Posted on 08/23/2005 12:28:51 PM PDT by SmithL
RAMALLAH - As far as many residents here are concerned, the evacuation of the settlers from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank is just a "play" designed to show the world that Israel was prepared to make painful concessions for the sake of peace. Only a few Palestinians believe that the confrontations between the settlers and IDF and police forces in some areas were real.
"It was like watching a play at the theater," said shopkeeper Hosni Jamal as he and friends watched the news on al-Jazeera. "Most of the settlers have already left their homes and what we are seeing today is a play orchestrated by [Prime Minister Ariel] Sharon and the settlement leaders."
Another merchant, reflecting the view of a minority, heaped praise on Sharon for using a "tough policy" against the settlers. "Let's face it, Sharon has proven to be a brave leader," said Amjad Abu Omar, who describes himself as a "peace-loving" Palestinian. "I wish we Arabs had leaders like Sharon who are capable of standing up against the extremists."
While many residents interviewed here welcomed the withdrawal, the majority expressed fear that Israel would exploit the evacuation of the settlers to boost its standing in the international arena.
"Undoubtedly, Sharon has scored a big victory in the international media," remarked a veteran Palestinian journalist. "Now he's being portrayed as a man of peace and there are some who are even nominating him for the Nobel Peace Prize. This is very worrying because the world has forgotten all what he did to the Palestinians over the past 50 years."
Bassem Abu Sumayyah, director-general of the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation, noted the contrast between the sad faces of the settlers and the happiness that had engulfed many Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
"The settlers' sadness and depression was artificial," he said. "It was a surrealistic scene full of contradictions. There is no similarity between the tears of the settlers who left the Gaza Strip voluntarily and the tears of the Palestinians when they were forcibly expelled from their lands."
Yahya Rabah, a columnist for the Ramallah-based al-Hayat al- Jadeeda newspaper, said the evacuation had been carefully designed by the Israeli government, army, media and settlers to impress the international public opinion.
Claiming that most of the settlers had left their homes after receiving generous compensations before the beginning of the evacuation, Rabah said he believed the Jews who had infiltrated the Gaza Strip to resist the disengagement were actually sent by the "directors of this play" to weep and barricade themselves inside synagogues.
"I have no sympathy for the settlers," said Jihan Mahmoud, a university student from a village near Ramallah. "What we saw on television was just a show. Unfortunately, the international media, which is largely controlled by Jews, played into the hand of Sharon and the settlers. Where were they when hundreds of Palestinian families were expelled from their homes in Rafah during the intifada?"
Summing up the general attitude of the Palestinian's toward the evacuation of the settlers, Hani al-Masri, a prominent political analyst, wrote in the daily al-Ayyam under the title "Painful concessions or a theater?" that the scenes from the Gaza Strip and the northern West Bank would not change the real face of the settlers.
"The dramatic and sad pictures carried by the world media showing settlers being 'uprooted' from their 'homes' and 'holy sites,' as well as the civilized picture of the Israeli soldiers and police, won't forge the historic, political and geographic reality," he said. "The settlers are racists who occupied others' lands in 1967, spread corruption and displaced the Palestinian people and turned their lives into hell."
If they think it's so easy they're welcome to begin packing right now.
Now blaming the Jews for Jews withdrawing? These guys are too dumb to live.
Message from the Palestinians: Israel has not yet done enough. More concessions are required. The Jews must be pushed into the sea. Once the Jewish homeland is no more, we will stop making demands.
I don't think they would stop even then.
The Arabs live in such a world of self-delusion that they really ought to be considered the world's first national group that needs massive psychological treatment. . .
Until then, they should be kept away from sharp impliments, alcohol, and weapons of mass destruction . . .
I had to double check to make sure this wasn't from Scrappleface.
So what "play" are the Palestinians going to execute to show that they too are prepared to make painful concessions for the sake of peace?
Palestinians are like Klingons. They do not know about peace.
Anything that doenst give them Everything, in their eyes is Nothing. Remember, westerners must live in Dhimitude, die or be expelled. nothing else will ever satisfy their repressive religious code or their thirst for blood.
Hey! Quit defaming the Klingons. To the brave and honorable warriors of Klingon, the Palestinians are so much "p'tak" (sp).
I was thinking maybe Ferengi, but I'm not certain that the Rules of Acquisition could be interpreted broadly enough to permit some of the acts the Palestinian murderers have committed.
SO -if there are to be No Jews allowed in Gaza-or the
West Bank in this so called Palestinian State our President wants to create in Israel Why should there be
allowed any freakin'pig dung eating Arabs allowed in Israel?
Me thinks Israel plays a very dangerous game allowing the enemy remain in the camp.Seems they learned nothing from
the Books of Judges,Kings and Chronicles.Very Stupid of our
President to deny Israel the right of Conquest -the very
right we claimed when we annexed so much of our Southwest
from Mexico.
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