Posted on 05/14/2007 8:59:08 AM PDT by ScaniaBoy
Gaza sources say Hamas ambushed US convoy, seized stockpile of weapons aimed for Fatah militias
Hamas ambushed a convoy in the Gaza Strip on Sunday and seized a stockpile of US weapons transferred in recent months to militias associated with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party, according to Hamas and Fatah sources.
Gaza Violence
"We obtained the US weapons and will keep hijacking any assistance the Americans provide to Fatah. Our fighters are aware of the American and Israeli conspiracies to topple our government. We're trained and well prepared to defeat the American-backed (Palestinian) agents," said a top member of Hamas' military wing in the Gaza Strip.
According to Israeli and Palestinian security officials and Hamas sources, Hamas militias have taken almost complete control of the northern Gaza Strip in recent months, including areas from which rockets are regularly launched from the territory into nearby Jewish communities.
The officials said Fatah is restricted to acting in a half-mile radius in the vicinity of a major Fatah military compound. Hamas has set up roadblocks and checkpoints throughout northern Gaza to ensure Fatah militias remain near their compound.
After a Fatah gunman shot a Hamas member on Sunday, a Fatah convoy of three trucks was stopped by Hamas at a makeshift checkpoint at Dabit Circle, a northern Gaza town, according to Hamas sources. Hamas abducted 18 Fatah gunmen and seized stockpiles of American weapons that were in the vans, the sources said.
Hamas won most battles
The US has transferred large quantities of weapons to Fatah in recent months to back Abbas' military organizations against Hamas. Fatah and Hamas engaged in months of factional clashes until the two forged a unity government in February. But renewed fighting in Gaza in recent days has threatened to torpedo the unity deal.
The last confirmed US weapons transfer to the Palestinians took place last May and consisted of 3,000 assault rifles, but WND reported multiple others transfers were since delivered to Fatah, including a cache of 7,000 rifles last January and about 8,000 assault rifles in February.
While the weapons were meant to bolster Fatah in Gaza, Hamas has reportedly won most battles against the US-backed militias. WND reported last month that a Fatah militia in Beit Lehiya, a major city in the northern Gaza Strip, surrendered to Hamas forces after reaching an agreement in which the Fatah militants stated they will evacuate the city and altogether depart the Gaza Strip.
This weekend, according to Palestinian security sources, Baha Abu Jarad, a Fatah strongman in Gaza, surrendered a large swath of territory to Hamas, nearly completing Hamas' grasp on the northern Gaza Strip.
US sends aid to Fatah
The US Congress last month approved $59 million in aid to Fatah's militias after an earlier Bush administration pledge of $86.4 million was blocked for fear the money might reach terrorist groups. The aid package contains a new qualification stipulating the money must not be used to purchase weapons.
The vast majority of the US aid is slated to bolster Abbas' Force 17 security forces, which serve as de facto police units in the Gaza Strip and West Bank. But many members of Force 17 are openly members of the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades terror organization and Israel has arrested wanted terrorists from these units.
WND last month quoted Israeli and Palestinian security officials stating intelligence and security organizations associated with Fatah, including Force 17, are infiltrated by Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other terrorist organizations.
Fatah infiltrated by Hamas
A top Palestinian intelligence official told WND: "We are leading a large number of investigations and some of the results prove that such an infiltration by Hamas (of Fatah's security and intelligence forces) exists.
"I can say that in some cases we diagnosed a deep infiltration to high posts in some Fatah security services," the high-ranking Palestinian intelligence officer told WND. "In some cases we believe there are officers that are exposed to very sensitive information."
He said that since the US announced it is providing Abbas' forces with additional funds, Fatah intelligence officials at the direction of American security coordinators here have been attempting to expel Hamas infiltrators. He said the past month "dozens" of members of Hamas, the Popular Resistance Committees and Islamic Jihad were found operating in the Fatah forces.
And since when is Fatah and its sister organizations "US-backed militias"???
Anyway, it seems like the PA areas will be just as split as Pakistan - remember West and East Pakistan (Bangladesh)?
State Department and the EU is going to throw fits and try to force Israel to immediately relinquish more land - otherwise the peace process is dead.... (Why do we let morons run the world??)
Ping!
What’a farce...
Exactly.
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Makes sense, they weren't going to be used against terrorists anyway.
I occasionally note that amongst the training the US is giving the terrorists is training in convoy and airport security.
I usually note that the palestinians don't have an airport and don't run threatened convoys, but perhaps could use it in Iraq and elsewhere.
