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I know about Israeli policy enabled Hamas. Interesting that Olmert named Netenyahu as the brainchild of that brilliant move- yet another reason why Bibi has no business near the levers of power, anywhere. Not even a dry-cleaning shop.
But Hamas didn't spring up in an ideological vacuum. They aren't a provocateur group of crypto-Jews. They represent an ideological strain that's been present since before the founding of Israel. That radical Islamist position was always part of the wider coalition that comprised the PLO- and the idea behind funding them was to get them to split off, and thereby weaken the coalition.
Not very well thought-out...unless you're someone like Binny Netanyahu, who figured that creating the most unpleasant opposition possible would rebound to the "benefit" of Israel in the long run.
What statecraft. The guy's a regular George Bush, Sr.
And now the deal is done, and Hamas has manuevered itself into the driver's seat as champions of the cause of the oppressed Palestinian people.
And I don't know what to do about that. I refuse to indulge in wishful thinking by characterizing Hamas' particular agenda as anything other than what it is. They aren't particularly hesitant to put forth their ideology very explicitly- when they speak to their loyal following, at least. They understood some basic principles of insurgent movements, like "take charge of efficiently delivering basic services to the population" and "don't be personally corrupt- the common goal is foremost." But I've found no evidence that their agenda ever included the goal of ceasing all hostilities against Israel for one minute- even though there's every reason to believe that doing so would have allowed, not merely the unhindered delivery of power and aid into Gaza, but its economic expansion. Israelis owned many of the business concerns there, and provided much of the employment. I suppose those businesses are bankrupt now. And if Hamas was of the mind that the Israeli businesses were acting like foreign exploiters, it was in their power to kick them out and replace them with Arab investment.
But they seem to have spent much of their energy honeycombing the place with tunnels, smuggled weapons caches, and booby traps instead. As if they were expecting a big showdown, with the cameras rolling.
