It
is high time to reiterate the favourite media question – "Is Arafat Unable,
or Rather Unwilling to Stop Terrorism" – but with a different protagonist.
Prime Minister Sharon has now been in office for about 15 months. He has been
enjoying total and unprecedented freedom, both nationally and internationally,
to fight Palestinian terrorism however he likes, using all measures at hand and
blatantly ignoring all moral and legal considerations. In spite of that, Palestinian
terrorism is alive and killing.
So
is Sharon unable – or rather unwilling to stop terrorism? Last week's events in
Gaza irrefutably prove that the Israeli leader is not only unwilling to see Palestinian
terrorism stopped; Sharon would also do anything to ensure and encourage terrorism
against his own people.
The
Gaza Massacre
All
experts unanimously agree: terrorism cannot be stopped by military means alone.
Politics and diplomacy are essential, both bilaterally and on the Palestinian
side. Even devoted supporters of the Israeli occupation admit that a "political
horizon" is necessary. The term is revealing: "horizon" is the
place you never get to, and that's the most generous offer made to the Palestinians:
a "horizon" never to be reached, a "vision" never to be realised.
In short, the very goods that Shimon Peres has been selling so efficiently to
the Palestinians and to the world over the past decade. Israel's Foreign Minister
indeed met with Palestinian officials in the last weeks, in what was described
as the most serious talks between the sides for many months.
Much
more importantly, reliable reports say that, on the 22nd of July, "the
heads of Tanzim, convened at Jenin, approved the text of a communique calling
unilaterally for an end to fighting by Tanzim, Hamas and Islamic Jihad. A few
hours before, Muhammad Dahlan [influential former head of Palestinian Security
in the Gaza Strip] met with [Hamas Leader] Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, in which meeting
Yassin accepted the principles of the cease-fire communique" (Yedioth
Achronot, 24.7.02). For weeks, Israel has been following deliberations inside
the Tanzim on the idea of declaring a unilateral cease-fire; Israel was also officially
briefed by the European Union, which, together with Egypt and Saudi Arabia, supported
the initiative.
So
after 21 months of violence, a ray of hope could be observed. A chance for cease-fire,
for a cessation of violence. Unilaterally even, without any demands from occupying
side. Israel's reaction was immediate and swift. "One and a half hours
after the Tanzim leadership approved the document at its Jenin gathering, Israel
carried out the assassination of Salah Shehadeh, in the course of which dozens
of civilians were killed and wounded as well. In this way, Israel apparently destroyed
the chance to test the viability of a cease-fire" (ibid.).
Though
this be madness, yet there is Method in it. Time and again, Israeli assassinations
(as well as other offensive measures) abruptly ended prolonged periods of hope.
In November 2001, the assassination of the Hamas activist Mahmoud Abu Hanoud was
carried out just when the Hamas was respecting for two months its agreement with
Arafat not to attack inside Israel. In January 2002, the assassination of Raed
Karmi ended a few weeks of relative quiet in the territories. The same pattern
repeated itself this time too. The operation was no mistake; the decision to use
a bomb instead of missiles, the more usual means used by Israel for its extra-judiciary
killings, was undoubtedly deliberate. And whoever gave the order to drop, in the
middle of the night, a 1.000 kg bomb on a residential house in one of the most
densely populated strips on earth, knew very well what he was doing. It was a
premeditated act of state terrorism, a cold-blooded massacre. 14 innocent civilians,
9 of them children, were killed to ensure the continuation of Palestinian terrorism,
in which many more innocent civilians will be killed.
It
has been established beyond any reasonable doubt that Sharon does not want to
stop terrorism, but rather to perpetuate it. The very moment political negotiations
seemed to be serious, the very moment Palestinians intended to stop terrorism,
Israel dropped a bomb. Whether Sharon should be sent to the Hague or rather to
Guantanamo is one question; a more important one is: why has he done it?
Genocide,
Ethnic Cleansing, Politicide
What
is Israel's interest in terrorism? Remember its vision for the occupied territories.
Israel has never made a secret of it. Whether it was Ehud Barak, who claimed that
UN resolution 242 did not apply to the West Bank and Gaza, or Ariel Sharon, who
said he would never discuss evacuating a Jewish settlement, Israel's intentions
have always been quite clear: keeping a maximal share of the occupied territories,
with a minimal number of Palestinians.
The
almost-total dispossession of Palestinian land and water, achieved during the
Oslo years, has not satisfied Israel's colonial appetite. It wants more: the Palestinians
should not be there at all. They should either be killed, or deported, or annihilated
as an independent political and social entity. These three, partly overlapping
options can be termed genocide, ethnic cleansing, and politicide respectively.
Politicide – a term suggested by Israel's leading sociologist Baruch
Kimmerling – has been implemented extensively since last April ("Operation
Defensive Shield"). The Palestinian national, public, cultural and academic
infrastructure has been destroyed: Israeli soldiers systematically demolished
everything, from the Sakakini Cultural Centre in Ramallah, through
the database of the Palestinian Bureau of Statistic, down to the last hard-disk
of a doctor's clinic broken into. Israel's present policy continues along these
lines.
The
other two options – genocide and ethnic cleansing – are waiting for the right
opportunity, which has not arrived yet. But the recent movement of the idea of
"transfer" (i.e. mass deportation) into main-stream Israeli discourse,
together with the warnings of so-called "mega-attacks" (a new term introduced
in the last weeks), are preparing the hearts for such measures.
The
Benefits of Terrorism
Here
is where terrorism comes in. Israel cannot carry out these atrocious plans without
effective propaganda. Terrorism has always been an excellent excuse, even more
so since September 11th. The plans were there long before, as documented painstakingly
by Israeli analyst Tanya
Reinhart. They have nothing to do with terrorism: they are aimed at entrenching
the Israeli occupation, making it irreversible and reducing the Palestinians to
ashes. But every terror attack enables Israel to implement the next steps in its
premeditated plans, and to sell it to the world as "self-defence", "retaliation",
"prevention" etc. No wonder, then, that none of these plans actually
stops terrorism: they are not meant to. And since terrorism gives the best legitimation
for carrying them out, stopping terrorism would be, from Israel's point of view,
counter-productive.
Palestinian
terrorism thus serves Israel's interests on both an international and a national
level. Internationally, Israel's propaganda machine efficiently exploits every
terror attack to strengthen Israel's image as a victim, and to obscure and justify
the proceeding oppression of the Palestinians. Moreover, the Israeli use of terrorism
has now been adopted by the American administration, that keeps sending Israel
money – $200 million last week – for "fighting terrorism" (note that
Israel may spend it as it wishes!); and, as the Washington
Post put it (28.7.02), "the United States should not pressure
Sharon's government while Palestinian violence continues."
Nationally,
as Spinoza
observed back in the 17th century, people in adversity "know not where
to turn, but beg and pray for counsel from every passer-by. No plan is then too
futile, too absurd, or too fatuous for their adoption; the most frivolous causes
will raise them to hope, or plunge them into despair." Keeping the Israeli
people constantly exposed to fatal violence (and to "terror alerts",
true or false) is the best way to ensure national coherence. Understandably terrified,
most Israelis indeed back the most futile, absurd and fatuous – not to say immoral
– operations of their government, misled to believe that its goal is securing
their lives rather than perpetuating a murderous occupation that most Israelis
do not want.
So
Sharon has a vested interest to keep Palestinian terrorism at a high level. As
long as he is in power, and as long as the Bush administration actually rewards
Israel for Palestinian violence, terrorism will persist. This does not relieve
Palestinians of their moral responsibility; but, on the list of states supporting
terrorism, Israel, as well as the United States, deserve a good place.