[Marxism] Israel continues murderous bombing of Gaza as cabinet prepares "cease-fire"

["Fred Feldman" <ffeldman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Following these comments is an MSN compilation on the current status in the
fight in Gaza, as we move toward a US-Israeli "cease-fire" aimed at keeping
anyone SUSPECTED of being opposed or even slightly less enthusiastic abpit
Israel's US-sponsored war against the Palestinians in Gaza out of the loop
(including the UN Security Council.

I just want to make some of my own positions clear. They may seem ultraleft
to some. I think the Palestinian fighters in Hamas have the right to accept
whatever they feel they must accept.

If they feel they must accept this cease-fire, and I can readily understand
that they may and perhaps should (I claim no tactical expertise), in this
situation. But I believe they have the unconditional right to continue to
attack Israeli troops as long as they are stationed in Gaza, and even beyond
if that proves possible. I think they have a fundamental RIGHT to shell
Israeli towns and cities as long as their people are being starved and
debilitated economically and physically by the blockade.  

Israel probably kills more Palestinians in a month of "peace" than the
Palestinians have by all their shellings. Of course, if the Palestinian
shellings, so excoriated among the pseudo-good-hearted, were more effective,
they would be more effective against the blockade.

But as a great comrade Pearl Chertov often told me, "You have to do the best
you can with the material you got." I wish the Palestinians could shell IDF
bases and headquarters to good effect, but that is not the situation. They
should do what they can.

There is not a single element of peace in this cease-fire, which is simply
intended to police and isolate the Palestinian people more tightly. This is
a continuation of the human, political, and moral crime of the Israeli war.
If the Palestinians feel they can defy this cease-fire, fine by me. If they
feel they must accept it, I hope they can use it to deepen the divisions
among their enemies and gain more space to fight.

I note that the decision to adopt a "cease-fire"  now indicates a desire on
the Israeli and US sides to have this issue resolved before the
inauguration. 

This will not displease Obama, who would rather the issue go away at
present, partly because of the substantial pressure he is under to follow a
course different, at least in degree, from that of the Bush administration.
Whether the Palestinian fighters should put this imperialist politician with
a progressive image (partly a progressive "illusion" based on his race and
their historically more progressive politics  on the spot is something I
have no opinion about, aside from believing in their unconditional right to
do so if that is their judgment.

Nor are they bound by any US-Israeli imposed ceasefire terms. Violating
these in my opinion is a purely tactical question which I cannot judge from
afar.

Finally, on ultimate solutions. I remain unconditionally opposed to the
"Jewish State" of Israel. I favor the restoration of a unitary PALESTINE
over all the territory of the former Palestine, with a multi-national,
multi-"confessional" population including the Jews as equal citizens, but
very much NOT excluding affirmative action measures to overcome the
inequality imposed on the Palestinian Arab population. 

A two-state agreement is only worthwhile if it represents a strengthening of
the Palestinian hand and position in the fight against this racist,
chauvinist, imperialist-generated "Jewish state"  There is no sign that any
such agreement in the offing.

I am not attracted to the idea of a one-state Israel where all Palestinians
have the vote. I do not consider this necessarily an advance on the
two-state non-solution or transitional step reflecting Palestinian strength
in certain areas. At the same time, I approach this as I do the two-state
proposals, whether it strengthens the hand of the oppressed in the obviously
long-term fight against their oppressors.

Right now, it is probably true that most Palestinians believe that the
recapture of all the land that was taken from them is a pipe dream. Years of
blows and defeats have had their impact. The Israeli rulers, so ruthless and
anti-human and so fond of moral posturing (which they learned from their
imperialist sponsors and paymasters), have actually made some headway, as
was inevitable, in convincing Palestinians at home and abroad that they are
a defeated people and must accept the loss of what is rightfully theirs.

But they fight on, and this is the basis of a quite different "solution,"
even though for most it is now an impossible dream, although still
continually dreamed.

It goes without saying that I support any semicolonial state, however
backward its social structure or regime in whatever respect, against the
imperialist-generated "Jewish state."
Fred Feldman






MSNBC.com 
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28651944/


Israel bombs Hamas before cease-fire vote 
Cabinet expected to approve Egyptian proposal to halt fighting
msnbc.com news services
updated 10:56 a.m. ET, Sat., Jan. 17, 2009
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Israel bombarded dozens of Hamas targets Saturday
hours before a government vote on an Egyptian brokered cease-fire, prompting
Egypt to demand an immediate halt to a three-week-old Gaza offensive. 

The proposal calls for a unilateral Israeli cease-fire in its initial stage,
but Hamas has sent mixed signals on whether it would reciprocate. 

Hamas' exiled leadership vowed to continue the fight against Israel. But
after weeks of heavy losses, leaders inside Gaza have signaled they are
ready for a deal. A Hamas delegation was in Cairo for more truce
negotiations. 

Israeli leaders were expected to approve the Egyptian proposal Saturday.
Fighting would stop immediately for 10 days. Israeli forces would remain in
Gaza during that time and the territory's border crossing with Israel and
Egypt would remain closed until security arrangements are made to prevent
Hamas arms smuggling. 

Osama Hamdan, a top Hamas official based in Lebanon, said the group would
not halt its attacks until Israel withdraws its troops from Gaza and ends
its blockade of the seaside strip. "If any vision does not achieve these
things, then we will continue in the battle on the ground," he said. 

