... the Arab leaders are not supporting Hamas and the protests in those countries are not as widely attended as one might think. Of course, if the EU and the UN starts bribing various Middle Eastern countries with aid then, undoubtedly, Hamas will become flavour of the month. As long as they stay in Gaza and do not enter, say, Egypt, whose foreign minister has openly accused them of being at fault. DECEMBER 30, 2008 BEIRUT, Lebanon -- On the third day of Israel's attack on Gaza, street protesters across the Middle East broadened their rage toward Israel and the U.S. to include Arab rulers accused of not acting forcefully and fast enough to stop the violence. The ferocity of the Israeli attacks in Gaza -- and mounting casualties, which United Nations estimated Monday at 320 dead, including 62 civilians, and more than 1,400 injured -- could channel pent-up anger against Arab leaders into further support for Islamist groups. These groups are increasingly seen as the only organized movements willing to stand up to Israel. Demonstrators in Cairo protest the Israeli air strikes in Gaza. "These feelings have been there for years; what has changed is that Arabs now have extremist groups through which they can channel their anger and resentment," said Rami Khouri, a political analyst in Beirut. "You'll have a new generation of people who want to fight Israel." Egypt, a close U.S. ally that has served as mediator between Israel and Hamas, came under particular fire for appearing unwilling to open its border crossing with Gaza to fleeing Palestinians. Late Monday, Egypt allowed in a handful of Palestinians who needed emergency care and provided access to Gaza to convoys of humanitarian aid coming from abroad. Egypt has in the past been fearful that opening up the border would result in a flood of refugees and Hamas operatives entering its borders. Cairo is struggling with its own Islamic opposition, the Muslim Brotherhood, from which Hamas traces its roots. Egypt is also a top recipient of U.S. foreign aid and has been under pressure from Washington not to make concessions to Hamas. Hamas won Palestinian parliamentary elections in early 2006, and then violently overran the Gaza Strip the following year when a unity government with its moderate rival Fatah party fell apart. At a rally in Cairo on Monday, thousands of protesters shouted "Where's the Egyptian army?" and "Down with Mubarak," denouncing Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Mobs also formed outside Egyptian embassies in Beirut, Tehran and Amman, Jordan, where protesters burned American and Israeli flags. In Tehran, a group affiliated with hard-line clerics signed up volunteers to fight Israel in the Gaza Strip. The hard-line Iranian newspaper Keyhan ran a headline that said, "Are Arab leaders dead?" Hezbollah leader Seyed Hassan Nasrallah spoke for a second day at a large rally in Beirut urging Egyptians in their "millions" to take to the streets to force their government to open the country's border with Gaza. "The Arab public is sick of watching its leaders take no action against Israel," said Nasser Amin, an Egyptian lawyer and director of the Arab Center for the Independence of the Judiciary in Cairo. "Right now, the only countries who are speaking truthfully for the Arabs are Syria, Libya and Iran. The rest of them are completely out of touch with reality." Write to Farnaz Fassihi at farnaz.fassihi@wsj.com ==================== “I am gravely concerned about the continuing violence in Gaza and the numbers of civilians killed and injured. The crisis is exacting a terrible human toll on both sides and it is imperative that further loss of life is avoided. I join the Security Council’s call for an immediate ceasefire and call on Arab countries to use their influence to urge Hamas to end rocket attacks on Israel. I also call on Israel to work with the international community so that the humanitarian relief so desperately needed in Gaza can be provided. The British Government must work with the United States and other members of the Middle East Quartet to secure an early return to negotiations in 2009. The only long-term solution is a negotiated two-state agreement that achieves a viable and secure Palestinian state living alongside a secure Israel with her right to live in peace and security recognised by all her neighbours. The world looks to the new President of the United States to place these negotiations at the top of his foreign policy agenda and to pursue them with vigour and determination from the very outset.” > Robert Halfon on CentreRight: "If we want an enduring peace in the Middle East, then Israel must be allowed to defeat Hamas in Gaza" > Iain Dale on Hague's call for a ceasefire: "The trouble is that any Hamas backed ceasefire isn't worth the paper it is written on. If we have learned nothing from recent history, surely we have learned that." “If somebody was sending rockets into my house where my two daughters sleep at night, I would do everything to stop that, and would expect Israel to do the same thing” - Barack Obama, in July, while visiting Israel as a U.S. presidential candidate Tim MontgomerieWhatever the media may say ...
