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Last update - 09:43 12/02/2008
Palestinian revenge was inevitable
By Ahmed Yousef
Tags: rockets, israel, IDF 

Last week's bombing in Dimona was the first martyrdom operation committed by Hamas in more than five years. For some time, we have been warning the world that the relentless pressure on our people would eventually tell. In the last two months, more than a hundred people have been killed by the Israeli occupation forces in the Gaza Strip, including many civilians, women and children.

Thirty people have died in the last month for lack of medical care brought on by the embargo. Only two weeks ago, we saw the appalling sight of over 40 women and children seriously injured when an Israeli F-16 dropped an enormous bomb in the middle of the densely populated Gaza City, a few meters from a wedding party. This kind of atrocity, piled onto the daily death toll, has finally tested the patience of Palestinians, and after lengthy restraint, revenge was inevitable.

To many in Israel and the West, this act of resistance will be judged in isolation. They will no doubt say that it justifies the inhumane embargo on the people of Gaza and the arrests of more than 500 people and daily torture of innocents in the West Bank by both Israelis and the puppet government imposed on us by the U.S.
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What they seem to forget is that just in the last two years, 2,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli military action and thousands more injured. The cold-blooded fact is that the ratio of Palestinian deaths to Israelis is now over 40 to 1.

The Hamas-led government has consistently called for a long-term cease-fire. For nine months before the election that brought us to power we observed a unilateral ceasefire, ensuring that no rockets were fired from Gaza by our movement. We observed this policy during the first six months in government, despite the fact that our words and actions were summarily dismissed by the Israelis and their U.S. allies.

If the people of Sderot want to know why rockets continue to land around them, they should ask their own government why it has continually rejected our calls for a cease-fire and continued its policy of daily incursions and reckless targeting that put the whole population at risk.

We have tried consistently to create some kind of reconciliation with Fatah. But every attempt has been ignored by Abu Mazen [Mahmoud Abbas]. The threat by Israel and the U.S. to cease negotiations if he cooperates with the lawfully elected Hamas government has led to political impotence in Ramallah. This makes our citizens deeply cynical about the peace process. It makes them feel that Israel is simply exploiting the situation and Abu Mazen.

The cranes and bulldozers are still busy in the settlements on our land in the West Bank. Neither is there any sign that the numerous checkpoints that are crippling our economy and social life are being dismantled. While Abu Mazen and Olmert talk of a final agreement, the apartheid wall continues to be erected on land that should be part of any future Palestinian state.

If our people can see no genuine and realistic political or economic horizon and their attempts to establish a genuine truce are consistently rejected, it is inevitable that they will turn to resistance as the only outlet for their anger and frustration. What happened at Rafah recently is a sign of what is likely to happen on a much larger scale if people can see no end to the relentless pressure and aggression that is part of our daily life here in Gaza.

While in the past we acknowledged the right of Abu Mazen to negotiate on behalf of our people, we believe that he has forfeited this mandate, as he no longer commands the respect of the majority of our people. Given the facts on the ground and the total mistrust that now prevails on all sides, we believe neither Israelis nor Palestinians are ready for final-status negotiations. It would be disastrous if the international community were to try to impose this, especially while we remain divided as a Palestinian people.

We have consistently suggested that the best solution to our problems is a long-term cease-fire that provides both sides with the space and opportunity to address our differences in an atmosphere of calmness and normality. We can have little optimism for the immediate future when it is impossible to see any clear light at the end of the tunnel that we are now forced to inhabit.

