, with a rifle behind his shoulder.

Only a few excerpts from the message were initially shown and it was unclear when the video was shot.

Zawahiri said the Palestinians should not "retreat in the face of the West".

Mr Abbas's election call on Saturday sparked violence between Fatah and Hamas militants.

A second ceasefire was called on Tuesday evening after Sunday's truce failed to end the bloodshed.

Mr Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniya, of Hamas, have both appealed for calm.

Fighting between the factions has paralysed the Hamas administration, which has also been crippled by an international embargo against it.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/h...st/6195889.stm

Published: 2006/12/20 09:38:25 GMT

© BBC MMVI
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And then here is two Palestinians explaining why they support each faction.
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BBC NEWS
Palestinian viewpoints
Two Palestinians in Gaza explain why they support Hamas and Fatah respectively.

WAEL BASHIR, 32, COMPUTER TRAINER - HAMAS SUPPORTER

I support Hamas because of the work they do for the Palestinian people. I feel they are honest and are fulfilling their promises.

As someone with visual impairment, the Hamas movement provided me with help. They work with all Palestinians and not just for their own narrow interests.

That is the problem with some members of Fatah. They are more interested in their own personal interests than in the national interest. For the 10 years that they were in power, they did nothing for the Palestinian people.

We are living under occupation, but we need to be reasonable with Israel. But the problem is that Fatah want to give too much anyway, and we can't give away our rights.

Ever since Hamas was elected, the West and Israel have wanted to kill it dead. They want packaged democracy - democracy that serves their interests.

What is happening in Gaza now is part of a ploy to make the Hamas government fall. The two things that all governments require to flourish are money and security.

First, the West cut aid to the Hamas administration. And now, Fatah supporters are trying to create chaos on the street.

In the current climate, I worry about the safety of my three children. I don't see an end to the violence unless President Mahmoud Abbas orders an end to the chaos.

I think he's a good man, a reasonable man, but the problem is that he is not in control of the Fatah party.

AHMED ABDULLAH, 29, TEACHER - FATAH SUPPORTER

My father, my brothers, my friends are all Fatah supporters. Fatah is a movement that has been fighting for almost 50 years for the Palestinian cause.

All political movements have their own problems, and Fatah is no exception. But it is clear from the last year that Hamas is a faction with more minuses than pluses.

Since the election, the Hamas administration has made a lot of promises, but it has been unable to deliver them.

Israel is a fact and it won't go away - Hamas's rigid policy is costing us a lot of support round the world

The West's economic boycott has hit us very hard. Hamas says it will never recognise Israel, but this is out of step with the rest of the world.

Fatah recognises Israel, we realise that we must live side by side with it. Israel is a fact and it won't go away. Hamas's rigid policy is costing us a lot of support round the world.

The Hamas administration is making all this chaos to hide the fact that it has failed - to hide the fact that they can't provide for the people.

The killing of innocent people, the kidnapping of top leaders, the chaos in the streets, is all down to Hamas. The main source of this chaos is Hamas's illegitimate force - the executive force - which is killing innocent people.

The current violence is the curse of the Palestinians. We all want this disorder to end. We do not want to fight against each other.

The only way out of this impasse is by talking or holding elections. But Hamas want more violence to prevent the elections called by President Mahmoud Abbas from going ahead.

But I think it's the only way out. If we topple this government, international aid and support will return, and the situation will improve.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/h...st/6194517.stm

Published: 2006/12/19 18:07:25 GMT

© BBC MMVI

dalem

Good. Couldn't happen to a nicer group of orc tribes - I hope the body count is very high.

-dale

Bluesman

It's a shame they both can't lose.

__________________
"The quickest way of ending a war is to lose it, and if one finds the prospect of a long war intolerable, it is natural to disbelieve in the possibility of victory."
- George Orwell

Amled

Could be said that as long as they are fighting each other instead of their stated foe; Israel, they are both loosing.

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When we blindly adopt a religion, a political system, a literary dogma, we become automatons. We cease to grow. - Anais Nin

Bluesman

But eventually, one band of bloody fanatics will finally supress the other. If only they could work themselves both down to 'zero'. That would be an excellent result.

Amled

Can't disagree with the Kilkenny Cats scenario!

gunnut

Anyone noticed that the Palestinians haven't bother the Israelis for a few weeks? We should apply this model to our Iran/Iraq policy. We march into Iran, remove their government and military, then leave. They will be busy killing themselves for years before they have the energy to bother us.

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"Only Nixon can go to China." -- Old Vulcan proverb.

Criniit

Well I was thinking about this at first but then I realized. You can't lay siege with any enemy behind. The Palestinians can do nothing internationally until they unify themselves. And reversely though some say this would be an opportune moment for Israel to take back Palestine, all them them invading would do is to cause Palestine to reunite. Why not just sit back and watch your enemy tear itself apart then mop up whats left?

gunnut

That's exactly what the Israelis are doing. Israel has no intention of destroying Palestine. Israel was established at the same time as Palestine was in 1948. It was the Arabs who forced Israel to fight and annex more land to give themselves a buffer against future invasions. Had the Arabs not interfered, Palestinians would have a nation that's 5 times the size of the land they currently occupy. I blame the Palestinians problems squarely on the Arabs.

astralis

the US is squarely on the side of abbas in the clash, and more secretly, so are the israelis.

honestly, while the idea of a civil war sounds like good news, if there's going to be one, i hope abbas wins (albeit hoping hamas scares fatah out of a year's growth, and start up domestic reforms).

if we have a palestinian gov't that can treat its own people half decently, and is willing to treat israel not only as de facto but as de jure, then that'll be something. even the israelis have said repeatedly that abu mazen is someone they can treat with.

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Never let the future disturb you. You will meet it, if you have to, with the same weapons of reason which today arm you against the present.

-Marcus Aurelius, Meditations