Posted on 05/01/2006 5:32:33 AM PDT by SJackson
Egypt's President Mubarak and Jordan's King Abdullah, who met this week, issued a joint call against Ehud Olmert's planned transfer of vast areas of Judea and Samaria to the control of Hamas.
The two leaders met in Aqaba, the Jordanian port city adjacent to Eilat, and warned that one-sided solutions will not help in promoting the peace process or regional stability. They said that Israel must negotiate not with Hamas, but with Abu Mazen, the leader of the Fatah organization.
Middle Eastern affairs expert Dr. David Bukai of Haifa University notes the irony, explaining that Egypt and Jordan are more aware of and concerned about the Hamas terror threat than Israel, whose leaders are "criminally" busy with their own problems.
Speaking with Arutz-7's Hebrew newsmagazine on Sunday, Bukai said that Egypt and Jordan feel that the rise of Hamas was enabled because of Israel's retreat from Gaza. "They fear that if Israel continues to withdraw, Hamas will get even stronger, and will become an even greater threat to Egypt and Jordan," he said.
"Jordan and Egypt are threatened by World Jihad terrorism no less than Israel," Bukai explained. "Bin Laden has appointed Musa Abu Zarkawi as the Amir [commander] not only of Iraq, but of the entire Middle East. Egypt is thus threatened by the Al-Qaeda terrorism emanating from Sinai - and this terror can easily reach Israel and Saudi Arabia as well. Jordan, too, knows that Abu Zarkawi - his name indicates that he is of Zarka in Jordan - is interested in taking over Jordan perhaps even more than he wants Iraq. That's why Egypt and Jordan feel threatened. The ties between World Jihad and Hamas are strong, and will become stronger; Hamas is the spearhead of Jihad in the region."
Bukai said that the Israeli government is not following Egypt and Jordan in this regard, and "is not even following logic or what its citizens' welfare would dictate. The Israeli government is busy with its own issues, totally and completely detached from the existing strategic and political reality. They will only act out of their own understanding, and this understanding is totally mistaken and even, to a large extent, criminal vis-a-vis Israel's citizens' welfare and security. They will of course say that they are watching out only for Israel's interests, but unfortunately, this is far from the truth."
Abu Marzuk, the head of the political desk of Hamas, said today that representatives of European and Scandinavian countries have been in contact with Hamas leaders in Damascus. The Europeans are trying to convince Hamas to recognize Israel, Abu Marzuk said, adding that Hamas is willing only to consider maintaining quiet and stability.
Mubarak and Abdullah said they wish to meet separately with Prime Minister-designate Ehud Olmert with the goal of encouraging the resumption of negotiations between Israel and Abu Mazen.
Bukai said that Egypt and Jordan did nothing to stop the ascent of Hamas, and only now, when the threat is becoming stronger, are they showing concern. "The reason why Hamas is in power is because of the free elections in the Palestinian Authority," he said. "Any Arab or Islamic country that would hold free elections would show the same result, because if given a choice, the simple man in the street - I don't call him a citizen, because there's no civics in these places - will choose what he knows, namely, the Islamic Movement... Actually, Egypt and Jordan would like it if Israel would do their work for them and deal with the Hamas threat."
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I'm not sure this analysis is 100% correct. It portrays Israel as shortsighted and/or disinterested.
Now it may be true that Israel has internal issues to resolve, but that is part of the reason for the decision to unilaterally withdraw. In a way, Israel is calling the Arabs' bluff.
For decades the Arabs have been calling on Israel to withdraw, but have not offered a single substantive thing to enable peace. They just issue pronouncements. Egypt in particular allows rampant smuggling of arms into Gaza.
So, Israel is turning the tables on them. It will withdraw and leave the Arab populations. Cries of "occupation" and "oppression" will dampen while the Palestinians own internal fissures will widen. Their issues will take a backseat on the world stage, which is already starting to happen, while they increasingly turn on each other to fight over crumbs (they left the cake behind years ago).
Meanwhile Egypt and Jordan, who have for too long done too little, begin to feel the effects. They have projected weakness in every direction and the terrorists have and will take advantage of it. This is why, in part and only imho, that Israel can proceed with withdrawal. It is not Israel who will bear the brunt, but Egypt and Jordan. Egypt and Jordan will have to deal with the refugees to come. They will have to deal with terrorists. They will deal with the economic and political fallout.
Israel will not be immune from attack. But its "introvergence" plan (a word coined by The Economist) will shut the Palestinians out in many ways, leaving Egypt and Jordan and Lebanon and Syria to deal with them. This is why they oppose it. The Palestinians will no longer be the Arabs' pawns -- they will be the Arabs' burden, which they themselves created.
The autocrats may think theres a big difference between Fatah and Hamas, but Israel doesent. Arafat got money from Europe and the Arab League and contimued to threaten Israel; now the pretence is gone. Despite the bluster and obduracy, in some ways Hamas is weaker than the PA ever was. Out of money and without resources, they threaten everybody.No friends, no hope, just insanity and poison.
The Israeli stategy is actually brilliant, IMO.. The best solution, from Israels point of view, is for Egypt to reoccupy Gaza and Jordan reoccupy th West Bank. Even if this isnt probable, its more likely given whats brewing out there in CrazyLand.
Very true but that might as well be ancient history. It's all different now, no turning back the clock. People have to deal with today and plan for tomorrow, not cry about yesterday. The sooner the Arabs understand that the better.
I believe most people just want to live peacefully but so long as their societies permit truly idiotic ideologies to persist - things like martyrdom and honor killings - it is hopeless. If they allow those things, then things like preaching 'kill the Jews' will always be considered "moderate" to them.
These are two cultures that cannot coexist and the sooner Israel separates, the better. Israel may still need to occupy with its army to put down the terrorists, prevent weapons smuggling from the borders of Jordan, and keep a good spy network going, but otherwise Israel needs to let them stew in their own juices for a while.
The irony is that there would be no better friend to the Palestinians than Israel. No other country can contribute more socially, economically, diplomatically, medicinally, financially but their leaders are so caught up in a self-destructive ideology that they cannot see it. They hate Israel more than they care about themselves. Pathetic, really, and thus totally undeserving of assistance. You can't help anyone who refuses to help themselves.
Anything less than total surrender and a new holocaust is unacceptable to the murders who follow the false prophet of islam.
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