Arab-Israeli Conflict: Round 352

So, here we go again...

Just in case you've been in hibernation for the last couple of days, Israel is now conducting retaliatory air strikes and is (or will be) making land incursions into Gaza.

The given reason for such operations is the continuous rocket bombardment from positions inside Gaza inflicted on Israeli settlements, which has been going on for quite some time, but apparently it has now pished Israel off enough for military retaliation policy to be viewed by Israeli authorities as acceptable.

You can go back and forth all day long about the morality of the Palestinians and Israelis and their actions. In my opinion, trying to justify one or the others' actions through history is pointless and unacheivable.

(Image: an example of Israeli barriers, built with the purpose of preventing people from moving between Jewish and Arab settlements. These have benefited Israeils by helping to protect them from guerilla or suicide attacks, but they have also caused the problem of civilians, humanitarian groups etc. being unable to access Arab settlements. Some civilians and militants living in Gaza have resorted to using tunnels to get under these fortifications. Now, as part of their bombing campaign, Israeli jets have bombed these tunnel networks, not all of which are used by militants.)

But purely from a pragmatic standpoint, there remains one question about this Israeli activity that has not been addressed: And Then What?

OK, so you have bombed 'strategic interests' in Gaza. Then What? Land incursion, probably, as anything else would seem weak-willed, following the air bombardment. Then What? You're left with the same problem you have had all along, IDF soldiers in Palestinian territory, vulnerable to guerilla and suicide warfare, and condemned internationally for conducting a foreign occupation.



(Image: an Israeli checkpoint in Palestine. This is apparently during a peaceful Palestinian demonstration. Read more about the good Palestinian people who want the Israeli occupation to end here. Excerpt: "...for the first time in a very long while, the military did not atatck us. After the mass violence last week, the popular committe of Bil'in had a new plan. They decided to have a mourning march, carrying a large black flag and in silence. It was nice because no one was hurt, and for the first time we left the site in a unified march, not in a scattered flee for safety. There were no soldiers chasing us through the olive groves shooting unarmed children in the back. No beatings...")

As we learned from the Israeli-Lebanon conflict in 2006, ground incursions are not successful in terms of stopping the rockets from being fired, the very justification for the war in the first place. (And history views that conflict as a success for Hezbollah.)

Then What? How long do you stay? How do you avoid the appearance of defeat when you withdraw, given that rocket attacks will probably continue?

The morality debate can go on forever, but when it comes to reality, Hamas has Israel by the proverbial 'short hairs', and those continuing to suffer as a result will be Israeli and Palestinian civilians.