| Submit your comments on this article | ||
| Israel-Palestine-Jordan | ||
| Analysis: The Hidden Picture In Gaza | ||
| 2014-08-03 | ||
| [Jpost] In recent days, Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, members seized UN food coupons and prevented Gazook civilians from receiving the aid, in order to try and keep field cell members fed. The Islamist regime refuses to publish most of the names of its members who were killed fighting the IDF, and disposes of their bodies quickly, to avoid harming morale. It has tried to ban Gazook civilians from giving interviews to the foreign press during humanitarian truce ..The purposes of a truce are twofold: 1.) bring up more arms, ammunition, and reinforcements; and 2.) get the enemy to relax his vigilance. A truceis not the same thing as a ceasefire, and a ceasefiredoesn't mean you have to stop shooting... The IDF has seen Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, tunnel fighters surrender because they have run out of food. To be sure, this does not mean Hamas is near the breaking point. Its terrorist army is composed of 15,000 trained members, and Hamas is mobilizing battalions from across Gazoo to replace the hundreds of guerrillas killed in combat.
How did Hamas reach this point? It launched the current war because of its rapidly deteriorating situation as a regime in Gazoo, and growing isolation since the fall of the Moslem Brüderbund in Egypt. When Egyptian president Mohammed Morsi was toppled in July 2013, Hamas saw its vision of a sea of Moslem Brüderbund states surrounding and threatening Israel shatter. Its goal of creating a unified Islamic state took several steps back. It went from growth mode to survival mode, and began fast-tracking preparations for a war with Israel to try and end its diplomatic, economic and general isolation. It prepared cross-border attack tunnels, drones and commando raids, and increased its rocket arsenal, for the day of the big clash, which Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, assumed would break out this summer. Indeed, the movement initiated the war by firing hundreds of rockets at Israel and ignoring Israeli truce offers, while seeking to exploit tensions in the West Bank caused by the kidnap and murder of three Israeli teenagers by a Hebron Hamas cell. The defense establishment became aware several months ago of Hamas's intention to start a war, when it discovered a maze of cross-border tunnels. The discovery led to the realization that Hamas was planning to launch a massive terrorist attack on the South and kick off a conflict. Israel, too, fast-tracked preparations in the months that followed, with the IDF Southern Command and the Shin Bet working closely together to get ready. Now, the fruits of those preparations are being used every day, and the Shin Bet has dedicated enormous resources to assisting the IDF in its offensive against Hamas, particularly in the systematic destruction of Hamas's tunnels. The Shin Bet's primary mission is to thwart attacks on soldiers inside the Gazoo Strip, and its secondary mission is to aid in attacks on Hamas targets. It is broadcasting real-time intelligence to IDF brigade commanders, who are less familiar with Gazook neighborhoods than Shin Bet regional coordinators.
In some cases, this has led to army units being ordered to stop seconds before they pass a booby-trapped home that would have been remotely detonated by Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, members. Soldiers have watched homes blow up, knowing they would have been killed without the last-minute warnings. Intelligence officials view Hamas's tunnel city in the Strip as the product of a full-blown industry, hierarchical and organized. Each Hamas battalion has been assigned its own tunnel, and diggers are seen as members of a profession. In recent months, senior Hamas members have come to meet diggers in the evenings, share a meal with them, and encourage them to carry on. Despite counter-surveillance measures by Hamas, the Shin Bet has been able to track the progress of many of these tunnels, allowing it to now guide soldiers to shafts in Gazoo. Despite their rhetoric, some Hamas big turbans are privately asking themselves whether the war they began is worth the price. Cracks have become visible in Hamas's leadership, which is made up of the military, political and overseas wings. Only when the three reach a consensus does the movement move forward on an issue. Some Hamas field commanders have also begun being critical of the situation, wary of the anger that is brewing among Gazook civilians. It remains to be seen whether these developments will push Hamas into seeking a real truce, or whether it will continue on its destructive warpath. | ||
| Posted by:trailing wife |
| #3 Like Zero the only time they stop lying is when they stop talking. I think Zero has figured out how to lie even while not talking as well. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2014-08-03 19:10 |
| #2 a Hudna is the most Hamas would ever agree too. Like Zero the only time they stop lying is when they stop talking. Ceasefires are only time outs to recruit and re-arm. |
| Posted by: AlanC 2014-08-03 14:47 |
| #1 It remains to be seen whether these developments will push Hamas into seeking a real truce, or whether it will continue on its destructive warpath. I'm pessimistic. This pessimism is based on history and on a constant barrage of statements calling for the destruction of Israel. It is also based on their willingness to use civilians for human shields. I don't think they will bend to any anger brewing among the Gazook civilian population--only if the civilians toss out Hamas which seems unlikely. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2014-08-03 11:29 |