The New Nation - Internet Edition

The ground offensive launched by Israel on Saturday night following a week of aerial attacks on the Gaza Strip has so far killed over 500 Palestinians and injured more than 2000. This act of aggression and massacre of Palestinians is the bloodiest in the four decades to stop what Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said rocket attacks from there into their country and secure a peaceful Gaza. Palestine President Mahmud Abbas has called for ending the "brutal aggression."

The timing of the offensive is significant in that it has taken place four weeks before the scheduled change of power in Washington from the hands of Republican President George W Bush to Democrat Barack Obama. Democrats have a record of pressing for a lasting solution acceptable to both sides. The present Palestinian administration created in West Bank and Gaza Strip are results of initiatives taken by former president Bill Clinton. During the rule of George W Bush in 2003, the Quartet (US, EU, UN and Russia) presented a roadmap to a final settlement of the conflict by 2005 based on reciprocal steps by the two parties leading to two states, Israel and a democratic Palestine. The proposed date for a permanent status agreement was postponed indefinitely due to violence and accusations that both sides had not followed through on their commitments.

On Sunday Israeli forces indicated that they had cut the 360 square kilometre Gaza Strip territory into two and surrounded the biggest city of Gaza only exacerbating the humanitarian disaster that the Palestinians were facing there since the aerial bombardments started on 27 December. The 4,116 people living in every kilometre of Gaza had been facing shortage of food, power and medicines since the Hamas took control of the territory following the January 2006 elections which the international community refused to accept. HAMAS took control of the PA government in March 2006, and the international community imposed economic sanctions on Palestine.

Independent observers believe that the Israeli leadership wants to further weaken Palestinians before any fresh initiatives comes from Washington for renewed efforts to solve the Palestine problem, the main cause of tension between the Muslim world with Israel's principal ally the US. Reports coming from Gaza Strip suggest that Israeli soldiers are killing Palestinians for not following their orders during the current offensive. A relevant question that naturally arises as to whether it was the act of some agent provocateurs to create some ground for Israel to make some excuses for the offensive. Otherwise, why the increase of rocket firing into Israel right during the time of transition in Washington. That too without any positive gain either in terms of inflicting damage on Israel or making any gain military or financial.

Be what it may, but the Israeli offensive cannot be justified on any ground. HAMAS militants or agent provocateurs have caused little threat to Israel's security to take on the massacre of people on their side many of whom are civilians. As Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas himself has demonstrated the people of Palestine want an independent and sovereign homeland that they have been kept deprived of for long six decades by the sheer use of force. Groups of militants may be able to fire rockets from the narrow Gaza Strip. But militarily they are not in a position to penetrate deep into Israel. Their chances of sending suicide missions into Israel also have diminished because of the erection of border walls and strengthening of security measures. The international community should help stop the aggression and killing of Palestinians who are already suffering much for economic sanctions. Or else a humanitarian catastrophe will await the 1.5 million people huddled into the narrow strip from their ancestral homes in areas that make the state of Israel.

Prediction has been made in some Western press that Israeli government is taking advantage of the last days of Bush as US President and might attack Iran. Now we see Muslims in occupied Gaza are being massacred with impunity but with US support.