Hamas and Israel, a severe confrontation, a new phase [Archives:2009/1227/Community]
Dr. Murad Alazzany
[email protected]
The grinding battle in the besieged Gasa strip is a stigmatic spot in the front head of the whole Islamic Nation. This war has not merely revealed the weakness of Muslims leaders but even their disloyalty to the Palestinian issue. In fact, it shows that the soul of defeatism has really dominated the Arab mentality to leave them helpless and indecisive. This defeated soul and pretentious weakness of Arab regimes have given Israel a great chance to conduct massacres against noncombatant Palestinians with every lethal weapon and tricks. Yet, in spite of the ferocity of Israeli offensive against those civilians, the position of Islamic country leaders was the weakest since 1948. Their stand against the war or their helpless denunciation did not even reach the minimum of what is expected from them.
Palestinians have been under a fierce attack for the past three weeks. Thousands of people have been killed and more thousands were wounded in a non-balanced and unfair war. However, this war has happened to change a lot of traditional conventions and to reveal new facts about the current situation. By this war, it becomes clear that the Arab regimes are not really weak, but they pretend to be deficient to do any thing for Gazan people. Arabic leaders with their regimes have lost their last card pertaining to the Palestinian issue after they have shown a really humiliated and disgraceful position in confronting the Israeli offensive that violently harvests the souls of Gazan children and women. The Arab street has lost all hopes in these leaders; and rather considers them as real obstacle in their way to achieve a victory in their battle against Israel. On the other hand, this battle has stirred the sentiments of Muslims with Hamas and creates a hope in their hearts that there are still faithful, patient and brave people who have the will to fight on behalf of them in such critical and serious battles. In fact, those people are currently seeing in Hamas a charisma that can fill the vacuum of the Islamic leadership that has been absent from their memory for long. For the first time, the people have found people who fight their battles, speak their minds and express their views while confronting the arrogant Israeli invaders. In addition, this war has revealed the fake mask worn by Arabic leaders nudding them in front of the common people. It showed that their support for the Palestinians' issue was never a priority in their agendas, rather was used as propaganda to accommodate the views and expectations of their people. They are proved to be real hypocrites who have no concern more than protecting their thrones and self-interests. It is really proved that such leaders can never bear the ambition of the nation and can never to bring any interest for it. Rather, their existence is a curse for the nation and a main reason behind its weakness and constant defeats. The war has revealed that those leaders see in Hamas a real enemy that represents a menacing threat for their thrones. They consider Hamas ideology as a thing that should be fought and if possible eradicated even if it is at the hand of their traditional enemy, Israel. They see in Hamas resistance, their weakness for that they definitely do not want to see the stronger on land.
Hamas has been really betrayed by those leaders who left it alone confronting the Israeli army creating panic circumstances that are utilized well by Israel in this battle. In spite of these circumstances, Hamas is not really in a bad situation. Though a lot of Palestinians have been murdered by the ferocity of the Israeli weaponry machines that have crossed all the human lines, this war is still an ultimate defeat for the organized Israeli army and its allies in the area. Though the Israeli Tank and artillery fire pounded Gaza all night and day, with plumes of black smoke showing no mercy or respite to harvest the Palestinians souls and to destroy their homes, the war is still a triumph for all Muslims in general and Palestinians in particular. Right now, Israel never gets close to achieving the goals it set for itself which is to stop all rocket firing into the southern Israeli territories and to block smuggling tunnels into Gaza to stop a resupply of Hamas.
