[The Australian] Editorial - The continuing tragedy of Gaza is that it was supposed to offer Palestinians an opportunity to show they were ready for self-government after Israel withdrew in August 2005. Unfortunately, the Strip has descended into poverty and chaos, a launching pad for thousands of rockets targeted at Israel's civilian population. The Israeli government claims Hamas has created a dishonest fuel crisis in an attempt to court international leverage and insists that enough fuel is stored in Gaza to cover essential humanitarian needs. As the government, it is the responsibility of Hamas to get the fuel moving. If, however, it is political pointscoring motivating Hamas' failure to get the fuel and food moving, it is further proof, if any was needed, of its true nature. Hamas is showing the world that anybody who believes that Israel is the worst enemy of the Palestinian people needs to think again. The impasse does not advance hopes of a workable, two-state solution.
2008-04-28 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive