Thar she blows...

AZZenny · May 20th, 2007, 11:24 PM

In the last 72 hours or so, all hell is starting to break loose again in Lebanon, Israel, and Gaza.

It started a week ago with a sudden intense resurgence of Qassam missile attacks on southern and south-central Israel, 140 in one week, with direct hits on a couple schools, homes, restaurants. They were claimed by Islamic Jihad and some Hamas sub-groups.

They'd been firing a few a week ever since the 'cease fire,' and Israel held back for the most part, striking when they could actually spot and take out a missile firing site in action. As Saudi-initiated peace talks have been pushed (against Hamas's wishes), the missiles picked up. The timing may also be a way to make sure the Israelis leave the current discredited witless fools running the country -- not the best time to hold elections. Look for Netanyahu to make a political comeback.

Meanwhile, Fatah and Hamas were clashing in the streets, killing between 50 and 100 of each other in the past week. It got so bad a few Palestinians said publically that renewed Israeli occupation is the only way to regain control of the streets! (which are constantly prowled by armed gangs attacking anyone they don't like, extorting money, etc.)

It also came out that a great deal more financial aid has been getting through to Gaza in the last 6-8 months than anyone realized, but somehow, as always, none of it is getting used for real needs of the population.

So two days ago, the Israeli Air Force was given the go ahead to pro-actively target any known militant workshops or terror cells again; today they were told to resume targetted assassinations of any Gazan leader known to support active terrorism.

Hamas indignantly says they will unleash the very fires of hell on Israel for violating the ceasefire... the Tel Aviv bus they tried to blow up a couple months ago (the detonator broke and the guy was caught), the utility repairman (fixing a line INTO Gaza) they shot and killed, and the rain of missiles obviously not counting as violations.

Even Egypt is getting pissed off at Hamas and talking about (I LOVE this) building a separation wall between Gaza and Egypt.

Then in Tripoli, Lebanon, yesterday 22 Lebanese soldiers and about 20 Sunni (not Hezbollah) militants died in a huge gun battle near one of the Palestinian refugee camps. It is believed -- even by the Palestinian refugees -- that it was a semi-Palestinian radical group trained and funded by Syrian Intelligence that models itself on AQ. Then a huge car bomb went off in a normally peaceful Christian section of Beirut.

It's possible this is unrelated, and due only to the increasingly likely UN Hariri assassination tribunal. Regardless, people there think Syria is deliberately firing up the pot in Lebanon again (none of the Lebanese like the Palestinians much) while keeping a re-armed Hezbollah in reserve.

Glad I got my vacation out of the way in March.

UncleChris · May 21st, 2007, 09:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AZZenny

Glad I got my vacation out of the way in March.

NO CHIT, GIRL!!!!

Awwww... It's just those damned dirty Jews stirring up trouble, doing everything they can to keep their collective foot on the throats of those poor, innocent Palestinians.....

In fact, heavy, HEAVY on the

Interesting that the Arab world is starting to turn on the Palestinian thugs. Egypt's idea is a hoot, and somehow, sounds vaguely familiar....

RedStorm · May 21st, 2007, 12:19 PM

This all stems back to the Arabs and them forsaking the Pals back in the 40's.

conraddobler · May 21st, 2007, 03:30 PM

I thought this thread meant Rosie surfaced for air.

Dback Jon · May 21st, 2007, 03:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by conraddobler

I thought this thread meant Rosie surfaced for air.

82CardsGrad · May 21st, 2007, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by conraddobler

I thought this thread meant Rosie surfaced for air.

http://www.whalewatch.com/photos/breaching.php

LoyaltyisaCurse · May 21st, 2007, 08:43 PM

"The war in Iraq will inspire the Middle East to become a democratic and peaceful region..." IDIOTS 2003

AZZenny · May 22nd, 2007, 05:38 PM

An interesting overview. Unfortunately, it says nothing positive about the ME. This is a response to a columnist blaming Bush admin for all the fighting in Gaza -- mind you, that was a columnist who praised the Bush policy a year or two ago.

Quote:

Who is responsible for Gaza? By Noah Pollak

...he says that (1) the Fatah party was keeping things under control until (2) the foolish Bush administration pushed the PA to hold elections. These brought Hamas to power, and (3) now the administration is making the problem worse by helping Fatah wage street battles with Hamas.

Amazingly, none of these assertions are true.

