Amira Hass: Fatah’s gauntlet

If the results have been so disastrous, why are they not discussed openly? It is hard to hold a debate on the weapons fantasy when thousands of families have lost loved ones because of it. It is hard to hold such a debate when thousands of Palestinians have paid with their freedom, including many who never held a gun. It is hard to hold such a debate when people who participated in this fantasy have been elected to Fatah’s central committee. Moreover, such a debate might have addressed the way senior Fatah members used the “armed struggle” to divert public criticism of the PA and its failures, and salvage Fatah’s prestige as a liberation movement.

For full article, visit http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1108571.html

Assad: Israel’s new government is against peace

Assad underlined the need for continued resistance, a reference to anti-Israeli militant groups like the Palestinian Hamas, which Damascus supports.

“Resistance is a national and patriotic and moral duty and it is the only option,” he said. “Peace cannot be achieved with an enemy who does not believe in peace without it being imposed on him by resistance.”

For full article, visit http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1074919.html