Finding Lessons in Gaza's Bloodshed

NOTICE TO OUR READERS: The editors will be most grateful for your attention at the end of this feature. Thank you.

By Ramzy Baroud

6/30/07

The Hamas-Fatah clash that has culminated into a mini-civil war in recent weeks is both old and new, and while some of its elements are uniquely Palestinian, much of it was manufactured at the behest of US-Israeli intelligence and governments.

The tensions between Fatah and Hamas are decades old. Fatah has - since the late 1960s until today - claimed a superior, if not exclusive, position at the helm of Palestinian politics. At times there seemed little margin for any other organization - be it secular, socialist or religious - to share a platform with Yasser Arafat's movement.

Throughout the years, Fatah ensured the relevance of Palestinians to their own struggle. It's important, therefore, that Fatah is not seen as one monolithic body. Fatah security chief Mohammed Dahlan and the likes have tainted the reputation of Fatah forever, but the movement and its decades-long struggle must not be reduced to these individuals. With Fatah through its hegemony within the Palestine Liberation Organization being the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people" for so many years, Hamas' rise was never accepted as part of the fold.

The second Palestinian uprising of 2000 can be seen as a revolt against Israel and its occupation, but also against those who did its bidding among Palestinians - the shameful legion of Palestinians whose wealth grew to unprecedented levels as the great majority were steeped further in poverty.

Such shamelessness fostered support for Hamas among ordinary Palestinians, and in January 2006, Hamas swept the polls, to its own surprise and the surprise of many. The elites and wealthy few had espoused a society that was governed by brutality, nepotism and favoritism and was unabashedly managed with the help of Israel. Hamas was the only serious alternative: its anti-corruption record and the tough fight it displayed against Israel made it deserving of the responsibility from the ordinary Palestinian's point of view.

Though Palestinians were ready to give Hamas a chance, the US government, Israel, various Arab regimes and Fatah were not. The recent weeks in Gaza, the tragedy of killings and brutality there, all attest to the lengths the US and Israel are willing to go to keep Hamas at bay.

What took place in Gaza was tragic, but the question remains. Considering the circumstances at the time, did Hamas and Fatah have other options that could have allowed them to achieve their objectives peacefully?

I think there was enough determination on both sides to prevent a civil war at any cost, thus the agreement in Mecca. However, US officials entrusted with ensuring the failure and collapse of the unity government and the utter...

(continued)