Is there any point in the Palestinians' fighting? - Political Forum

francois60 · 11-13-2006, 01:49 PM

From orbat.com:

Israeli Offensive In Gaza Continues The Israelis have had a field day warning about all the advanced weapons the Palestinians are getting from hither, thither, and you. What is remarkable about the current offensive is the same old, same old. The Palestinians are getting slaughtered as usual - 40 at last count excluding civilians - for the loss of a single Israeli soldier. There is not one sign of any advanced weapon.

It is exceedingly tiresome from a purely professional viewpoint to see the Palestinians so completely unable to defend themselves. They have the ideal terrain for defense, heavily populated, heavily urbanized terrain. This is sniper heaven, and there are endless opportunities to ambush Israeli AFVs and infantry patrols. What we see instead is a lot of loud boasting, yelling and screaming by the Palestinian gunmen, with near zero effectiveness.

People who fight so badly need to give up fighting and take up peaceful resistance or something else. For the last six years, since the Palestine uprising began, all that the Palestinians have done is cost the Israelis a few hundred million a year - which the US more than makes up in its military aid - and a handful of soldiers/civilians. The 5000+ Palestinians that have been killed are, in the larger scheme of things, a minor loss. The population grows by 150,000 males a year. But the uprising and the failure to impose a real cost on the Israelis has led to the devastation of the Palestine state. Unemployment is 60%, and even those who have jobs barely survive.

Our advice to Palestine gunmen: Give it up, boys, for the sake of the people for whom you say you are fighting. Try basket weaving. You may be more successful. But guerilla warriors you are not.

Any thoughts? It seems spot on to me. Fighting is incredibly counterproductive if you suck at it. And unlike most national liberation groups, the Palestinians haven't gotten any better in over 40 years of resistance. Unlike Hezbollah and the Iraqi Sunnis, who have gotten more skillful over the years.

CHUQ · 11-14-2006, 04:44 AM

With the first Infifadah, tghe Palestinians gained a lot of support, because of the pix of children throwing rocks at tanks, the only violence then was when a soldier killed a kid. It was very effective. Unfortunately the constant Israeli attacks spun off Hamas and then it became ugly. When there became two factions the in fighting began, once a unity is formed the tactics will become more diplomatic. The growing pains will be the death of many Palestinians.