One hundred or one thousand yearsfrom now, posterity will wonder howit was that we allowed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to linger on for this long. Although the conflict has its beginnings in Ancient Times (1250BC-638AD), its modern origin can be traced to the shenanigans ofEuropean powers and the politics ofthe two World Wars and the events surrounding the creation of the State of Israel in 1948 and the fallout from the subsequent Israeli-Arab war of 1967 and the 1973 YomKippur war.Historians will tell you that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the single most enduring conflict of anygeneration. It is the one conflict, and the one region, that has confounded statesmen, world capitals and casual observers the most. It is the conflict without end. Or at least, so it seems. And especially if you follow what’s been happening in recent weeks, you couldn’t help but wonder when this insanity will come to an end. And frankly, it is one of the great failings of the United States of America, Brittan, Russia and the United Nations.
This needs not be a “conflict without end.” There could be peace and security between the Palestinians and the Israelis if (a) HAMAS and similar non-state actors affirm Israel’s right to existence, peace and security; (b) the Palestinians’ inalienable right tocomplete freedom is realised and guaranteed; and (c) sections of religious and political organisationsin and outside of the US stopped playing politics with peoples’ lives and destiny. The solution may not be this simple. But really, many complicated, convoluted and knotty situations have been resolved or mitigated by way of reason, common sense and pragmatism.Reason, common sense and pragmatism are what seem to be lacking here. HAMAS cannot defeat the Israelis (who are backed by the USA). Today’s reality is that not even the US can tell the Israelis to back off – or to grant the Palestinians complete autonomy. The days of Washington dictating toTel Aviv are long gone. Forever gone! And there is nothing, really, the White House – especially the Obama White House – can do aboutit. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has proved this point on several occasions.And even the United Nations is without fangs and claws when it comes to Mr. Benyamin Netanyahu.He is a one-man army who doesn’t care about global opinion. Many world leaders seem to be afraid of him. Those who are not afraid despise him.
Even so, as the Israeli leaders and his soldiers get ready to wipe out HAMAS, they must remember the instructive words of John G. Stoessinger in that seminal text, Why Nations Go To War. He reminded us that “The emperors and generals who sent their men to war in August 1914 thought in terms of weeks, not months, let alone years.”President George W. Bush was also under the impression that Iraq and Afghanistan will be a surgical operation. After the fall of Bagdad and Kabul, Bush expected to be hugged and decorated. He was dead wrong! We all now know what happened. We sometimes fail to realise that military quests are unpredictable. What’s more, wars, as Steve Yetiv tells us, “reflect the failure of reason to control events and emotions.” In the estimation of Kenneth Waltz, “in wars, there is no victory but only varying degrees of defeat.” Therefore, will the ongoing undertaking result in total victory for Netanyahu? No! Will HAMAS achieve its stated and unstated goals? No!Meanwhile, deaths and destruction and suffering will continue as the world stands askance impotently. The Israelis are not going away; andneither is HAMAS. Even if there is a ceasefire today, the conflict will flare up again tomorrow. This will be the pattern until reason, commonsense and pragmatism prevail on all sides .
For Netanyahu, the HAMAS “wahala” is personal. Truly personal! HAMAS and its predecessors at least had a modicum of respect for Yitzhak Rabin, Yitzhak Shamir, Shimon Peres, Ehud Barak, Ariel Sharon andEhud Olmert. But not for Netanyahu.Nothing seems to have occupied his mind more than HAMAS and Hezbollah. And globally, Netanyahu is the least admired Prime Minister of Israel since its founding in 1948. What’s more, in wanting to avoid themistakes of previous prime ministers, he is determined to crush, first, HAMAS, and then Hezbollah. If he could, he’d accomplish both tasks instantaneously. Unfortunately, he can’t.Israel is a democracy. This is a hopeful, determined, resilient and progressive country. Many people are under the impression that without America’s backing, it will crumble under pressure and attack from its regional enemies. Well, thatis a grand fallacy! This is a state with all the trappings of a modern nation-state and with a superior economic and military prowess.
Having the US as a friend doesn’t hurt. It is a bonus. It does not diminish the greatness of that great land and its people. Nation-states may rise and fall in terms of greatness; but they seldom disappear as some people are wishing Israel would.Just as no force on the face of the earth can make Israel go away or push it into oblivion, no force can get rid of HAMAS. And that’s the reality.
What is likely to happen to HAMAS is what happened to the Haganah – a Jewish guerrilla group from 1920 to 1948; and to the “National Military Organisation in the Land of Israel,” otherwise known as Irgun. Publicly available records indicate that after the founding of Israel in 1948, their members were conscripted into the Israel Defence Forces. Menachem Begin, the sixth Prime Minister of Israel, for instance, was an active member.The metamorphosis of Haganah and Irgun into a legitimate arm of government is nothing new. Many of the Americans who fought colonial Britain went on to become respected and respectable men of post-1776 America. This was also the case in Ireland and South Africa and Algeria and wherever there has been armed conflict against a colonising force.
HAMAS will be absorbed into government in a free and independent Palestine. That will be its fate.So, if you want HAMAS dead, simplygrant Palestinians complete independence. Nothing else will suffice; nothing else will bring peace and security to that part of the world. This is because even if you kill off its current leadership, there are many more Palestinians ready to replace them.
No generation will bow to colonisation. None! The practical thing to do, then, is to immediately embark on a two-state solution: Safe and secure Israel… Free and independent Palestine.

Link: http://www.punchng.com/opinion/viewpoint/netanyahu-hamas-and-dearth-of-reason-in-middle-east/

OP you said granting Palestine independence was the only way to end the conflict? I beg to differ. Israel will never allow Palestinian independence. Your solution is tantamount to sending a demonic child to a christian school hoping he will change. Covering a wolf with sheep clothing doesn't change the fact that it is still a wolf. Hamas are terrorists and will continue to be blood-thirsty terrorists, with or without an independent state. So independence is not gonna happen. Why grant sovereignty to a state that will be controlled by a gang of animals. With that authority, they can purchase nuclear weapons and I don't rule out those savages using them on Israel even if it wipes out their own people. After all they have been using Palestinians as human shields since time immemorial.

In other news, I am the first to comment!!! This early morning wey I wake up no be waste at all!!

Thanks to my all fans and air-conditioners. Una too much. This would not have been possible without you

OP abeg take style push that your link to the source back to the original post.

na wa

its mostly muslims that will support Hamas in this stand-off
Hamas started the firing of rockets into Israeli territory, Israel has every right to retaliate and protect its people
Israel has tried its best to minimise civilian deaths in gaza, by even sending sms to people living in the region the want to hit, and other means
the even agreed to a ceasefire last week, but Hamas still kept firing the rockets, so Israel has no choice but to continue the offensive until hamas stops firing rockets into its territory

People are dying in middle East

Another long post this morning, una wan kill us?

Smartsyn: Another long post this morning, una wan kill us?

I will save it for my digital library

Be right back to comment

wow!!! this is lovely

A good and concise analysis of the Israeli-Palestinian issue.

Peace and prosperity to the Holy Land.

Na wa ooo

Firefire:

I will save it for my digital library

that's what I do sir.

na comment first, read later..

hmmm
I just love that country....ISRAEL.
solidly behind Netanyahu..

Israel was not created in order to
disappear - Israel will endure and
flourish. It is the child of hope and
the home of the brave. It can
neither be broken by adversity nor
demoralized by success. It carries
the shield of democracy and it
honors the sword of freedom.

War here and there end time
Jesus hold ma hand

Nice write up, but Contrary to what you suggested, Mr. Netenyahu has been one of the most admired isreali leaders, who takes protection of israelis as priority.
Any sane leader wouldn't sit back and allow an unprovoked shelling to go unanswered..... Shelling so sever that under 3days, over 2000 shells have been fired into israel. But for the prudence of developing the iron dome system, we might have been looking at a more severe terror. Now recall that, and as Hamas knows, Israel is a nuclear harmed state. Everyone knows what happens if even one lone missile hit a nuclear station.
I have followed this development carefully both on cnn and aljazeera and realised that Hamas are just been the terrorists and islamists they are for the following reasons;
1) Unprovoked and unannounced shelling of israel- over 2000 rounds intercepted in two days
2) Forcefully Digging tunnel and trench networks from innocent palestinian homes into israeli territories
3) Turning down a humanitarian cease fire, and playing it down as joke
4) Inability to provide a reason for the resent spate of attacks on israelis- the hamas spokesman, just couldn't answer the question.
5) Using innocent palestinians as human shields.

Now, let me state categorically that israel has never resisted a free and independent palestine. Matter of fact, they have always supported a palestine that's free from the clutches of terror organisations like Hamas and hezbola. Here are the few commitments made b israel...
1) Evacuating the entire gaza strip, even after constructing estates to accommodate some of its six million people. The relative size of gaza to israel is like, ibadan to Nigeria. Imagine the cost and discomfort. Why, because they wanted sustained peace.
2) Proposing and honoring a cease fire, till hamas called it of by rocket fires, looking to catch israelis of guard.
3) Giving a 6hour humanitarian cease fire while enduring rocket fire, to give the innocent palestinians time to move out of the comflit zone.
4) Pre- announcing their reason for entering into gaza, to snuff out those trench rats trying to dig into israel to cause havoc.
5) Israel has maintained that her goal is for a sustained peace! Which isn't out of place

Mr Netenyahu has always stated that its not Israelis desire to roll into gaza, but she is been systematically forced to go into gaza to protect her citizen.... In military terms, meet he enemy in her territory, so your land, won't be the comflit zone,,,, also.... Its always better to meet your enemy at the gate.

Palestinian can get all the independence they desire,afterall, Israel has never and never desires to colonize any state not to talk of Palestinians. They can equally elect as much presidents as they need.... All israel asks, is.......SUSTAINED PEACE for her citizens, so they don't have to run to bomb shelters every hour of the day without warning.


Last bullet......... If only someone like Netenyahu was our president......... Boko haram would have been-----------(you complete the sentence)





Humbly

bad

The blood shed in that region is increasing by the day. The funniest part about war is that, both countries will always have sound reasons to attack its opponent. No one is ever wrong when it comes to war.

Smartsyn: that's what I do sir.
na comment first, read later..

lazy beings

Thank you for that analysis. A lot of people barely know what is happening outside the shores of this country and you wouldn't really blame them because this news has no geographic and psychological proximity to them.

I wonder why some people find the truth hard to tell. So Arab nations are not to be blamed too? And who is colonizing the Palestinians? Why is nobody saying something about the Arabs plans to wipe off Israel which they have said time and again?

pls how do I comment ?

elisinho:

lazy beings

thanks for the compliment..

This war should stop.

kp ya fingers crossed n expect the best comment from him..WHY HE IS FEEDING HIS two YEARS OLD BABY..THE MUM ISNT ARROUND.

Do any body in this house belive that world war 3 is fast approching. If you do click like

One of these days...


This too shall pass

Long live Isreal

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Let d war continue. It all about drama.