The bat guano is hitting the fan:cease fire breaks down in Gaza

Hamas has fired rockets into southern Israel, sending 18 Israeli’s to the hospital. From IHT:

Hamas officials said the attack was revenge for the deaths over the past 11 days of 11 militants and the recent increased Israeli closure of Gaza crossings. They said that while they wanted to continue the five-month-old truce with Israel, it seemed to them that Israel did not and if that was the case, Israel would pay the consequences.

Israeli officials, who say they have been keeping the crossings into Gaza shut in retaliation for the rockets, thereby greatly decreasing the supply of supplies and fuel, said it was Hamas that was breaking the truce. Senior Israeli officials met in Tel Aviv on Friday and vowed not to back down from any provocation.

Israel retaliates by keeping food and fuel needed to provide electricity from entering Palestine. It is going to get worse before it gets better. It’s a nasty friggin triangle. Again, from IHT:

There are several factors at work beyond the tit-for-tat of the past week and a half. Hamas, which took over Gaza in June 2007 by kicking out its Fatah rivals, is feeling under unusual pressure because hundreds of its men have been arrested by the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority in the West Bank in recent weeks.

The arrests have been part of increased Israeli-Palestinian cooperation in which American-trained Palestinian troops are moving into West Bank cities, leading to some pullback by Israeli troops.

A second factor is that Egyptian efforts to broker a reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah have foundered, with Hamas alleging that Fatah had not made good on a mutual prisoner release.

Finally, under American and Israeli pressure, Egypt has started to destroy or shut tunnels into southern Gaza that have been a key source of supplies and fuel - and weapons - that have offset the Israeli closures.

It is all so fucked up over there…no one is right and everyone is wrong. Another generation being raised to hate…fucking lovely.

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Hamas offers Israel a truce..

Its a 10 year truce and its based on Israel returning the lands they have occupied since the 1967 war. This comes after the visit by former President Jimmy Carter with Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal. From the MSNBC link:

Mashaal said Hamas would accept a Palestinian state limited to the lands Israel seized in 1967 - that is, the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem. But he said the group would never outright formally recognize Israel.Earlier, Carter said that Hamas is prepared to accept the right of Israel to “live as a neighbor next door in peace.”

Carter said the group promised it wouldn’t undermine Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ efforts to reach a peace deal with Israel, as long as the Palestinian people approved it in a referendum. In such a scenario, he said Hamas would not oppose a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza.

Read more

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McCain links Obama to Hamas.

Using a tactic out of the Karl Rove playbook Weathervane McCain links Obama to a terrorist organization in a recent email to his flock. From the CNN political blogs:

“Barack Obama’s foreign policy plans have even won him praise from Hamas leaders,” writes McCain deputy campaign manager Christian Ferry. “Ahmed Yousef, chief political adviser to the Hamas Prime Minister said, ‘We like Mr. Obama and we hope he will win the election. He has a vision to change America.’”

The McCain fundraising e-mail says Obama’s stands have earned him “kind words” from Hamas. “John McCain’s foreign policy provides a stark contrast to the policies of Barack Obama,” writes Ferry. “While Senator Obama would surrender in Iraq and hold talks with the Iranian regime, John McCain will never surrender in the struggle with Islamic extremists. Please join our campaign today by making a generous donation of $50, $100, $250, $500, $1,000 or $2,300.”

Reminds me of Bush’s tactics against McCain in the 2000 election. And Johnny said he is going to run a clean campaign. Right..plus he asks for money…brilliant no?

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