The writer is a senior political advisor to the foreign minister in the Hamas government.
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  1.   A ratio of 40 to 1. 10:06  |  Altalena 12/02/08
  2.   MORE TAQIYYA "1st in 5 yrs"??? Fatma Najar!! NOV 2006!! 10:09  |  PETER SM 12/02/08
  3.   Ahmed Yousef 10:14  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 12/02/08
  4.   1/40 ! ! ! 10:18  |  victor 12/02/08
  5.   HAMAS targetting hundreds of Israeli CIVILIANS a week.Don`t count 10:18  |  PETER SM 12/02/08
  6.   Typical, misleading 10:22  |  MarkC 12/02/08
  7.   Goal of Hamas is a new Shoah 10:23  |  Ofer Maimon 12/02/08
  8.   Ahmed Yousef: What exactly(!) are your terms for a cease fire? 10:37  |  AA 12/02/08
  9.   Agressor pays little price 10:37  |  Minda 12/02/08
  10.   Ahmed GFY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 10:38  |  Alberto Cohen 12/02/08
  11.   Ahmed Yousef is a proven liar 10:45  |  S 12/02/08
  12.   ahmed yousef and abdel bari atwan 10:47  |  al quds al arabi 12/02/08
  13.   "revenge:" the favourite in Arab vocabulary 10:50  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 12/02/08
  14.   YOU BETTER TAKE CARE OF ABBAS FIRST 10:51  |  indrajaya 12/02/08
  15.   Palestinian stupidity 11:04  |  Bardawili 12/02/08
  16.   Ahmed Youssif is a proven liar 11:14  |  Zaki AbuHaroon 12/02/08
  17.   2,000, or 800 11:21  |  DJStahl 12/02/08
  18.   Mr. Yosef - Do you really think... 11:25  |  Richard 12/02/08
  19.   ahmed yousuf as a spokesman shouldnt you 11:35  |  occubation 12/02/08
  20.   Haaretz! Some responsibility, please! 11:36  |  Shlomo from Tel-Aviv 12/02/08
  21.   ahmed yousuf seeks our sympathy 11:38  |  occubation 12/02/08
  22.   Ahmed Yousef - lie some more 11:39  |  Adrian de Klerk 12/02/08
  23.   ahmed yousuf "tested the patience of the palestinians" 11:42  |  occubation 12/02/08
  24.   ahmed yousuf whines"death toll is 40:1" 11:45  |  occubation 12/02/08
  25.   ahmed yousuf "we asked for a ceasefire" 11:48  |  hudnaman 12/02/08
  26.   # 20, SHLOMO FROM TEL AVIV 11:53  |  indrajaya 12/02/08
  27.   Das Ha`Aretz - Israeli newspaper as propaganda tool 11:56  |  Ariel 12/02/08
  28.   Haniyeh needs a new, more savvy advisor 11:56  |  JES 12/02/08
  29.   ahmed yousuf sees "no light at the end of the tunnel" 11:56  |  tomdickandharry 12/02/08
  30.   ahmed yousuf "mistrust on all sides" 11:58  |  jokeofthecentury 12/02/08
  31.   Lies and propaganda 12:00  |  Nik Miller 12/02/08
  32.   Reality check needed 12:02  |  Bon Levi 12/02/08
  33.   SO they NEVER lie ? Where is the liar who kept saying that 12:09  |  PETER SM 12/02/08
  34.   what comes around goes around 12:14  |  guy 12/02/08
  35.   now if the Palestinians stopped 12:23  |  cool 12/02/08
  36.   "revenge" 12:42  |  Murray 12/02/08
  37.   Next, an article by Le Pen? Or may be by Ahmadinedjad? 12:44  |  Mr. Ami Goldman 12/02/08
  38.   Peter blind by bigotry 12:52  |  Truth 12/02/08
  39.   ahmed yousuf is an atrocious and beastly hypocrite 12:59  |  natke nir 12/02/08
  40.   What if...? 13:01  |  Minda 12/02/08
  41.   TO ALL JEWS 13:02  |  YAHOODI 12/02/08
  42.   dorothy to interlocutor"i have seen your posts but not read them" 13:05  |  amir yoffe 12/02/08
  43.   # 3 cIPOAR LONG EXPLAINATION OF THEM AS "LOSERS` 13:20  |  Petra 12/02/08
  44.   murray what marvellous advice 13:28  |  ginsberg 12/02/08
  45.   guy "jews are gestapo bruts"(sic) 13:34  |  thanksguy 12/02/08
  46.   Has Ha`aretz lowered it`s standards... 13:44  |  Walter 12/02/08
  47.   Ya Ahmed Yusuf : why are you distorting facts?? 13:45  |  Muallem 12/02/08
  48.   "TRUTH" Pakistan etc.are not at war with Israel 13:53  |  PETER SM 12/02/08
  49.   Palesatinians never learn 13:53  |  Bamboustic 12/02/08
  50.   On the contrary Shlomo from Tel Aviv 14:03  |  sh 12/02/08
  51.   An accurate assessment of Israel`s crimes 14:07  |  Nick Ferriman 12/02/08
  52.   Pearls before swine 14:07  |  Natallie Durson 12/02/08
  53.   GUY WITH your spelling one thing is for sure . 14:11  |  PETER SM 12/02/08
  54.   # 45 thanksguy 14:15  |  guy 12/02/08
  55.   3Cipora KJ,20Shlomo TA,26Indrajaya, 14:21  |  lakshmi 12/02/08
  56.   Season of the Witch 14:37  |  FOX 12/02/08
  57.   Hamas Media Offensive! 14:45  |  FOX 12/02/08
  58.   aid and comfort to the enemy 14:48  |  Avi 12/02/08
  59.   Bamboustic, its all just hype 14:52  |  FOX 12/02/08
  60.   Author Speaks the Truth, Israel Has Been The Villian 14:53  |  Johan Odin 12/02/08
  61.   Ham(ASS) 14:54  |  GABE1 12/02/08
  62.   Congratulation to Haarets 14:54  |  Ana 12/02/08
  63.   retaliation 14:58  |  TI 12/02/08
  64.   indrajaya the warmonger #14 14:59  |  S 12/02/08
  65.   Lackshmi loves a good civil war 15:00  |  FOX 12/02/08
  66.   Sh (......) 15:03  |  GABE1 12/02/08
  67.   Always blame the other side for your ills 15:07  |  Jeff 12/02/08
  68.   HAARETZ YOU REALLY, REALLY DISGUST ME!! 15:07  |  A Jew 12/02/08
  69.   #51 ferriman the anti semite writes from thailand 15:09  |  v hardman 12/02/08
  70.   Response to Ahmed 15:14  |  Mike 12/02/08
  71.   That`s Quite A Soliloquy, Ahmed Yousef 15:15  |  Jeff Northridge