An Unnecessary War

[StudsT]

By Jimmy Carter
Thursday, January 8, 2009; A15

...

We knew that the 1.5 million inhabitants of Gaza were being starved, as the U.N. special rapporteur on the right to food had found that acute malnutrition in Gaza was on the same scale as in the poorest nations in the southern Sahara, with more than half of all Palestinian families eating only one meal a day.

Palestinian leaders from Gaza were noncommittal on all issues, claiming that rockets were the only way to respond to their imprisonment and to dramatize their humanitarian plight. The top Hamas leaders in Damascus, however, agreed to consider a cease-fire in Gaza only, provided Israel would not attack Gaza and would permit normal humanitarian supplies to be delivered to Palestinian citizens.

After extended discussions with those from Gaza, these Hamas leaders also agreed to accept any peace agreement that might be negotiated between the Israelis and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who also heads the PLO, provided it was approved by a majority vote of Palestinians in a referendum or by an elected unity government.

Since we were only observers, and not negotiators, we relayed this information to the Egyptians, and they pursued the cease-fire proposal. After about a month, the Egyptians and Hamas informed us that all military action by both sides and all rocket firing would stop on June 19, for a period of six months, and that humanitarian supplies would be restored to the normal level that had existed before Israel's withdrawal in 2005 (about 700 trucks daily).

We were unable to confirm this in Jerusalem because of Israel's unwillingness to admit to any negotiations with Hamas, but rocket firing was soon stopped and there was an increase in supplies of food, water, medicine and fuel. Yet the increase was to an average of about 20 percent of normal levels. And this fragile truce was partially broken on Nov. 4, when Israel launched an attack in Gaza to destroy a defensive tunnel being dug by Hamas inside the wall that encloses Gaza.

more...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/07/AR2009010702645_pf.html

and so it goes...

StudsT

[Douglas Carpenter]

1. an article that everyone must read in full

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/07/AR2009010702645_pf.html

An Unnecessary War

By Jimmy Carter
Thursday, January 8, 2009; A15

I know from personal involvement that the devastating invasion of Gaza by Israel could easily have been avoided.

After visiting Sderot last April and seeing the serious psychological damage caused by the rockets that had fallen in that area, my wife, Rosalynn, and I declared their launching from Gaza to be inexcusable and an act of terrorism. Although casualties were rare (three deaths in seven years), the town was traumatized by the unpredictable explosions. About 3,000 residents had moved to other communities, and the streets, playgrounds and shopping centers were almost empty. Mayor Eli Moyal assembled a group of citizens in his office to meet us and complained that the government of Israel was not stopping the rockets, either through diplomacy or military action.

Knowing that we would soon be seeing Hamas leaders from Gaza and also in Damascus, we promised to assess prospects for a cease-fire. From Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, who was negotiating between the Israelis and Hamas, we learned that there was a fundamental difference between the two sides. Hamas wanted a comprehensive cease-fire in both the West Bank and Gaza, and the Israelis refused to discuss anything other than Gaza.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/07/AR2009010702645_pf.html

[Vegasaurus]

2. A"defensive tunnel"

uh huh.

Kind of like the defensive tunnel used to smuggle in giant new Grad rockets, capable of inflicting even more damage.

We don't need Jimmy Carter's idea of "defense".

Sounds like that oxymoron "moral right to resist".

[StudsT]

3. self defense is a legitimate right of ALL people

fyi

StudsT

[AnOhioan]

4. Wow...you are digging that hole deeper every day

[Recursion]

5. Wait. You don't believe people have a right to resistance?

:wtf:

[Arrowhead2k1]

6. No, if the Palestinians would have just moved off the land just like the Israelis wanted...

Everything would be peachy.
:sarcasm:

[Shaktimaan]

9. Moved off what land?

You don't mean Gaza, do you?

Or are you just being sarcastic about that also?

[Scurrilous]

7. Great article.

:thumbsup:

[Shaktimaan]

8. Does Carter have Alzheimer's?

Hamas said that the rockets were the only way to respond to their imprisonment and dramatize their plight. So Hamas is actually admitting that they are engaging in War Crimes for the publicity? Wow! And doesn't Carter know the rockets preceded the closing off of Gaza?

Carter says here that the rocket firing soon stopped and the peace was only partially broken by an Israeli attack. Is it possible that Carter is unaware that the rockets did not actually cease entirely? Or that Hamas responded to Israel's action with more rockets? Why did he only name Israel as having broken the ceasefire when it was broken by both sides?

Finally, Carter said that Israel attacked Gaza to destroy a defensive tunnel being dug by Hamas. What the fuck exactly is a "defensive tunnel?" And how does Carter know what the nature of the tunnel was? (Apparently he's comfortable taking Hamas at their word.)

Oh Jimmy, Jimmy, Jimmy... you say that the war could have easily been averted, yet you totally forgot to explain how in the article. What happened to you Jimmy?