Qassams « Yourish.com

03/24/2009

A threat countered

Too many of those covering Israel’s war against Hamas in December and January have used the disparity in casualties as a proof that Israel utilized disproportionate force and violated international norms. The latest tactic has been to publicize the claims of a very interested party as objective fact as proof that Israel overreacted.

Israel, however, faced a real threat. But it wasn’t just the threats that the Qassams and mortars posed – and continue to pose – to its civilian population in the south. Israel faced real threats in the battlefield. Israel’s success in countering or avoiding those threats was remarkable. Elder of Ziyon observes one such success. Apparently the Iranian anti-tank missiles – which were successful in Lebanon in 2006 – did not work so well in Gaza. The Elder comments:

The frustrated terrorists are feeling betrayed by Iran, thinking that the regime had purposefully sent them duds. I am wondering if the IDF jammed the electronics on the Iranian missiles.

Israel lost a lot of soldiers in Lebanon due to those missiles. It’s entirely possible that the IDF adjusted in order to counter the threat.

Crossposted on Soccer Dad.

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06/03/2008

Fulbrights and qassams

Filed under: Hamas, Israel, Israeli Double Standard Time — Tags: Fulbright, Qassams, State Department — Soccerdad @ 9:30 am

Israel’s DM Ehud Barak announced that the siege of Gaza is working:

Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Monday said that Israel has identified signs of distress coming from Hamas. According to the defense minister, some 70 Hamas fighters have been killed during the last two months, and more than 300 have been killed during the past six months.”Hamas is very stressed. The most effective action is the siege,” Barak said, referring to the Israeli-imposed economic blockade on the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. Israel imposed the blockade on Gaza after the Islamist group seized power over the impoverished coastal strip last June. Since then, Israel has allowed only basic staples to be transported through the border crossings it controls, into Gaza.

While it may not be enough, it’s certainly welcome to hear. Unfortunately, even if Hamas is losing its political hold, operationally the Qassams have kept on coming. Elder of Ziyon noted that there was no day in May that was Qassam free.

When the NY Times reported that Israel allowed the Fulbright scholars to leave, it did note the reason that Israel closed Gaza.

The closing, an effort to punish Hamas for its rocket and mortar barrages of southern Israel, prevents Palestinians from leaving Gaza except for medical emergencies.

But that’s just lip service. Remember, Qassams struck Israel every day for a month. And the closure isn’t punitive. It’s an attempt to stop the regular (or daily) bombardments; hardly an unreasonable goal. It may even be having a positive effect politically. But the article focuses instead on the negative effects of the closure, not its causes. And it also focuses on how the State Department brought pressure on Israel (something that the Times played a role in.)

Secretary Rice said:

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said she was surprised to hear of the withdrawals, adding: “If you cannot engage young people and give complete horizons to their expectations and their dreams, I don’t know that there would be any future for Palestine. We will take a look. I am a huge supporter of Fulbrights.”

By itself, there’s little objectionable about Sec. Rice’s statement. However in this context it’s troubling.

First of all, education by itself, doesn’t guarantee hope or peaceful intentions. Yihye Ayyash was really trained as an engineer. Abdel Aziz Rantisi was a pedicatrician. Fahti Shkaki was a doctor. The problem is the indoctrination that goes on.

PMW just reported on the hatred that is shown on Palestinian TV. And it isn’t only from Hamas, it’s also from Fatah. But Sec. Rice had no words of criticism about indoctrination.

Nor did Secretary Rice lament the rocket attacks that target Israeli schools. The problem isn’t that Israel isn’t allowing Gazans to better themselves. It’s that Gazans generally support Hamas and Hamas is dedicated to the destruction of Israel. If the Israeli blockade has the effect of undermining Hamas, it shouldn’t be portrayed as an obstacle to peace.

This is an issue that could have been resolved quietly without embarrassing Israel. Sec. Rice and her department decided to go public and question Israel’s government rather than place any responsibility on Hamas and the public that supports it.