In the case of the first point, the Fatah party most certainly did not “rule the roost” in the territories -- especially not in Gaza, where Hamas was founded and has always enjoyed its greatest popularity. ...Yasser Arafat all the while insisting that his government should not be held responsible for such terrorism (suicide bombings) because Hamas was simply beyond his control. And at least in this case, Arafat was probably saying something close to the truth.

The reality of the fractiousness of the Palestinian cause was already coming into view in 2005, before Hamas was elected, when more Palestinians were killed in internecine fighting than in battle against Israel.

Fatah didn’t rule anything -- Arafat did. "Fatah" is a moniker given to the collection of gangsters, sycophants, and terrorists Arafat assembled around himself to protect his rule. Upon Arafat’s death, Fatah became adrift and leaderless. Abbas was elected two months later, and the only thing that has given his rule any salience at all is America’s rather desperate backing.

By late 2004, the desirability of holding elections (stipulated by the Oslo accords) became not just a consensus position, but an actual necessity. The president of the PA had just died. And now the final point, about the fighting itself.

There is something very consistent about governance in the Arab world. Among the Arab countries today in which there is a modicum of internal stability, each is controlled by an Arafat-type figure -- an anti-democratic strongman who is able to crush all challenges to his authority. Likewise, among those Arab countries that aren't ruled by a despot, the political dynamic is also consistent: In Lebanon, Iraq, and now Gaza, sectarian violence is the dominant form of political expression. It’s true that Arafat’s authority was weaker in Gaza than in the West Bank, but in Gaza there was always another strongman present to keep a lid on things: the Israeli occupation. When Israel disengaged in the summer of 2005, suddenly Gaza was without any master at all, and that’s exactly when the territory started going full-tilt toward the Hobbesian state of nature it now finds itself in.

The fight is foreordained by Gaza's demography, its political and religious extremism, Arafat's death, and Israel's unwillingness to police the territory. The Bush administration is simply along for the ride -- as is Israel. Consensus-based political leadership is anathema to the Arab world. We're seeing that rather starkly today in Gaza.

The sad truth is that Gaza today is a testament to the failure of the entire 14-year project of creating the Palestinian Authority, retrieving Arafat from exile, and attempting to drag the Arabs of Palestine, against their will, into western political modernity. This process was started, and most forcefully pushed forward, by the Clinton administration, and today its corpse is still being dragged around the Middle East, Weekend at Bernie's-style, by Condoleezza Rice.

There's actually been talk of offering the West Bank back to Jordan as some sort of 'Puerto Rico' appendage, because the West Bank, although increasingly militant, is desperate not to be put together with Gaza politically. The Jordanians do not want this responsibility at all.

AZZenny · May 22nd, 2007, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Thousands Flee Besieged Lebanese Camp\U.N. Convoy Carrying Relief Supplies Hit During Battle

By SCHEHEREZADE FARAMARZI
AP
TRIPOLI, Lebanon (May 22) -- People flooded out of a besieged Palestinian refugee camp Tuesday night, waving white flags and telling of bodies lying in the streets and inside wrecked houses after three days of fighting between Lebanese troops and Islamic militants.

Earlier in the day, a relief convoy came under fire when a cease-fire abruptly shattered as U.N. workers tried to deliver food and water to residents. A U.N. official said some who approached the convoy seeking supplies were wounded or killed, but he did not have exact figures.

The government of Prime Minister Fuad Saniora said it was determined to uproot Fatah Islam, which took up residence in the camp late last year.
The army has said its troops were trying to target only militant positions.

"The smell of corpses was everywhere. There was no food, water or electricity and they were shooting at us," Dania Mahmoud Kassem, a 21-year-old university student, said of the past three days in the camp, which is on the outskirts of the northern port city of Tripoli.

Despite broadcast images of Arab troops battering a Palestinian community, Lebanon's government has received widespread support at home and from Arab countries, some of which have even provided weapons to help the siege.

The backing underlined Arab leaders' desire to break what they see as a nascent terror group. Angry Palestinians elsewhere in Lebanon burned tires to protest the military assault, raising the threat of wider unrest in the country's volatile refugee camps. Some 215,000 people live in the 11 camps, which are rife with armed groups and Islamic extremists.

Reports from fleeing residents raised fears of a high civilian toll.

... so far, Saniora's rivals have supported the assault. The Shiite Muslims of Hezbollah deeply opposes Sunni militant groups like Fatah Islam, and the movement issued a statement stressing the military's duty to safeguard the country.

Lebanese security officials accuse Syria of using Fatah Islam to destabilize Lebanon, a charge Damascus denies. Syria controlled Lebanon for decades until growing street demonstrations by Lebanese and international pressure forced it to withdraw its troops after PM Hariri's assassination.

