The Morning After Gaza

The Road Map for peace called for an end to Palestinian Arab armed activity. The Palestinian Authority was charged with collecting weapons from terror groups and all official Palestinian Arab institutions were ordered to end incitement against Israel. Neither has happened. Now that Israeli disengagement from Gaza has become a reality, a pivotal question remains: What will happen the day after?Gaza is likely to become a haven for Palestinian Arab terrorists, as well as organizations from around the world affiliated with them. Representatives of such groups have openly stated they will be moving their bases of operations there.The Saudi daily al-Watan reported at the end of June that Palestinian Authority leaders had invited all Palestinian rejectionist groups to Gaza, including groups and individuals on the American government’s list of Designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations – for example, Syrian-based Hamas officials Khaled Mashaal and Musa Abu Marzouk and leaders from both the Democratic Front of the Liberation of Palestine and the Popular Struggle Front.Al-Watan reported that the head of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, Faruq Qaddumi, planned to relocate his base of operations to the Gaza Strip from Tunis,Tunisia. Some say that the PLO charter, which calls for the destruction of Israel, has not been amended. A “volunteer popular army” of at least 1,500 who will be under Mr. Qaddumi’s control will accompany him in his move to Gaza, according to Saudi press reports of August 3. Mr. Qaddumi is a possible successor – and key rival – to the current chairman of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas.The news of an impending move by the PLO follows reports from Lebanon that other Palestinian Arab fighters committed to destroying Israel are also headed to Gaza. One article, in the August 1 edition of the Lebanese Daily Star, quoted a senior Fatah official who “did not deny rumors” and was quoted as saying, “We were informed we will be with them [other Palestinian fighters in Gaza] soon.”In May, Arabic newspapers such as Al-Ayyam and Al-Quds Al-Arabi reported that hundreds of Palestinian Arabs who are wanted for their connections to terrorist attacks have joined the Palestinian Arab security apparatus. Jailed terrorists also have been released from prison this summer. According to the Arab News of June 12, some members of Islamic Jihad who were involved with the suicide attack in February that killed five in Tel Aviv have already been freed.Meanwhile, America has been urging Israel to rearm the Palestinian Authority; at the same time, Palestinian Arab terrorists who were supposed to disarm under the Road Map have yet to do so. In June, the PA’s foreign minister and a nephew of Yasser Arafat, Nasser al-Kidwa, said on PATV: “Keeping our weapons is a strategic option” and “possession of weapons is a strategic issue.” Referring to terror groups such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad, he said, “The dismantling of armed organizations is not on the table because weapons are legal.”PA leaders have lately said, in Arabic, how they see this week’s evacuation of Jewish settlers from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank. On August 12, Mr. Abbas said, “Today we are celebrating the liberation of Gaza and the northern West Bank, tomorrow we celebrate the liberation of Jerusalem.” Earlier this month, while celebrating Arafat’s birthday, the PA’s prime minister, Ahmad Qurei, exclaimed, “Today Gaza, tomorrow Jerusalem” and “We will still celebrate once we reach our goals and establish a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, with the return of the refugees.”Recognizing the role of Hamas, Mr. Qurei said: “the children of Ahmad Yassin the martyr … Jerusalem is closer than ever … We will continue until victory. None of us will give up until we are on Jerusalem’s soil.”Hamas has been open about its intentions. According to Al Jazeera.net on August 12, the group’s leader, Mahmoud al-Zahar, called Hamas a legitimate security tool and said it would never disarm. After attending a training session of the military wing of Hamas, the Izz al-din al-Qassam Brigades, he said Palestinian Arabs would “liberate Palestine from the Jordan River to the sea.”The armed wing of the Fatah movement, which is part of the PLO, issued a statement on August 15 that sums up the problems ahead: “We support our brothers in Hamas and affirm that no Palestinian armed wing will be dissolved because Palestine is not Gaza only, but rather, Palestine is Palestine from the River to the Sea and it is our land and we have the right to defend it.”Mr. Stalinsky is the Executive Director of the Middle East Media Research Institute.

The Morning After Gaza

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