Palestinians Must Get Their Act
Together In 2012
02 Jan 2012
By Khalid Amayreh
2011 was not a particularly bad year for Palestine. In
this year, hundreds of Palestinian political and
resistance prisoners were able to see the light,
having been released from Israeli dungeons and
detention camps.
Needless to say, many of these heroes would have spent
the rest of their lives in Zionist jails, had it not
been for the so-called Shalit deal and Israel's
effective capitulation to Hamas's conditions for the
release of the captive Zionist soldier.
Thanks to the deal, hundreds of Palestinian families,
which had lost the hope for ever seeing their beloved
ones alive again, breathed a sigh of relief as they
were reunited with their children, brothers, husbands
and daughters.
Needless to say, Israel had tried every conceivable
effort and intelligence act to locate the captive
soldier, but to no avail. After all, Shalit was held
under Israel's nose somewhere in the Gaza Strip for
more than 60 months.
This fact alone should make us look with admiration
and gratitude to those unknown but heroic soldiers who
were able to keep this valuable secret all these
months and years.
2011 brought us the Arab Spring, which consigned
several tyrannical pro-American regimes to the dustbin
of history. Some of these regimes, such as that of
ex-president Husni Mubarak of Egypt , had been a
serious liability for the Palestinian struggle and
steadfastness.
For example, in 2008-09, the Egyptian regime colluded,
connived and collaborated with the Zionist entity to
murder, torment and vanquish the Gaza Strip, enabling
Israel to carry out its Nazi-like onslaught on the
virtually unprotected coastal territory, killing,
incinerating and maiming thousands of Palestinians
men, women and children.
More to the point, the regime sought effectively to
consolidate the criminal Israeli siege on Gaza, by
building another concrete wall to make it virtually
impossible for Gazans to smuggle even a pack of milk
from the Egyptian side of the borders to their
starving children on the other side.
Hence, the removal of that regime is considered a
great victory for both the Egyptian and Palestinian
peoples, for the Egyptians because the corrupt Mubarak
regime suppressed human rights and civil liberties in
deference to Israeli and American interests, and for
the Palestinians because the regime was viewed as a
strategic asset for the Zionist regime since it
allowed the Zionist entity to savage the Palestinians
in exchange for American aid and political protection.
The elections that occurred in Tunisia and Egypt were
also auspicious news for the Palestinian cause. The
triumph of Islamic or quasi-Islamic parties,
especially the Muslim Brotherhood, is probably some of
the best news the Palestinian cause and people have
received in many decades.
True, we don't expect to see miracles very soon as a
result of the Arab Spring. However, there is no doubt
that the strategic changes taking place in the Arab
world have confused and unsettled Israel's strategic
calculations in the region.
Israel, which is becoming a fully-fledged fascist
state, had probably planned to embark on unthinkable
measures against the Palestinians, possibly including
genocidal massacres, induced emigration and ethnic
cleansing.
However, thanks to the Arab Spring, especially the
Egyptian revolution, Israel is very likely to think
twice before pursuing its lebensraum policy against
its neighbors.
The end of 2011 also brought the Palestinian people
much closer to national reconciliation and unity.
Hamas agreed to join the PLO and all the sides agreed
to form a government of national unity, release
political prisoners and hold elections for the
Palestinian Authority (PA) as well as for the
Palestinian National Council.
What is especially important is that the psychology of
the Palestinian people improved significantly during
2011 despite unrelenting Zionist aggressions and
provocations.
None the less, there is much to be done in 2012. The
National reconciliation must materialize on the ground
and ordinary Palestinians must feel its tangible
effects.
However, It is probably unlikely that true national
unity between Fatah and Hamas will be achievable
unless the PA and the Ramallah regime end the
ignominious cooperation and coordination with the
Zionist occupation army.
Indeed, the security coordination has been a sad
chapter in recent Palestinian history and it must be
ended sooner than later.
Moreover, with the unmitigated theft of Palestinian
land continuing at the hands of the Zionist regime,
the PA should have the courage to declare the end of
the mendacious peace process.
Yes, dismantling the PA infrastructure may not seem
easily done as said. However, if it becomes clear that
the existence of the PA militates against and hinders
the establishment of a viable and territorially
contiguous Palestinian state, then Palestinian leaders
must not flinch from embarking on dissolving the PA.
After all the establishment of an independent
Palestinian state is the raison d'etre of the PA
itself, as PA official Sa'eb Erikat said on several
occasions.
In any case, the Palestinian leadership should stop
playing games with the fate and destiny of the
Palestinian people and cause.
We have indulged in futile political games too much
and for too long, and must therefore come to the hour
of truth.
And reaching the hour of truth should also mean a
realization that the creation of a viable Palestinian
state on the West Bank, one with Jerusalem as its
capital, is no longer a realistic option given the
phenomenal spread of Jewish colonies.
Hence, the Palestinian leadership, including Fatah and
Hamas, must get its act together in 2012 and make sure
it is not going to be another year of futile waiting.
©
EsinIslam.Com
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