In 2004, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon unilaterally withdrew from the Gaza Strip and aided in relocating all Jewish settlers in the region to other parts of the state with a larger Jewish prescence. Yet, since 2004, the return for Israeli good will has been in the form of Qassam rockets and terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians in the neighboring towns of Sderot and Ashkelon. Consequently, in order to protect the safety of its citizens, Israel must regain control of the Gaza Strip and annihilate Hamas altogether.
Since Hamas secured its victory in the 2006 Palestinian elections, it has been actively training women to become martyrs and suicide bombers. Hamas attacks have been largely indiscriminate and have been orchestrated to create an environment of fear amongst Israelis; this is contrasted with Israel's targeted assassinations in areas where known Hamas members operate. Without a doubt, Israeli raids have resulted in deaths of many innocent civilians. Yet, the intent behind these operations is to eliminate forces of evil in their society.
As of Jan. 2008, more than 8,000 rockets have been fired at Sderot. A study by NATAL, Israel's Trauma Center for Victims of Terror and War, concluded that between 70 and 94 percent of Sderot children showed symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Keep in mind that these are innocent children who, unlike many Palestinian children, are not trained in any sort of violence or suicide bombing and can do little more than merely throw rocks across the street.
Many Palestinians cite the aggression against Israel as being legitimate because of Israel's occupation of Palestinian land. Yet, if Palestinians want Israel to transfer full authority to them in the Gaza Strip, they must prove to Israel that the military presence is no longer needed. The Palestinians must elect a peace-seeking government and curtail reckless violence directed against innocent civilians if they wish to gain Israel's trust and autonomy from Israeli control.
If Hamas is allowed to maintain power, they will likely achieve more sophisticated missiles capable of penetrating Israel to a greater extent. Hamas' growing connections with the increasingly radical Iranian regime, spell out doom for Israel's security if it does not take action to reclaim the Gaza Strip.
Many people claim that poverty leads to an increase in terrorism. If Israel reoccupies the Gaza Strip, more foreign aid and Israeli humanitarian assistance would be able to be transported to a people at need. Al-Jazeera News notes that, "the number of households in Gaza below the consumption poverty line [has] continued to grow, reaching 51.7 percent in 2007." It is clear that Hamas has been unable to increase the standard of living of its citizens.
According to the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 19,655 tons of goods were delivered to the Gaza Strip between Sept. 7-12, 2008, alone, including food, medicine, and school supplies. Between June 16, 2007 and Sept. 22, 2008, a total of 813,870 tons of humanitarian-related goods have been delivered from the Israeli government to the citizens held hostage by the corruption of the Hamas government.
By reoccupying the Gaza Strip, Israel will be in a better position to address the growing al-Qaida presence in the region. Al-Qaida members are believed to be entering the Gaza Strip from the porous Egyptian border. It is unlikely at the moment that al-Qaida has a stronghold here yet, but Israel would be wise to take preemptive action in the area to eliminate possible future training camps for al-Qaida terrorists. Given the political weakness of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Hamas and other Islamic terrorist organizations essentially have free reign in the area. Getting the United Nations to aid Israel in any way is a highly unlikely scenario, given the inherent biases of the member-states. Consequently, it is becoming increasingly likely that unilateral action is the only way in which Israel's security could be preserved.
It is in the best interest of Israeli citizens and the people in the Palestinian territories if Israel reoccupied the Gaza Strip until Hamas is extricated from power and the Palestinians elect a formidable, moderate, peace-seeking force.
Be the first to comment on this article!