Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Truce? Hamas Celebrates Bus Bombing In Tel Aviv
This morning, a bus was bombed in Tel Aviv on Shaul Hamelech Street ( King Solomon Street) in the heart of the city's downtown.
28 people were reported injured, with four of them suffering what are described as moderate injuries. 'Moderate' in this context can mean anything from severe cuts and abrasions to the loss of an eye or limb.
This is the first time Tel Aviv has been hit with a terror bombing since April 2006, when a Palestinian homicide bomber murdered 11 people at a felafel stand near the old central bus station.
That was the attack where Daniel Wultz, American citizen was mortally wounded and later died for the crime of picking the wrong felafel restaurant to eat at at the wrong time (Z"l). He was just 16 years old.
This device was not a homicide bombing, but a bomb apparently placed under a seat by someone who rode the bus and then exited. I would also say that since Israel's defensive barrier has made it almost impossible for an Arab from Judea and Samaria to cross over and blow up Jews, and since the device itself, while no joke lacked the heavy duty firepower of the sort of bus bombs Hamas and the PA's al-Aksa used to detonate, the perpetrator was likely an Arab living in Israel.
The clip above is from Hamas TV. It was celebration time there.
AFter today's attack in Tel Aviv, I'd be very surprised if there was a ceasefire or truce without an Israeli ground operation to go into Gaza. The vast majority of Israelis are tired of this scenario repeating itself every few years and want Hamas dealt with once and for all.
Hillary Clinton is in the Middle East, flying between Cairo and Jerusalem to try and broker that ceasefire. If it happens, you will know that the Israelis were subjected to extreme pressure by the Obama Administration.
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3 comments:
"If it happens, you will know that the Israelis were subjected to extreme pressure by the Obama Administration." If the Isralis are pressured, they should simply refuse to cooperate and do what they need to do for the national interests. No other nation spends much time worrying about what America does or says. Simply tell Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Obama or whoever to simply go pound sand or whatever.
Israel has allies in Congress. Enlist their help. Enlist the help of any other allies the nation has. Get the message out about the pressure, if it is occurring. Don't go along with it!! Simply politely but forcefully say "no."
If this does not work, then use more forceful measures. There's nothing the US can do. The US faces a myriad of problems. Its military equipment is worn down and technologically outdated, its troops are poorly led, poorly trained, and face low morale, the nation's infrastructure is crumbling, there are not enough skilled workers to address any of these problems, and the massive national debt and struggling economy make it a very difficult prospect to address any of this in the near to mid term.
Its the height of insanity on the part of the American government to even be involved in this right now. Its not like the US can actually stop Israel. America's best bet is to stay out of the way. It just so happens that Israel's enemies are our enemies as well. Its in our interest that Israel cripple or destroy this enemy. Israel is in a much better position to actually do this than we are.
Rob, please explain to me, like I am a 4 year old, why Israel doesn't just deal with this once and for all? Why do they always stop short? They did it last time in Gaza and also in Lebanon. They smack around their enemy, then back off. They can certainly finish the job, but apparently have no political will to do so. Hamas will simply re-arm, with help from Iran now, and this will re-start again in 3 or 4 years, except now, Hamas has rockets that can reach both Tel Aviv, as well as Israel's "self-claimed" capital of Jerusalem.
Also, am I nuts, or did BamBam warm to Israel just slightly after his re-election? Or is he just bored of Mideast politics now that he is playing kissy face in Asia....?
Oh and B.Poster, give it rest already bashing the US military all the time. We are the best, even better than Israel. Better than anyone, so can it already...
Borboun,
"...so can it already." I'm just telling the truth. In order for us to be successful, we will need a realistic assessment of our strengths and weaknesses. Failure to do this gets us nowhere productive. Overly rosy assessments of our capabilities are unproductive on so many levels it is hard to know where to begin.
While the US military does likely remain very formidable, it is far from certain that we are "better than anyone." In fact, such an assessment is likely incorrect, at this point in time. Additionally, the morale problems and lack of quality of equipment as well as repeated deployments that don't serve our national interests sap our limited forces of needed strength and reserves have greatly weakened our capabilities. I could go on.
I agree with you that Israel should just deal with this once and for all. The excuse given for not doing so seems to very often be "US pressure." If Israel is being pressured, the US is being pressured as well. Wtih that said, I think "American pressure" may be a factor here but it is unlikely that explains the whole thing. The narrative of such pressure is likely largely an excuse put forth by some who are unhappy with certain results of Israeli military operations.
If Israel changes the nature of the "speical relationship" with America, then they would be less vunerable to such pressure. Such an action by Israel actually would serve the mid to long range interests of both of our countries much better than the current nature of the relationship does.
"... did BamBam warm to Israel just slightly after his reelection?" Its possible but does not seem likely. As I've pointed out elsewhere, most US leaders begin their careers as pro-Israel but in time most drift away from such positions as they face pressures from various stakeholders in the US adn world. As such, the longer they remain in power and/or the more power they acquire they typically become anti-Israel or at the very least Israel typically seems to face hostile neglect from these parties.
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