[Ynet News] Ron Ben-Yishai - Sderot and western Negev communities are not sustaining Palestinian rocket fire because the Palestinians hope to secure diplomatic-national objectives through their attacks, but rather, because this serves local political and extortion efforts by several dozens of clans and armed groups fighting each other over economic interests and political prestige. In simple terms, Hamas is "exporting" to Israel the responsibility for the massacre carried out by Palestinians against other Palestinians in order to avoid criticism and sanctions from moderate Arab states, and particularly from Saudi Arabia. Control of the street and arms have shifted to dozens of armed groups and clans, with each one clinging to its own agenda and narrow interests. Intelligence officials have identified 47 such groups, with some working on behalf of Iran and others on behalf of global Jihad. The chances of Abbas loyalists overcoming Hamas in a Gaza military clash are slim to none.
2007-05-17 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive