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The Ugly Trade in Palestinian Pain

(spiked-UK) Brendan O'Neill - The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is unique because very often those who watch and comment and hand-wring from afar play a role in intensifying it and making it bloodier than it already is - without even realizing they are doing so. Much of what happens at the Gaza-Israel border is largely a performance, a piece of bloody theater, staged for the benefit of outsiders, especially for anti-Israel Western activists and observers. It is becoming increasingly clear that Hamas pushes Gaza's people into harm's way because it knows their suffering will strike a chord across the West. It now seems undeniable that this was no grassroots protest but one that was carefully orchestrated by Hamas. Why would the governing party of a territory knowingly put its citizens into serious danger? The answer is a disturbing one: Hamas does this because it knows it will benefit politically and morally if Palestinians suffer. Palestinian leaders know there is one surefire way to garner international sympathy for themselves and hatred for Israel: let Palestinians go into harm's way.
2018-06-08 00:00:00
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