(no subject)
Hamas, the terror organization, does not recognize Israel's existence. It does not recognize Israel's right to exist. It does not recognize any signed agreements between the Palestinians and Israel, past, present, or future and it continues to actively work toward the complete destruction of the State of Israel. With bombs, with guns, with indoctrination, with hatred, with the sacrificing of Palestinian society, and people's basic right to live normal lives.
Notwithstanding, Israel and Egypt provide 60% of Gaza's electricity, provide its water resources, coordinates the shipment of foodstuffs and aid, medicines, and other basic items, paid for by Europeans and Americans, not Arab countries and not Hamas.
In the most recent turn of events before the destruction of the border barriers between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, dozens of bombs were landing in Israeli cities and villages that are near the Gaza Strip. Bombs continue to fall, every day, all the time, all across cities and villages on the Israeli side. In response to these bombings, Israel decided to close the borders between the Hamas controlled territory and to stop the delivery of fuel into Gaza. (Note: not to stop providing the Gaza strip with electricity...)
By several accounts, the power cuts occurred more because of the way the powergrid is constructed in Gaza and because Hamas had a vested interest in using the closing for PR purposes.
You all might remember that there were thousands of Jews living in the Gaza strip until 2005 when they were forcibly removed from their homes and communities, their houses and farms and entire communities were destroyed, by Israel, in the name of peace. In the genuine, painful, heartbreaking name of hope and peace, people who were born and lived and died and had children and created lives and communities were ripped from their homes for the sake of peace, for the promise of a better Gaza, a place that slightly less resembles the hell it is today.
The results that Israel saw from the disengagement from Gaza were as disappointing as possible. Instead of developing the impoverished coastal strip, all of the farm lands were plundered and destroyed and several terrorist organizations including the Islamic Jihad and Hamas increased the scope and amount of rockets fired into Israel. They refused to cooperate with Israel. They fought the "moderate" Palestinian forces and voices and have wreaked havoc, turmoil, suffering, and hoplessness in a place that barely had any hope anyway.
How does one deal with a hostile entity that doesn't respect your right to exist, fires missiles upon your cities on a regular basis, doesn't respect any previously signed agreements, and whenever borders are open pours in contraband and laundered money?
When Israel doesn't block the border crossings weapons are smuggled in, those weapons are intended both to carry out murderous acts against Israelis in Israel, in Sinai, and for the inevitable confrontation this whole fiasco will lead to that will be and is on the backs of the local population.
The same population that elected Hamas before the group waged a violent and humiliating coup against the Palestinian Authority.
Gaza is a damned if you do, damned if you don't, terrible place to live and the responsibility is unequivocally in the hands of Hamas and not in the country that ripped apart its communities and left its fertile farm lands in 2005 for the chance of peace.
Notice also that the demands that are asked of Israel in this situation...
Why aren't we giving them things? Why aren't we providing Hamas with more? Why can we not cooperate with individuals who are FIRING ROCKETS ON US DAILY? Or people that refuse to acknowledge our right to exist and have sworn a bloody violent campaign that won't end until every Jewish person is killed or expelled.
If the situation weren't so fucking tragic and absurd it would be funny.
Israel didn't create the hell that is Gaza. A group of fanatical and illogical people run the shitshow there.
In the end, everyone suffers. The Israelis in the bomb shelters and that are forced to sanction foodstuffs, because there's just no partner to work with. And definitely the increasingly religious, increasingly impoverished, increasingly unraveled Gazan population who can't or won't put a stop to the madness and call for just one small moment of realism and clarity.