From another perspective, if you trace the history of Muslims-Israeli conflict back and you consider its events and stages with a more deep and farsighted vision, you would really feel optimistic this time. For the first time in the history of the Israeli-Muslims conflicts, the resistance that counter the Israeli arrogance is purely Islamic. For the past four centuries, all the movements that come out from the womb of Islam have been playing secondary role in the battlefields, Taliban is an exception in this equation. Now, Hamas is playing the role that was never was played by all Arabic regimes backed up with organized armies, tanks, missiles and aircrafts that cost billion of dollars. All the wars against Israeli were always managed and lead by parties of people who have either a social or national ideology at other times. These ideologies were never a real threat to Israeli and were also far to reach the expectation of Muslims pertaining to their conflict with Israeli. Probably, these previous movements were more concerned to look for peace rather than to go in ongoing battles with Israel. They showed a will to negotiate with Israel for trivial political gains which never came true. However, though of the humble and traditional potentialities Hamas has, it showed a strong will and determination to fight Israel as invaders of the lands. They saved no effort to make whatever sacrifice to resist the Israeli invaders with new techniques, quick adaptation and lethal tricks. This made out of it a movement worth enough to be trusted by all Muslims. It becomes a movement that all Muslims can hang on the hope of restoring and gaining back their lost pride and torn out dignity. This movement has gained recently a wide sympathy and support by the majority of Arabs and Muslims all over the world due to that war and now it becomes preferred to them than the Arab regimes. This becomes clear as the other movements, which do not come from the Islamic womb, decide to join the war against Israel under the leadership of Hamas. This is a great advantage for Hamas and yet considered as a millstone in the history of Islamic movements and the history of Muslims-Israelis conflict.
Without any doubt, this war has changed the rules that govern the Middle East politics. But it is now, Hamas which designs these rules and imposes them. Hamas, though a small movement, has drawn the carpet from under the feet of the regimes of Egypt and Saudi Arabia to impose whatever it sees suitable for the Palestinian issue. It proves to America that it's traditional and so called moderate camp represented in Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia can not play any role in this conflict. Hamas chose the resistance as the only way to restore the Palestinian rights. In this, the myth of peace between Israelis and Palestinians has been sentenced to death and never to get its way back after such a fatal loss of souls and properties. Hamas might not be a winner in this war, but it won't be a loser either. Israel will be a loser as it was so concerned and desperate to get supported by the Arab moderate camp which happened to play a major role in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Hamas is the only entity now which decides the alphabet of negotiation with Israeli. Egypt and Saudi Arabia would not be at the side of Hamas, but they would be cursed by the people for ever. Most importantly, this war comes to chatter the myth that it says 'Israel army can never be defeated'. In fact, if the countries that have borders with Israel had the will to erase Israel from the map, they could have done that along time ago. They could have achieved a victory which can be doted in history books with a golden ink. However, history teaches us that victory is not achieved by strong armies and fatal weapons. Rather, it is won and made by strong and noble ideology. The ideology is supposed to create a consensus among people and to bring them together. That is the ideology which Hams has and Arabic regimes really lack. This is the ideology of Islam which is invulnerable to any worldly interests and low gains. Its emancipators fight while their souls are in heaven and their bodies on earth. They fight while they are looking forward for a dingily life or a noble death.
Because of the perpetuatality and spirituality of this ideology, Hamas will win their war against Israel. It will defeat it, and probably will erase it from the map. This might not happen soon but the spark of victory starts to emerge and it becomes stronger this time. History is replete with great powers that were unable to defeat their weaker adversaries. Military history teaches us that, in a symmetrical combat, the side with the greatest power cannot always complete the smallest task. As the historian Aric Hobsbawm puts it: In almost thirty years Great Britain has been unable to eliminate an army like the IRA, which whilst not winning, has neither been vanquished.
Attacking the Palestinians in such a severe offensive neither will make Israel safer nor will constitute a solution to the problem. It will never eliminate or uproot the resistance.
On the contrary, it will lead to even more regrettable events and the birth of more martyrs and supporters who are willing to sacrifice their souls for the sake of the land, dignity and for the pain left by the phosphorous bombs. A withdrawal from Gaza and making and end to its siege might not be late now and it is so for the benefit of Israel. If Israel chooses, however, to continue its offensive, the resistance will surely find new techniques, will recruit more people and will win more supporters. At the end Israel will never be safe and might never be known as a Middle Eastern Jewish state any more.
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