20060708 KDDC An analysis from AP on the current Gaza standoff

An analysis from AP on the current Gaza standoff

Updated: 3:48 p.m. ET July 8, 2006

MSNBC is carrying an analysis of the current standoff between Isreal and the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip over the recent capture of 19-year-old Israeli Cpl. Gilad Shalit:

Gaza: A tale of lost opportunity, angry reprisals

Already troubled area to suffer far-reaching setbacks from abducted soldier

It is worth the read. As much as I support the Isreali response... the analysis puts some things into perspective that I had not considered. For example:

"Shalit was seized June 25 in a cross-border raid by Hamas-linked militants, who have demanded the release of some of the 9,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

That demand has widespread support among ordinary Palestinians, which cuts to the heart of the stalemate. Hamas could be finished politically if it gives up Shalit without a prisoner swap, and Israel fears that caving into militant demands would only encourage more attacks."

The analysis begins by saying:

"JERUSALEM - Gaza’s transformation into a battlefield is a tale of lost opportunity and ill-fated visions.

The capture of a young Israeli soldier and Israel’s tough response have threatened Israeli support for withdrawal from the West Bank, exposed rifts among the Islamic militants of Hamas and rendered the Palestinians’ moderate president irrelevant.

Expectations that Palestinians would begin building their own state following Israel’s historic withdrawal from the impoverished Gaza Strip last year have given way to despair and escalating bloodshed."

Read the rest of the analysis here.

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