I disagree that this strategy has failed. I believe, quite to the contrary, that is has been a runaway success- precisely because it brought Hamas to power. The Palestinians now have a government that represents the attitudes of Palestinian society at large. They don't want peace. The Palestinians are the ones who want war and bloodshed. This is a fact the world can no longer ignore. The complacent Europeans can no longer hide behind the excuses of peace talks and roadmaps.
The Palestinian people are going to stew in their own mess until they recognize that the way they have chosen is not a viable way forward. The great thing about democracy is that people hold their leaders accountable. In the next elections, when Hamas has failed utterly to bring about any changes in their political status and has sunk their people even deeper into misery, Hamas will be held to account. I believe eventually that process will lead to an elected government that will believe in peace. That process may take a long time. It is hard to see any other outcome. All out war isn't an option because of Israeli military might, and the barrier has drastically reduced the ability of the Palestinians to launch suicide bomber attacks. The only really dire possibility is that Hamas could obtain far more powerful weaponry, such as larger missiles or WMD. The only possible outcome of an escalating battle is a devastating Palestinian defeat, and with the U.S. declaration to defend Israel, I can hardly see any country in the region joining the fight against the Israelis. >The third irony of the times is that Israel's strategy of "Unilateral >Disengagement" from Gaza is a failure and has contributed to bringing >Hamas to power. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Message: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=i:5:196250 Archives: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/threads.cfm/5 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=s:5 Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=89.70.5 Donations & Support: http://www.houseoffusion.com/tiny.cfm/54