Weapons pipeline
With the vote still pending, it was unclear how Israel would respond to
violations of a cease-fire, though the country's leaders have made clear
they are ready to keep pushing forward with an offensive that has killed
more than 1,100 Palestinians in three weeks, according to Palestinian and
U.N. figures. 

Israel's key demand is that it receive guarantees that Hamas halt the
smuggling of rockets, explosives and other weapons through the porous
Egyptian border. 

Under the deal, Egypt would shut down weapons smuggling routes with
international help and discussions on opening Gaza's blockaded border
crossings ? Hamas' key demand ? would take place at a later date. 

The Israeli vote was set after Israel and the U.S. signed on Friday a
"memorandum of understanding" in Washington that calls for expanded
intelligence cooperation to prevent Hamas from rearming. Israeli Foreign
Minister Tzipi Livni, who signed the deal, called it "a vital complement for
a cessation of hostility." 

Egypt has been a key interlocutor in weeks of negotiations to end the
assault on Gaza sparked by years of Hamas rocket fire at southern Israel. 

"I demand Israel today stop its military operations immediately," Egyptian
President Hosni Mubarak said. "I demand from its leaders an immediate and
unconditional cease-fire and I demand from them a full withdrawal of Israeli
troops from the Strip." 

Israel launched the offensive on Dec. 27 to try to halt near-daily Hamas
rocket attacks against southern Israel. Palestinian medics say the fighting
has killed at least 1,140 Palestinians ? roughly half of them civilians ?
and Israel's bombing campaign caused massive destruction in the Gaza Strip.
Thirteen Israelis have been killed, four by rocket fire and nine in ground
battles in Gaza, according to the government. 

'We have no more time to lose'
Israel Radio reported that a truce summit could be held in Egypt as early as
Sunday with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Israeli leaders in
attendance. 

Speaking to Lebanon's parliament Saturday, Ban said Hamas must stop rocket
attacks on Israel and the Jewish state must end its offensive and withdraw
its troops from Gaza. 

"We cannot wait for all the details, the mechanisms, to be conclusively
negotiated and agreed, while civilians continue to be traumatized, injured
or killed," he said. "We have no more time to lose. We demand an immediate
cease-fire," said Ban. 

In the meantime, there was no slowdown in the offensive. A total of 13
Palestinians were killed in battles throughout Gaza Saturday, Palestinian
medics said. 

Israeli warplanes dropped bombs throughout the night on suspected smuggling
tunnels in the southern border town of Rafah. The bombs could be heard
whistling through the air, shook the ground upon impact and left a dusty
haze in the air. 


In the northern town of Beit Lahiya, Israeli shells struck a U.N. school
where 1,600 people had sought shelter to flee the fighting. One shell scored
a direct hit on the top floor of the three-story building, killing two boys,
U.N. officials said. An adjacent room was turned into a blackened mess of
charred concrete and twisted metal bed frames. 

John Ging, the top U.N. official in Gaza, condemned the attack ? the latest
in a series of Israeli shellings that have struck U.N. installations. 

"The question that has to be asked is for all those children and all those
innocent people who have been killed in this conflict. Were they war crimes?
Were they war crimes that resulted in the deaths of the innocents during
this conflict? That question has to be answered," he said. 


Probe into civilian casualties
The Israeli army said it was launching a high-level investigation into the
shelling, as well as four other attacks that hit civilian targets, including
the U.N. headquarters in Gaza. The army investigation also includes the
shelling of a hospital, a media center and the home of a well-known doctor. 

An Israeli military spokesman said the investigations would be handled at
the command level. He spoke on condition of anonymity pending a formal
announcement. 

Previously, Israel has accused Hamas of using schools, mosques, hospitals
and residential areas to stage attacks. 

The military said its planes struck 50 Hamas locations overnight, including
rocket-launching sites, smuggling tunnels, weapons storehouses, bunkers and
minefields. Some five rockets were fired into Israel, causing minor damage
but no injuries, the army said. 

Israeli troops entered a small central Gaza town and nearby housing project,
taking over houses and positioning on rooftops. Hamas militants fired
assault rifles, mortars and rockets at the Israeli forces in tanks and
military vehicles, the sound of clashes audible from Gaza City. Warplanes
fired missiles at buildings and nearby farms, witnesses said. 

"A shell landed in my bedroom and we are now sitting in the kitchen. We are
17 people here," said Jihan Sarsawi, a resident of the housing project.
Speaking by telephone, she said residents were trapped in their homes. 

'Test of deterrence'
The violence followed Israeli envoy Amos Gilad's journey to Cairo on Friday.
He returned to report "substantial progress" in truce talks with Egyptian
mediators, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's office announced. The Israeli vote
comes ahead of President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration on Tuesday, and
Israeli elections next month. 

In an interview with the Israeli YNet news Web site, Livni indicated that
Israel would renew its offensive if Hamas militants continued to fire
rockets at Israel even after a truce agreement was reached. 

"This campaign is not a one-time event," she said. "The test will be the day
after. That is the test of deterrence." 

The agreement outlines a framework under which the United States commits
detection and surveillance equipment, as well as logistical help and
training to Israel, Egypt and other nations to be used in monitoring Gaza's
land and sea borders. 

Earlier, Rice said she hoped European countries would work out similar
bilateral agreements with Israel. 

More on Gaza


The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.




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