Posted on 07/31/2005 8:55:48 AM PDT by anotherview
By Ali Waked
GAZA - Palestinians terrorists have already installed the necessary infrastructure to transfer the Qassam rockets to the West Bank from Gaza, according to Abu Abir, spokesman for the Gaza-based Popular Resistance Committees terror group.
'The missles won' - Abu Abir says Qassams drove Israel from Gaza
Photo: Reuters
In an interview with Ynet, Abu Abir said that Gaza’s new border would turn into an additional “blue line,” modeled on the border separating Israel and Lebanon.
“It will be like the Hizbullah: Every Israeli transgression of this line or movement of forces towards it will give us the right to respond against the act of aggression,” threatened Abu Abir.
The Palestinian Authority is doing everything to ensure a quiet withdrawal. Will you help their efforts?
“We will do everything so that this defeatist withdrawal, this escape, will be carried out quietly and successfully. We in the resistance committee, along with other factions, caused this escape. But it's important to emphasize that Israel is leaving Gaza as a large prison, while double the fence around it and requesting to control all the entrances and exits of the Strip.”
It’s natural that Israel would strengthen the Gaza border and mark it with a fence after its withdrawal.
“We will relate to the fence like Hizbullah relates to the blue line in Lebanon. That means that if the fence is a border, we will mark it as a dangerous zone, as the area between the blue line and the Sheba farms is marked. If Israel sends forces close to the dangerous zone on the bodrer area, either in the form of ground troops, or armored vehicles, in order to harm the joy and quiet of the Palestinian people – we will respond with full force.”
Sderot residents protest Qassam attacks on their town (Photo: Gadi Kablo)
You’re already talking about full force, while the PA is demanding restraint from the Palestinian factions.
“After the defeatist withdrawal is completed, after the last settler and soldier withdraw, we won’t do anything from Gaza. But we won’t allow Israel to violate the Gaza border. Such a violation will obligate us to respond.”
It seems from your statements that the message to the PA is that you will want a piece of the cake on the day after the withdrawal.
“That’s right. We in the resistance have defended our people, we did this. We did it because there was an occupation and the Palestinian Authority couldn’t do it. Therefore we are now demanding to be part of the collective management of the Strip. We made this demand of the Authority and Abu Mazen when we meet with them, and we asked this of them also via the Egyptians, so that the Authority agrees to set up a higher body to run the withdrawal and whatever will follow it. No one has the rights held by the resistance over this withdrawal. The resistance is the owner of this enormous gain. The Israeli withdrawal is only a result of resistance operations, first and foremost of which are the (Qassam) rockets.”
But the rockets and Israeli responses to them have only caused enormous damage to the Palestinian population and just last week, a group of residents from northern Gaza asked the Palestinian Authority in a letter to stop the rockets.
“I’ll tell you what stands behind that letter. It is, first of all, a tactic by the Palestinian Interior Ministry, that is trying to say that the rockets are a failure and they don’t help anything, that they only cause damage. This is the official line of the Authority and Abu Mazen also says so, and many interests sand behind it. Second of all, the letter is trying to say that if the Qassam rockets caused damage, then they did not cause Israel’s withdrawal and the faction’s demands should not be accepted. Therefore we see this letter as part of a political struggle and it does not influence our own struggle.
"These rockets were the ones that dragged Sharon, Mofaz, and all the army chiefs to have to explain themselves to Sderot residents time and time again. We recognize that there mistakes in our work, and who hasn’t made mistakes? But let’s not forget that the Israelis also admitted that our rockets have become more efficient and accurate. Therefore, its clear to everyone that they brought the victory and liberation in the Strip. And they will continue to serve us in our struggle until the liberation of all of Palestine.”
What is the definition of ‘all of Palestine’ for which the struggle will be continued?
“That means all the area occupied according to law, and we will continue to fight over it. And it means that we won’t give the IDF and the settlers who are escaping from Gaza to the West Bank to abuse our people there. Palestinian blood is one and therefore we are ready to continue the struggle. For this reasons we have already set up the units who work to smuggle the necessary knowledge for fighting techniques, especially to do with the rockets, from Gaza to the West Bank.
Hold on, rockets in the West Bank is a very dangerous thing. Would an (IDF) operation in Qalqilia cause rockets to fall on the Sharon area (central Israel) or on Tel Aviv?
“In principle, yes. But I am not saying that we will fire these rockets left, right and center. These rockets will be activated in proportion to Israeli activity. A small Israeli operation here and there will not tempt us to use the rockets, but a major assassination, or big infiltration into a city like Jenin, would force us to act. But as always, we won’t initiate, we will only respond to Israeli activities.”
(07.31.05, 16:04)
ping
I believe that it's going to become undeniable over the next couple of years, that the Palestinians should be kicked off the West Bank and Gaza. No matter what Israel does, the Palestinians will never live in peace beside them. If the Palestinians allow rockets with increased capabilites to be launched from their territory, it will be impossible for Israel to ignore it, and the implications.
They've always fought a losing battle, but after X-years you would think their friends would say to them: "Give it up already... you made your point, and you lost. Go get real jobs."
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Any attempt to expen 3.5 million Palestinians from the territories will be met with the same response Serbia received when it tried to expel Albanian Muslims from Kosovo: a massive US-led military response against Israel. There is no way that the Palestinians can every be expelled.
The reason that Clinton was able to wag the dog in Serbia is that there were no dogs in the fight back home.
No huge Serbian lobby and millions of Serbian American voters and their supporters.
Trying to invade or use force against Israel (A formidable military power, not to mention nukes) would provoke a massive political crisis right here.
I'm not sure I agree with that. I think it's a rational opinion, I just don't subscribe to it.
If those rockets star raining down on Tel-Aviv on a semi-regular basis, what choice will Israel have but to move people away form it's borders?
Thanks for the comment.
My home is in Netanya. I am seven miles from Samaria and I am on the coast. There is no place to move anyone.
If rockets land in Tel Aviv or anywhere in the Sharon region I expect the response will be a military one and it will be severe. That will cause much international condemnation of Israel but it won't cause foreign military intervention.
Mass transport is indeed the only solution, although considering the numbers involved it's going to have to happen after a negotiated settlement -- a monstrous payoff (on the order of $100 billion) to one or more Arab countries to take them in.
Can't see it happening, though. Not only does the majority of the Arab world despise the Palestinians but Arab dictatorships would lose a very powerful tool (that they've successfully used for decades now) in being able to redirect the anger of their crazed populaces away from the corruption that exists within their own ranks and onto an external source ("The Zionist Entity").
There will never be foreign military intervention against Israel (with the exception of Arab nations)for the sole reason that Israel can wipe out any nation on earth with its nuclear arsenal.
WHY is there going to be any withdrawl at all, if it is only going to move more of Isreal into range of the rockets?
(Simple question. Have yet to get any kind of answer
from anybody, on the Israeli government side or the US
government side.)
I like the term 'refugee camps'...how many years does an intelligent person stay in a 'refugee camp' and wait for life to rescue him??
The withdrawl from Gaza does not put central Israel into range of the Qassam rockets. The Palestinians are talking about moving Qassam rockets into Judea and Samaria. Considering the expanded/improved fence to go up around Gaza they may find doing this more difficult than they imagine.
Have you ever seen the "refugee camps". They are parts of cities with very permanent structures. Calling them refugee camps (with images of tents in people's minds) is pretty much a big stripey lie.
Well, that's my take. I agree with you.
When the missiles are powerfull enough to take down buildings and kill large numbers of people, something Israel can't put a wall up to stop, they'll be forced to respond as you have said.
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