Let us not forget that in the endless cycle of violence since the end of the Second World War the highest level of casualties suffered by the Palestinians was in 1970 - 71 when the Jordanian army on orders from King Hussein threw the PLO out of Jordan.
The PLO went to Lebanon and proved conclusively that King Hussein and his army knew that they were fighting for the survival of their country.
Oh yes, I nearly forgot: William Hague, Shadow Foreign Secretary has come up with rubbish again. Does that man ever get anything right?
Gaza Protests Now Target Arab Leaders
![[cairo protest against israel]](http://s.wsj.net/public/resources/images/NA-AU994_ARAB_DV_20081229185415.jpg)
ReutersSUNDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2008
IDF Airstrikes Continue-- 110 Rockets Fired Into Israel-- Egyptian Foreign Minister Blames Hamas (Video)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit harshly censured Hamas today (27 Dec), placing responsibility for the current situation on Hamas. At a noon press conference broadcast on Egyptian television, he said that Egypt had repeatedly cautioned against continuing the situation and that whoever did not listen (Hamas) should assume responsibility and not blame others. He added that Israel had publicly warned that continued rocket fire would lead to military action -ViaLGF and Internet Haganah.
The IDF continued to pound targets in Gaza on Sunday.
The BBC reported:Israeli jets have launched a second day of air attacks on the Gaza Strip, amid warnings that operations will continue until Hamas ends rocket fire from Gaza.
Iranian regime Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei condemned the "heinous complicity of the criminal Bush's regime with the Zionists, adding that the silence of some international bodies and some Arab states provided for the crimes."
Palestinians now say at least 280 people have died, while Israel is said to be considering a ground assault and has authorised the call-up of reserves.
At the UN, the Security Council called for an end to all violence in Gaza, including rocket attacks from Gaza.
Israel says militants have fired 110 rockets into Israel since Saturday.
The country's cabinet has authorised the call-up of reserve soldiers, with unconfirmed reports saying as many as 6,500 could be summoned for duty.
...The Egyptian foreign minister has accused Hamas of not allowing injured Palestinians to leave Gaza to seek treatment, even though much-needed medical supplies are waiting at the nearby El-Arish airport.
More... The IDF Casualty rate: 94% terrorists, so far.
The systemic anti-Semitism on the Left is starting to rear its ugly head.
More on that here.
Still more... Hezbollah terrorist leader Nasrallah vowed to open another front in Lebanon.
Dan Diker, a foreign policy analyst with the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, filed a report on the situation at Power Line.
Previously:
Israeli Jets Pound Gaza-- Over 170 Dead (Video)
Israeli Gaza Strikes Called 'Holocaust' By Hamas
Hamas Calls For 3rd Intifada & Suicide Missions Against Israel
Hague calls for Israel to stop its action against Hamas
After his call for "restraint" on Saturday, the Shadow Foreign Secretary has just issued this second statement:
3.45pm: I've just received the best briefing so far on the Gaza situation (by Tom Gross, former Jerusalem correspondent for the Sunday Telegraph). It contains a quotation from Barack Obama that suggests he might be a lot steelier than Mr Hague:
Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit harshly censured Hamas for the current situation in Gaza:
POSTED BY GATEWAY PUNDIT AT 12/28/2008 06:46:00 AM Comments (72) | Trackbacks (2)TRACKBACKS (2)
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