Gaza bleeds as Israel conducts a war of attrition

Saleh Akram | Published: July 23, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2024 06:01:00

Gaza is bleeding. Death toll has already topped the 500 mark. With no possibility of an immediate ceasefire in sight, miseries of the Gazans are compounding, precipitating a humanitarian crisis. Israel's bombing onslaught continues as thousands flee northern Gaza amid deadliest violence in the enclave in five years.
With world powers and the UN apparently scrambling for truce efforts, the new peace initiatives lacks the push required to make Israel agree to a ceasefire.
American President Barack Obama spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the situation in Gaza, underscoring US support for Israel to defend itself but raising concerns about the consequences of wider conflict.
The US is yet to call upon Israel to stop its attacks, but only went as far as requesting it to 'operate in a way that minimises civilian casualties'. The US believes Israel has a right to defend itself from rockets fired from Gaza and from attacks launched from cross-border tunnels, US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Sunday. Kerry called on Hamas to consider a ceasefire.
Earlier, an Egyptian truce proposal was accepted by Israel, but snubbed by Hamas which said it had not been consulted. Hamas's relations with Cairo have soured significantly since the military ousted its ally, Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood. Hamas is demanding a complete end to the Israeli blockade on Gaza, opening of the Rafah crossing with Egypt, and freedom of scores of prisoners who were rearrested in recent weeks by Israel. In fact, Hamas has so far refused to yield in the face of the relentless air, sea and land attacks by Israel and continued its own assaults. Â
As the warring sides showed no signs of giving up, diplomatic efforts to seek a truce was intensified with Hamas's exiled leader Khaled Meshaal preparing to meet Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas in Qatar to discuss the Egyptian truce proposal.
The increasing number of children killed in the conflict is causing a growing outcry. Ambulances are unable to reach much of the area along the border because of heavy fire. There are reports of dead and wounded trapped by the bombardment. Among them were screaming children with shrapnel wounds.
The head of the Cairo-based Arab League, Nabil el-Araby, described Israeli attacks on Gaza that killed at least 60 Palestinians on Sunday, as a "war crime" against Palestinian civilians and a dangerous escalation."
A two-hour humanitarian ceasefire in the area on Sunday, agreed by both sides at the request of the International Committee of the Red Cross, broke down within minutes with each side blaming the other. Most of the Palestinians were killed in an eastern neighbourhood of Gaza City called Shejaiya.
There is nothing new about war in Gaza and in fact, Gaza has always been in a war situation since 2007 when Hamas took over the strip. Israel wages attack on one pretext or the other. In retaliation, Hamas launches rockets into Israeli territory. This time, hostilities have been triggered by the incident of abduction and murder of three Israeli youths by Hamas fighters as alleged by Israel. Hamas rejected the allegations and the Israelis retaliated by arresting few hundred Hamas workers in Gaza and as a counter-offensive burnt alive a Palestinian youth. Â
When Israel last attacked Gaza, in 2012, the result was a kind of victory for Hamas. Israel was, as usual, militarily successful. But Hamas defended the territory effectively and attracted international support, including strong political backing from the government of President Mohamed Morsi and generous financial aid from Qatar. It was also able to reduce its dependence on allies such as the Syrian government, Iran, and Hezbollah, a dependence that had become problematic because of the Syrian civil war.
Any war, more particularly, a war between Israelis and Palestinians, is not caused by recent incidents only, there are more far-fetched reasons thereof. The ultra-rightist partners of Netanyahu had been pressing his government hard over the last few months for taking sterner action against the Palestinians. Relation between the two coalition partners was strained by a recent remark made by US Secretary of State John Kerry. John Kerry said, if Israel fails to reach an understanding with Palestine, it will be branded as a racist state.
Besides, the formation of a national unity government in Palestine as a result of understanding between Fatah and Hamas puzzled the Netanyahu government. Some political circles of Israel are of the view that the understanding between Hamas and Fatah was reached as a result of indirect efforts by the western powers, which will ultimately increase the acceptability of the Palestine Authority (PA) across the world. If somehow a war is initiated against Palestine, they believe, US will be compelled to come forward in their support. Netanyahu government, which is now somewhat diplomatically isolated, may be able to bridge the recent gap with US once the latter intervenes to stop the war.
A temporary truce may eventually be reached, but a permanent solution to the long-drawn Mideast crisis can be achieved only through the establishment of an independent state of Palestine which alone can ensure legitimate rights of the Palestinians.
Israel calls it a war of attrition, which means a long war at a low cost. This attitude does not help facilitate a positive move towards a durable peace. In fact, Israel's activities have raised serious doubts if it really wants peace in the region. Gordon Phillip, White House coordinator of the Middle East affairs, tossed a few questions at Tel Aviv on July 08, the day on which Israel started air attacks on Gaza. He asked: how could Israel exist as a democratic and Jewish state, if it wants to rule over millions of people living on the west bank? How could it live in peace if it does not ascertain the borders, withdraw from the occupied territories in the region and show respect to the sovereignty, security and dignity of the Palestinians? How could it stop other countries from supporting the Palestinians if it fails to demonstrate its own commitment for peace?Â Â
Saleh Akram is a TV personality.Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Â saleh.akram26@gmail.com