I didn't mean to imply they couldn't occasionally put their American training to use at home.
Your tax dollars at work.
We arm them, we train them. Have for years. It's a reasonable description. The State Dept. would call them a government force, but the could be called a US backed terrorist force as well.
“The last confirmed US weapons transfer to the Palestinians took place last May and consisted of 3,000 assault rifles, but WND reported multiple others transfers were since delivered to Fatah, including a cache of 7,000 rifles last January and about 8,000 assault rifles in February.”
Who authorized this within the US govt? Where were they sent from? Who sent them? Under whose authority?
Why is our government sending guns to Palestinian terrorists?
It’s called Real Politics. In other words taking a realistic view of the political landscape as it exists and trying to manipulate it to the benefit of the US interest.
It is an old tactic used by the US and others. There are two bad guy groups in the area. One is worse than the other as far as our interest are concerned (Hamas is more anti-America than Fattah so we support Fattah against Hamas).
This tactic has often ended badly for the US as the organization that we supported failed to win out in the end. Consequently the winning organization had less than warm feelings for the US.
But the alternative usually is to do nothing and hope for the best and in most cases the results are the same.
But to me supporting Fattah against Hamas has two advantages; first we are supporting a group with no love of Iran (Hamas sponsor), second with any luck the two groups will cripple each other and a more democratic group will emerge (a wish with out much hope of realizing).
Naked Stupidity. The only good reason to spend ANY American treasure in Gaza or the West Bank is money that is used to foment war between Hamas and Fatah. We should do everything possible to encourage these 2 groups to go after each other in the most bloodthirsty manner possible. The more of each otehr they kill the better off everyone else will be. It will also weaken the hand of Iran. Besides, the Palestinian people enjoy savagery, mayhem and squalor so we should encourage these conditions in their ‘society’.
GWB, this has been a priority of the White House for several years, funded over the objections of Congress. Overseen by a US Lt General. Two ranks higher than the Commander of the Marine Corps Recruit Depot at Parris Island
The bad news is that US supplied weapons to Fatah. The good news is that Fatah and Hamas are killing each other.
If you think Arafat and his cronies are more pro-American than Hamas, you're dreaming.
This tactic has been ongoing since 1995. All this time, up to today, Fatah has declared publicly that they will never use their arms against Hamas or any palestinian terror group.
Fatah has indicated that American arms will be used to kill Jews, but we ignore that.
Fatah has proved the truth of their words over the years by their clear refusal to crack down on terror groups and their ongoing attacks against Israel.
After more than a decade of this, it's time the Administration recognizes the possibility that rather than realpolitik, the palestinians are expert in smacking around the naive infidels in a game of good cop, bad cop.
A few at a time in local turf battles. On the big issues, like the address of the enemy, they're on the same page.
“After more than a decade of this, it’s time the Administration recognizes the possibility that rather than realpolitik, the palestinians are expert in smacking around the naive infidels in a game of good cop, bad cop.”
I agree completely. But I think the imbeciles at the State Dept are totally dedicated to appeasement of Islamofascists and GWB doesn’t have the nards to set them straight. Until that changes this stupidity will go on ad nauseum.
That's true, and it's too late for GWB to clean house as Gingrich suggested at the beginning of his term. I have noted however that VP Cheney was chosen for the recent mideast jaunt, and that our first meeting with the Iranians will be conducted by Ambassador Crocker (Iraq), both jobs for the Secretary of State, who is busy reconciling with Russia.
I believe I said that Fattah is less anti-American than Hamas.
Fatah has declared publicly that they will never use their arms against Hamas or any Palestinian terror group.
Arabs have no less problem lying to each other than they do to us. They also have no problem killing each other. If you reread the article it explicitly states that Hamas and Fattah have been fighting each other and I assume that the word Battle used in the article means someone was killed.
I might add that no where in my post did I say that I agreed with the Real Politic philosophy.
I think that the US would progress much further in the world by having a coherent consistent foreign policy instead of the shifting with the winds of change that is Real Politic.
Unfortunately most of the rest of the world (especially Europe) has practiced Real Politic for centuries; constantly trying to gain advantage over their rivals. France and Germany’s Real Politic has brought use the oil for food scandal and Iraq and Iran’s nuclear and Bio-weapons programs. Real Politic is also what induced France to support the American Revolution.
I posted simply to explain the political philosophy behind the move. Real Politic has been the dominant international political philosophy since the Middle Ages and unlikely to change anytime soon.
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