[tomahawk]

Why send in food to terrorists? Let them come out hungry.

[mewzilla]

They should lace all the food with Ex-Lax.

[chance33_98]

They halted it because they are waiting for their fed ex shipment of explosives. As far as food - send in some HAM and Bacon.

[Scott from the Left Coast]

Senior security sources told Ha'aretz that the decision was based on several considerations, including the wave of protests that swept the West Bank and Gaza Strip

This doesn't come even close to passing the smell test. Are we to imply from this that Israel took on this operation with the expectation that the wildly emotional (crazy) Palestinian population would not protest???

I suspect that American pressure stopped this from being brought to a conclusion (good cop, bad cop again). Politicians and military leaders, planning operations which will commence [at least relatively] soon do not want any "wild cards" that might change the conditions of the "set-piece" battle which they have planned.

Thus, their plans are based on the assumption of [at least] relative calm everywhere else in the vicinity prior to launch date.

And when they have a plan, everything else becomes subjugated to it.

[Cicero]

Ha'aretz is so far to the left that it distorts things in favor of the Palestinians. The Israelis have not refused to "solve the crisis." They have merely said that they would not be suckered into another agreement like the one that freed all the Palestinian low-lives who took over the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, mistreated the Christians there, and trashed the church.

[eclectic]

One has to admire the patience of Israelis. Slowly, slowly they get the world opinion accustomed with the idea that the PA is to be extiguished. Unfortunately with the freaking morons running rampant in the American media they have to proceed slowly, but it costs Jewish lives...

[He Rides A White Horse]

In Tul Karm, gunmen walking in a crowd of about 1,200 people traded fire with Israeli troops Saturday.

...and when Israeli troops respond to thse scenarios, and civilians are killed, terorists call upon their "UN type" friends for condemnations.

I can almost here what is going on in their heads:

"We can sacrifice these civilians. They have become martyrs, even if they didn't want to be. It's all for a greater good"

Sounds like a certain group of 'Americans' we're all familiar with.

[tessalu]

It is crazy to send in food to the terrorists or to give them water and electricity. Starve them out, and let them live in it up to their eyeballs. Now that is justice!

[goldstategop]

Exactly. Israelis have their heads screwed on wrong. The best way to strengthen the enemy and prolong a siege is to allow in food, water and medical aid. Why bother with the political and military costs of manintaining a siege if doesn't mean anything. And the order not to harm Arafat is patently ridiculous. Either he's completely guilty - which he is, or he's innocent in which case what Israel did was pointless. Israel would have been off either killing Arafat or arresting him anf putting him on trial than staging this farce of a siege. And it'll be even more of a joke if at the end of it, Israel comes out with nothing to show for it.