Kassem, the university student, was furious over the assault, saying Fatah Islam was just an excuse for the Lebanese army to strike. "We were not afraid of death. But to die by the weapons of Arabs, this is what makes us angry," she said.

Reportedly the Lebanese gov't has ordered its military to clear Fatah al-Islam out of ALL the northern refugee towns -- civilian shields or not. If the Palestinians don't turn over the militants as they have been asked to do, they will not get much sympathy in Lebanon for being in the way. (Yes, the irony is almost nauseating...)

And there is a theory in Lebanon the massive car bomb in Sunni Beirut yesterday was actually aimed at alerting the Russian Consulate which was very close by -- to send a warning to Russia to block the coming UN tribunal; it had stalled the progress previously, but seems lately to have reversed course. It's hard to believe (but a hopeful sign?) the Syrians could possibly be THAT stupid. Maybe the last world leader I'd want to piss off is Putin.

AZZenny · May 25th, 2007, 08:19 AM

This blog actually gave me the chills. One more Arab civilian (a Lebanese)gets the bigger picture:

Perpetual Refugee:
The Lebanese were collectively punished last summer for not being able to control a mad man who thought that kidnapping the cubs of a lioness was a game. As he hid safely like a ***** behind a chastity belt, over 1,000 Lebanese died. And the dreams of millions along with them. I hated the Israelis then. Even though I knew a lot of them personally who did not hate me back each time a missile hit Haifa.

And as we collectively punished the Palestinians in their camp for not being able to control mad men who thought that killing the kittens of a declawed housecat would demonstrate their power, I felt no remorse. None. Hypocrite. They should have controlled the madmen, I thought.

Then Boom. A bomb in Achrafieh. Again. A dead innocent woman. Again. Boom. Another bomb in another affluent neighborhood. Verdun. Boom. Another bomb in Aley. Here we go. The birthing pangs of our rebirth.

While the mad men of Damascus started softly gloating, my numbness turned to rage. And while we exercised power over the powerless, I thought back to July of 2006. And I realized. Realized that I was guilty. Of hypocricy.

The terrorists need to be eliminated.

SirStefan32 · May 25th, 2007, 08:31 AM

You know, I love the Lebanese people and their government. Maybe instead of trying to liberate ungratefull bastards in Iraq, we should be helping these people.
They've been fighting for freedom for years- against all odds, and they just keep fighting. God bless them.

82CardsGrad · May 25th, 2007, 09:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SirStefan32

You know, I love the Lebanese people and their government. Maybe instead of trying to liberate ungratefull bastards in Iraq, we should be helping these people.
They've been fighting for freedom for years- against all odds, and they just keep fighting. God bless them.

U.S. Military Aid Reaches Lebanese Army

Aid Rushed In To Help With Fight Against Holed-Up Militants; Sporadic Gunfire Continues

(CBS/AP) Military aid began arriving Friday after the United States said it will rush supplies to the Lebanese army fighting al Qaeda-inspired Islamic militants barricaded inside a Palestinian refugee camp in the country's north.

Meanwhile, sporadic gunfire exchanges early Friday punctured the lull in the fighting as the Lebanese army continued to build up around the Nahr el-Bared refugee camp near the port city of Tripoli.

The move appeared to be either a preparation to storm the camp — a maze of narrow streets and tightly packed residential buildings where hundreds of Fatah Islam militants are holed up — or a tightening of the siege to force them to surrender. Thousands of Palestinian refugees are also trapped inside.

A deputy Fatah Islam leader threatened more violence if the army attacks Nahr el-Bared. Abu Hureira told the pan-Arab Al Hayat daily by telephone that "sleeper cells" in other Palestinian camps and elsewhere in Lebanon were awaiting word for a "violent response."

A group claiming to be an al Qaeda branch in Syria and Lebanon threatened in a Web video Friday to attack Lebanon's military and its tourist venues if troops do not halt operations against Islamic militants in a Palestinian refugee camp.

The video could reflect a propaganda attempt to rally extremists over the battle at Nahr el-Bared more than a true organized threat. The group - calling itself al-Qaida in al-Sham - is little known and has not claimed attacks in the past.

But it highlighted the danger that the fighting in northern Lebanon could stir up other militant attacks around the country.

Although U.S. officials said the military aid to Lebanon had been agreed to before the fighting broke out this week, the speedy shipment Friday marked the first tangible U.S. backing of the Lebanese authorities in their fight with the militants.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Thursday renewed the Bush administration's strong support of the Lebanese government.

(AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)

"I certainly hope that the Lebanese government will be able to deal with these extremists," Rice said. "It's just another example of extremists in the Middle East who are trying to destabilize democratic governments."

U.S. military assistance was renewed after Syria withdrew troops from Lebanon in 2005, and increased after last year's summer war between Lebanese Hezbollah militants and Israel.

Hoping that a boosted army could eventually disarm Hezbollah, the U.S. has pledged $40 million in military aid. Lebanon's 70,000-strong army is underarmed and overstretched, with army leaders complaining of a lack of heavy armor, anti-aircraft missiles and the absence of an air force.

At the camp, gunfire had grown heavier Thursday shortly after nightfall and continued on and off through early Friday, as both sides probe each other's defenses. Troops have entrenched their positions around the camp but did not appear to be attempting to advance. Reinforcements from other regions are also arriving, mostly drawn from elite commando units.

Two military transports landed at the Beirut airport Friday morning, spotted by many residents of the capital. The military refused to comment, apparently because of the sensitivity of the matter.

82CardsGrad · May 25th, 2007, 09:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AZZenny

This blog actually gave me the chills. One more Arab civilian (a Lebanese)gets the bigger picture:

Perpetual Refugee:
The Lebanese were collectively punished last summer for not being able to control a mad man who thought that kidnapping the cubs of a lioness was a game. As he hid safely like a ***** behind a chastity belt, over 1,000 Lebanese died. And the dreams of millions along with them. I hated the Israelis then. Even though I knew a lot of them personally who did not hate me back each time a missile hit Haifa.

And as we collectively punished the Palestinians in their camp for not being able to control mad men who thought that killing the kittens of a declawed housecat would demonstrate their power, I felt no remorse. None. Hypocrite. They should have controlled the madmen, I thought.

Then Boom. A bomb in Achrafieh. Again. A dead innocent woman. Again. Boom. Another bomb in another affluent neighborhood. Verdun. Boom. Another bomb in Aley. Here we go. The birthing pangs of our rebirth.

While the mad men of Damascus started softly gloating, my numbness turned to rage. And while we exercised power over the powerless, I thought back to July of 2006. And I realized. Realized that I was guilty. Of hypocricy.

The terrorists need to be eliminated.

Meh... if only we really knew the definition of "terrorist"...

SirStefan32 · May 25th, 2007, 09:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 82CardsGrad

U.S. Military Aid Reaches Lebanese Army

Aid Rushed In To Help With Fight Against Holed-Up Militants; Sporadic Gunfire Continues

(CBS/AP) Military aid began arriving Friday after the United States said it will rush supplies to the Lebanese army fighting al Qaeda-inspired Islamic militants barricaded inside a Palestinian refugee camp in the country's north.

Meanwhile, sporadic gunfire exchanges early Friday punctured the lull in the fighting as the Lebanese army continued to build up around the Nahr el-Bared refugee camp near the port city of Tripoli.

The move appeared to be either a preparation to storm the camp — a maze of narrow streets and tightly packed residential buildings where hundreds of Fatah Islam militants are holed up — or a tightening of the siege to force them to surrender. Thousands of Palestinian refugees are also trapped inside.

A deputy Fatah Islam leader threatened more violence if the army attacks Nahr el-Bared. Abu Hureira told the pan-Arab Al Hayat daily by telephone that "sleeper cells" in other Palestinian camps and elsewhere in Lebanon were awaiting word for a "violent response."

A group claiming to be an al Qaeda branch in Syria and Lebanon threatened in a Web video Friday to attack Lebanon's military and its tourist venues if troops do not halt operations against Islamic militants in a Palestinian refugee camp.

The video could reflect a propaganda attempt to rally extremists over the battle at Nahr el-Bared more than a true organized threat. The group - calling itself al-Qaida in al-Sham - is little known and has not claimed attacks in the past.

But it highlighted the danger that the fighting in northern Lebanon could stir up other militant attacks around the country.

Although U.S. officials said the military aid to Lebanon had been agreed to before the fighting broke out this week, the speedy shipment Friday marked the first tangible U.S. backing of the Lebanese authorities in their fight with the militants.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Thursday renewed the Bush administration's strong support of the Lebanese government.

(AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)

"I certainly hope that the Lebanese government will be able to deal with these extremists," Rice said. "It's just another example of extremists in the Middle East who are trying to destabilize democratic governments."

U.S. military assistance was renewed after Syria withdrew troops from Lebanon in 2005, and increased after last year's summer war between Lebanese Hezbollah militants and Israel.

