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Bad Start in Gaza
Editorial
The Washington Post
September 15, 2005
ONLY DAYS after the final withdrawal of Israeli forces, the Gaza Strip is o=
n the
verge of anarchy. Despite promises to impose law and order, the Palestinian
Authority has allowed mobs of looters and armed extremists to rampage throu=
gh
former Jewish settlements, where they have burned or bulldozed synagogues l=
eft
standing by Israel. Many of the valuable greenhouses that, with the generous
help of international donors, were saved for use by the Palestinians have b=
een
stripped of equipment as police stood by and watched. Despite a formal
agreement with Israel to maintain security, Egypt has allowed thousands of
Palestinians to illegally cross its border, including rifle-brandishing
militants. If it is not quickly checked, the disorder will destroy Palestin=
ian
hopes that the Gaza transfer will become a step toward statehood.
This week's events further undermine the claim of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas that he can=
impose
democratic rule of law in Gaza without directly confronting armed extremist
groups such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad. Mr. Abbas keeps declaring that only Palestinian security =
forces
will be allowed weapons and that "no one is above the law." But he
also keeps shrinking from confronting the gunmen who have been parading thr=
ough
former Jewish settlements or punching holes in the border fence between Gaz=
a and
Egypt. "We are not going to tolerate chaos after today," Mr. Abbas declared on Tuesday. Yesterday, as the chaos
continued, he instead canceled his appearance at a rally organized by his o=
wn
administration.
Mr. Abbas's problem is in part one of weakness;=
it's
not certain that the security forces loyal to him could impose order by for=
ce
in Gaza even if he ordered them to. Egypt's failure is far harder to excuse.
The government of Hosni Mu=
barak
formally committed itself to send Egyptian troops to replace the Israeli ar=
my
on the border between Gaza and Egypt and to maintain security. No agreement=
has
yet been reached on opening a crossing, mainly b=
ecause
of Israel's legitimate security concerns. But Egyptian troops this week have
allowed thousands of Palestinians to pass back and forth, urged on by Hamas fighters who have blown holes in the fence. Egy=
pt
announced that it would put a stop to the traffic by yesterday evening.
According to news reports, the crossings continued.
The Gaza withdrawal should have been a step toward an Israeli-Palestinian
settlement; instead, it could become a leap away from it. The big winner so=
far
is Hamas, which rejects Israel's existence. In
Israel, continuing disorder will give a boost to hard-line challengers to P=
rime
Minister Ariel Sharon, the architect of the Gaza evacuation. As it is, Mr.
Sharon probably will reiterate in an address to the United Nations today th=
at
Israel will consider no more territorial withdrawals or other concessions to
the Palestinians until militant groups are dismantled. Unless Palestinian a=
nd
Egyptian leaders take immediate steps to fulfill their commitments in Gaza,
they will bear the responsibility for a new stalemate -- or worse -- in the
Middle East.
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