Another suicide-bomber attack today, this one in Be'er Sheva. No one except the bomber was killed, but the two security guys who were trying to stop him were very badly injured. Twenty-six people in all were injured. The talk on the news is about the fact that the "security fence" isn't completed in the south, so of course it is easier for those intent on creating terror to make their way to bus stations or shopping malls in the heart of the city.
There is a lot to say about the fence. It is certainly true that the fence has been placed further to the East than the 1967 borders -- it is certainly true that because of the placement of the fence, Palestinians have been robbed of land that is theirs. All that is true. But it is also true that the infiltration of terrorists has been made much more difficult because the fence is in place. The evaluation of the effectiveness of the fence in stopping terrorists is deeply compromised by the fact that since the building of the fence Arafat died, a new government took over the Palestinian Authority, better intelligence, assination of terrorist leaders, etc., etc. It is impossible to say "how much" the fence has helped to stop terrorists, but it is certainly possible to say that since the fence has been up, the number of successful terrorist attacks has dropped significantly. We hear all the time about terrorists who have been thwarted on their way to a city with their bomb-bearing belts. It's harder for them to get in now.
Which leads me to muse about the disengagement. Our papers are still full of disengagement stories -- how the Orange Movement was defeated; how the Orange Movement is not dead and will eventually have its way; very sympathetic stories about the displaced settlers; stories which scorn sympathy for the settlers and instead remind us of the suffering of the Palestinians in Gaza under occupation -- lots of stories!! What is clear to me now, however, is that the disengagement was not about being nice to the Palestinians so that we can have peace. It was not about the peace process at all; if it had been, then it would not have been a unilateral move without demanding anything from the Palestinians in return. The disengagement was about the establishment of clear and well-defined borders.
And so is the fence. It seems likely that Israel will push to establish borders that are defined by the fence. It is obvious to anyone who knows the route of the fence that it goes through territory that has been designated for the future Palestinian state, and it is the hope of many people here that they will move the fence in the future. At the present, it looks very much as though the government is doing everything it can to prevent the establishment of the Palestinian state. They are planning to build a police station between Ma'ale Adumim and Jerusalem, which will effectively cut off the north-south contiguity of the proposed Palestinian state west of Ma'ale Adumim. The plan angers many people, but many other people are quite satisfied with it just as long as there is a wall between us and them. It's a very complex situation. The disengagement is not going to solve the problems of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. But, now there is a well-defined border between Israel and Gaza. Before the disengagement there were some 8,000 Israelis living inside Gaza who had to be protected from the enemy surrounding them. Now Gaza is Palestinian. This is a very good thing.
Pat and Frank
There is a lot to say about the fence. It is certainly true that the fence has been placed further to the East than the 1967 borders -- it is certainly true that because of the placement of the fence, Palestinians have been robbed of land that is theirs. All that is true. But it is also true that the infiltration of terrorists has been made much more difficult because the fence is in place. The evaluation of the effectiveness of the fence in stopping terrorists is deeply compromised by the fact that since the building of the fence Arafat died, a new government took over the Palestinian Authority, better intelligence, assination of terrorist leaders, etc., etc. It is impossible to say "how much" the fence has helped to stop terrorists, but it is certainly possible to say that since the fence has been up, the number of successful terrorist attacks has dropped significantly. We hear all the time about terrorists who have been thwarted on their way to a city with their bomb-bearing belts. It's harder for them to get in now.
Which leads me to muse about the disengagement. Our papers are still full of disengagement stories -- how the Orange Movement was defeated; how the Orange Movement is not dead and will eventually have its way; very sympathetic stories about the displaced settlers; stories which scorn sympathy for the settlers and instead remind us of the suffering of the Palestinians in Gaza under occupation -- lots of stories!! What is clear to me now, however, is that the disengagement was not about being nice to the Palestinians so that we can have peace. It was not about the peace process at all; if it had been, then it would not have been a unilateral move without demanding anything from the Palestinians in return. The disengagement was about the establishment of clear and well-defined borders.
And so is the fence. It seems likely that Israel will push to establish borders that are defined by the fence. It is obvious to anyone who knows the route of the fence that it goes through territory that has been designated for the future Palestinian state, and it is the hope of many people here that they will move the fence in the future. At the present, it looks very much as though the government is doing everything it can to prevent the establishment of the Palestinian state. They are planning to build a police station between Ma'ale Adumim and Jerusalem, which will effectively cut off the north-south contiguity of the proposed Palestinian state west of Ma'ale Adumim. The plan angers many people, but many other people are quite satisfied with it just as long as there is a wall between us and them. It's a very complex situation. The disengagement is not going to solve the problems of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. But, now there is a well-defined border between Israel and Gaza. Before the disengagement there were some 8,000 Israelis living inside Gaza who had to be protected from the enemy surrounding them. Now Gaza is Palestinian. This is a very good thing.
Pat and Frank
posted by Frank and Pat Fischer at 10:05 PM
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