I’m not sure what’s more surreal. Is it that Palestinians in impoverished Gaza have sufficient funds to deck everything out in Hamas Green or is it that there’s a faction of Hamas that is offering Israel an extension of a truce.
Khaled Mashal, the exiled leader, told Hamas’s satellite television station Al Quds in an interview broadcast Sunday that “the truce was limited to six months and ends on Dec. 19.”
But Mahmoud Zahar, a senior Hamas leader in Gaza, said the group had not made its position final. The local Hamas leadership was to meet with representatives of the other Palestinian armed groups on Sunday night and afterward formulate an official policy, Mr. Zahar said by telephone.
Let’s say Zahar’s “hint” as the Times puts it in its headline that he will “extend” the truce. Will it be a truce that involves nearly daily rocket fire into Israel? Or as Meryl put it:
Why should Hamas even bother with an informal “truce” when the rockets and mortars have been coming nearly every day during the “truce” for the past few months, just as they were when there was no “truce”? Why should Hamas bother when Israel refuses to stop sending in supplies, cash, and fuel? Why should Hamas bother when the world continues to pressure Israel to lift the blockade, feed, clothe, and presumably diaper Gazans? Why, when the UN is about to pressure Israel again and when the UN does absolutely nothing to pressure the Palestinians to end terror?
In other words Hamas has everything to gain by agreeing to – or even merely hinting at a truce – it gets portrayed as “moderating” its stance and can continue firing rockets at innocent Israelis, while Israel gets blamed for fighting back.
Mere Rhetoric notes – in reaction to Meshaal’s statements – in somewhat more detail:
Whatever. It was already clear that Hamas wasn’t going to accept the status quo. And why should they? They’re about to take over the Palestinian Authority and gain international recognition. Europeans have been comparing them favorably to Israel’s next Prime Minister. US diplomats are leaning heavily on Israel not to undertake a Gaza operation. And in the meantime they’ve got hundreds of thousands of Israeli civilians within their range and they’re firing nearly daily barrages – and Israel and Fatah are floating them financially:
With its headline:
Hamas, Showing Split, Hints It May Extend Truce
The Times simply emphasizes the microscopic bit of moderation that exists in Hamas. You have to look really closely to discern it, but the Times trumpets it in a headline.
The Times reports that Hamas maintains its popularity in Gaza – though it may not be so popular with the general Palestinian population.
In Gaza, though, Hamas seems to have maintained a certain level of popularity. An estimated 200,000 Palestinians turned out for the anniversary rally on Sunday, despite some expectations that the Israeli-imposed embargo and its resulting hardship for the 1.5 million residents might keep people at home.
That’s a big “despite.” The accompanying picture suggests that Hamas has plenty of funds to celebrate. So while Gaza celebrates the terrorist thugs who rule them, what of their victims.
Though the recent rocket fire has not killed anyone, life in the Israeli towns and villages around Gaza has become intolerable, Mr. Dror said. As a result, Israel has tightened its blockade of Gaza.
Nice of the Times to get a couple of sentences in. But maybe it ought to be paying a bit more attention to the Israelis living under the threat from Hamas and less time trying to find moderation among the terrorists.
Crossposted on Soccer Dad.