Hoping that a boosted army could eventually disarm Hezbollah, the U.S. has pledged $40 million in military aid. Lebanon's 70,000-strong army is underarmed and overstretched, with army leaders complaining of a lack of heavy armor, anti-aircraft missiles and the absence of an air force.

At the camp, gunfire had grown heavier Thursday shortly after nightfall and continued on and off through early Friday, as both sides probe each other's defenses. Troops have entrenched their positions around the camp but did not appear to be attempting to advance. Reinforcements from other regions are also arriving, mostly drawn from elite commando units.

Two military transports landed at the Beirut airport Friday morning, spotted by many residents of the capital. The military refused to comment, apparently because of the sensitivity of the matter.

AZZenny · May 29th, 2007, 07:51 AM

Hamas Wants War

By David Frum
Posted: Monday, May 21, 2007

Will Israel be provoked into another war this summer? Hamas in Gaza is desperately trying to start a fight. In mid-April, Hamas ended a six-month pause and resumed firing rockets into southern Israel. Three thousand rockets have landed in the past month; 80 in just the past three days. (That's more than I've seen reported anywhere else -- I think it's more like 10-20 a day)

So far, damage from the rockets has been relatively light: 18 Israelis wounded, property damaged (note: now two deaths). But twice, Hamas nearly got lucky: on Thursday, a rocket exploded in a high school classroom; another hit a day-care centre on May 7. Both facilities happened to be empty at the time. What if they had been in use?

Israel hit back with five air strikes on Thursday and Friday. But few imagine that these strikes will stop the rockets.

The rocket that finally reaches an Israeli day-care centre may be fired tomorrow. Or the next day. And then it will be very difficult for any Israeli government to restrain itself.

Israel desperately wants not to invade Gaza. Over the past year, Hamas has fortified the region: building bunkers, digging ditches, planting mines. Israelis can recognize a military trap when they see one.

Israelis can also recognize a political trap. For months, Gaza's political factions have waged war on each other. Some 45 Palestinians have died in the fighting in just the past week. Hamas hopes that an Israeli invasion would unite the Gazans against Israel--and under Hamas.

It's not clear that "Fatah" still exists as a political organization. Yasser Arafat's old terror gang has collapsed into factionalism and warlordism. The troops and arms shipped (by the US) into Gaza today--for whom are they really working?
--Would Hamas not score a huge propaganda triumph if it could accuse Fatah of fighting for Israel?

It is a little-known fact that international aid to the Palestinian territories has actually risen since Palestinians elected a Hamas government in January, 2006. According to International Monetary Fund and UN figures, the Palestinian areas received a total of $1.2 billion in official aid in 2006, up from $1 billion in 2005.
America's contribution rose from $400 million in 2005 to $468 million in 2006. Aid from the European Union and other international organizations also increased handsomely, and the UN has called for still greater increases in aid in 2007.

Look at the incentives that have been created for the Palestinians: vote for terrorism, get an increase in your foreign aid. The Palestinian areas now receive more than $300 per person, per year, making them the most aid-dependent population on Earth. (The people of sub-Saharan Africa receive only $44 per person per year.)

What if those incentives changed? What if Hamas's misconduct produced a loss rather than a profit? (Iran has reportedly sent nearly $100M to Hamas in the last year also.)
Suppose that each Hamas rocket cost the Palestinian Authority $1 million in reduced U.S. and EU aid? The 80 rockets fired over recent days would mean $80 million less in salaries, food, aid, subsidies of all kinds. The next 80 rockets--another $80 million gone.

But if the aid continues--if the world continues a policy of sending money to the Palestinian territories, no matter what the Palestinian government does--Israel, Gaza and the world stand just one well-aimed rocket away from war.

They still can't actually aim Qassam rockets at a particular target, but they have upgraded them - with Iranian help, reportedly - to produce a larger explosion and to be somewhat more aim-able and to go a bit farther. They are on the verge of hitting a major port city.

Given that all reporters and NGOs say that life in Gaza is terrible even apart from the nonstop gang warfare -- garbage uncollected for months, etc. -- 1) where is this money going and 2) makes you wonder if putting the face of poverty forward isn't a deliberate media-savvy political decision. I have not heard complaints that basic medical needs and food are lacking, as was reported six or eight months ago.

The only rationale for all this is Hamas' intention not to play an Arafatesque game of indefinite attrition as everyone expects, but to provoke the kind of ferocious Israeli response that will let Syria and Iran enter the battle, while increasing sympathy on the Arab street.