"Not My War Drum"

[eumelia]

While I was in Tel-Aviv and protested with my fellow comrades, both Jewish and Arab, against the aggression and war, the IDF began it's ground offensive.

The irony... it is anvil-like.

The body count in going to rise and rise and rise.
And more and more blood will permeate this (un)Holy earth.

The demo was large, over 10,000 people.
It was the first time I'd seen the Palestinian colours fly outside the West Bank (up until last week, there was an injunction against waving Palestinian colours).
There was also a counter-demo of Israeli Fascists.
And I do mean Fascists, saying the IDF must deploy and destroy and calling us - the anti-war demonstrates - a Fifth Column.

I'm an Israeli Jew.
And Palestinian-American Suheir Hammad speaks it exactly the way I see it.

Peace with our enemies.
Hope for us all.
Free Palestine.

Comments

[mao4269.livejournal.com]

Hamas actually did have significant infrastructure, if not policy, because they'd been running a lot of social services for a long time. That also gave them credibility for actually helping rather than taking aid money for themselves (ala Fatah). That being said, I agree that they would probably self-destruct as an organisation without a great unifying enemy and am on the record as saying that Israel and the world should have recognized the unity government back in 2006 (and waited for Hamas to shoot themselves in the foot).

[hemlock-sholes.livejournal.com]

Or, contrariwise, not have allowed them to run in the elections (and deal with the fallout of that back in 2006).

In any case, I agree that the attempt to eat our cake (pseudo-democratic elections among the Palestinians) and keep it whole (outlaw parties Israel doesn't agree with) is probably at the root of the (current) situation.

[gonzo21.livejournal.com]

Why didn't Israel recognise the government?

[mao4269.livejournal.com]

Because Hamas doesn't recognize Israel's right to exist.

[gonzo21.livejournal.com]

Right, so it was one of those 'we'll recognise you if you recognise us?' sorts of things?