GAZA CITY, Gaza City - On Islam's most important holiday, the leader of Gaza's Hamas government appealed Wednesday for a cease-fire with Israel and said his people — battered by Israeli military strikes and international sanctions — are greeting this year's feast with "tears in our eyes."
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's spokesman said there could be no deals with Hamas until it renounces violence and recognizes Israel, though one Cabinet minister said Israel might consider outside mediation with the Islamic militants.
Israel and Hamas have never had direct contacts because of the group's violently anti-Israel ideology. But they have agreed to short truces negotiated by third parties.
The appeal from Ismail Haniyeh, who heads the Hamas government in Gaza, came in a phone call to an Israeli TV reporter, said Hamas spokesman Taher Nunu. It followed a two-day air assault by Israeli forces that killed 12 Gaza militants, two from Hamas and 10 from Islamic Jihad. Israel "should stop its attacks and siege," Nunu said. "Then a truce would be possible, and not unlikely." Hamas officials said they were working with other militant groups to try to stop the rocket fire into Israel and also sent overtures to Israel through unidentified third parties.
The innate problem with a truce with Hamas revolves around whether Hamas would actually live up to any agreement. Most people seem to have forgotten that a truce was already reached at the end of November 2006. In exchange for a full IDF pull-out of the Gaza Strip (ending Operation Summer Rains which was launched after the attack on an IDF base in Israel and the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier by Hamas) the rocket fire on Israeli cities would end.
Less than 48 hours after the pull-out/truce, kassams were once again landing in Sderot. I can hear what the Palestinian Apologistas are probably saying. The truce was with Fatah and Hamas are much more trustworthy than those Fatah rogues. Well, that may be so, but then again, there is this report which suggests Hamas leader Haniyeh was more than ready to kidnap a few more Israeli soldiers less than 48 hours after the truce was agreed upon.
Hardly hudna-like talk. By Day 23 of the Ceasefire with Israel over 40 rockets had been launched against Israeli cities. It was only on Day 30 of the truce when two teenage Israeli boys were injured in a rocket attack in Sderot that the Israeli government made the decision to allow the IDF to act if it observed a rocket launch was imminent from the Gaza Strip.
Until that moment the Olmert government was fully prepared to let the Gaza Strip truce stand unanswered - despite 61 Palestinian violations. Frankly, I am not sure the Israeli civilians can afford too many more ceasefires. I am almost at the point of believing a nuke would be set off in Tel Aviv within 24 hours of a ‘final’ peace agreement being signed by the Palestinians.
It is long past the time for the leaders of Hamastan to wipe the crocodile tears off their faces, put on the big boy briefs, and live up to what was already agreed too. Maybe then, their word would have some rational or objective significance.
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