Quote (Bazi @ Oct 1 2024 02:49pm)
I don’t want to get in a circular conversation and I’m exhausting my yearly quota of pard posts but West Bank soldiers getting hit by sling shots don’t really garner much sympathy from me while they are shooting children in their heads and feet (well before 10/7). I dont think you can make the argument anymore that the occupation ever ended despite boots on the ground leaving in 2005. If you have no control over your resources, airspace, ports. No ability to trade without having Israel as a broker, you are by every stretch of the word - occupied. People who are occupied will rebel. People who are occupied will become radicalized. This is human nature. Whether it’s the French against nazis, South Africa, or Palestinians.
It is obvious, as I said so even prior to 10/7, that the Hamas leadership is the most corrupt political/terrorist (whatever u want to call it I’m not gonna argue semantics) group on the planet , simply by looking at the $$$ disparity with leaders and their constituents. 10/6 the leaders were in the Forbes top 50 which is absolutely asinine to think about.
Netanyahu used and empowered Hamas as a method to separate Gaza and West Bank. And Hamas lacking the intelligence points played right into his hands.
However as nefarious as these leaders are, it’s the people that suffer. There is no solution to this problem because there is no fiscal incentive to improve the situation for the Palestinians
And now we watch the whole reason get fucked and cry when there are more refugees as a result of failed American geopolitics
I have no real issue, unlike some people, fully admitting Gaza was occupied even without troops inside of the territory. i just dont see why "occupation" here is some buzzword that paints israel as super villains.
despite the blockade and filtration of goods in and out they managed to get enough weapons to pull off 10/7. imagine what they'd have and do without a blockade. Iran would be sending in literal missiles into Gaza like they do into Lebanon for the Hezzies. what regime in their right mind would avoid a blockade, it would be a terrible decision.
israel is inbetween a rock and hard place, they have a radicalized population in Gaza, its just there. so they pulled out and i think hoped they could somewhat normalize relations over time, and that failed completely. they left a pretty solid greenhouse infrastructure, which the gazans destroyed. they offered work permits for gazans, and it didnt move the needle even an inch. they allowed the UN and USA to send in pipes for replacing water lines and fuel, they made rockets with them. so any small concessions at all immediately bite them in the ass.
all this to say im not sure if there is ANY path to peace with gaza. unless they take down the blockade and just wait out 10 years of rockets hoping hamas realizes its futile. but why would hamas ever stop? they'll have unlimited funding for a rocket campaign. at this point if israel literally creates a new country of palestine or gaza or w/e they'll still be attacked even if they give up all of the territory. the west bank wont move there, and will want their land next.