Sheikh Yassin's Assassination.
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| Tue, 03-23-2004 - 8:43am |
Two articles below, two different opinions. What's your opinion about the assassination of Sheikh Yassin?
Taking out Yassin no way to end war.
Yassin's death will satisfy some Israelis. But if the aim is peace, it will have the opposite effect.
>"As they have done since September 11, 2001, Israeli officials defended the strike in the rhetoric of US President George Bush's war on terror, comparing Yassin to Osama bin Laden. But just as the lessons of the war on terror are not learnt in Washington, neither have they been understood in Israel - the US is so distracted by its war in Iraq that terrorists have run amok, striking more often around the world in the past year than in the preceding 12 months."<
>"The death of Yassin will be very satisfying for some Israelis. But if the plan is to end combat and find peace, it's a major setback - because taking out the Palestinian leadership does not end the war.
Like Israel's deliberate campaign to weaken Yasser Arafat, Yassin's execution will do to the Palestinians what the war on terror has done to al-Qaeda - fracture the leadership, leaving angered and autonomous cells to exact revenge, competing with each other for greater body counts as their leaders compete to fill the power vacuum."<
>"Al-Qaeda seems to have heard the call. An internet statement attributed to one of its offshoots, the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades, which claims responsibility for the March 11 Madrid bombings, urged vengeance: "We call on all the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades to avenge the Sheikh of the Palestinian resistance by striking the tyrant of the century, America, and its allies."
The Yassin attack earned worldwide condemnation - except from the US, where National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice tossed it off with an uncaring "there's always the possibility of a better day in the Middle East". It was only later in the day that the State Department, increasingly sidelined in US foreign policy, piped up to declare itself "deeply troubled". "<
>"As Israeli leader Ariel Sharon has implemented his own plans to wall off the Palestinians, the US has done nothing to put its so-called "road map" peace plan in place.
The Israelis and Palestinians are so mired in historical and personal enmity that the issue will never be addressed sincerely unless Israel's old 1967 border becomes a blue line, with international forces keeping the sides apart. Then they might talk. In the meantime, expect the worst."<
Quotes from.....
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/03/23/1079939644399.html
Live by the sword ...
>"Whether yesterday's assassination of Hamas founder Ahmed Yassin was a good thing depends on the answer to two questions: 1) Is the world better off without Sheik Yassin? and 2) Was it in Israel's strategic interest to kill him? In both cases, the answer is yes.
Ahmed Yassin was among the most brazen killers that the modern Middle East has produced, which is quite an achievement when you look at the competition. His hands were stained with the blood of hundreds, and we aren't referring only to Israeli civilians who died in the Palestinian terror attacks he supervised. We're also thinking of the Palestinian children whom he taught to believe that death is preferable to life and that a good Muslim is one who immolates himself in a pizzeria or a discotheque.
In interviews, you could see the old man take lascivious delight in the blood of his followers -- followers such as Reem Riyashi, a Palestinian who blew herself up in January, leaving her two children motherless. "I always wanted to be the first woman to carry out a martyrdom operation, where parts of my body can fly all over," she said in a videotaped message. Shortly after, Mr. Yassin ghoulishly confirmed that Hamas was now recruiting female bombers."<
More........


Like Golda once reflected, there will be peace in the middle east when the Palestinians love their children more than they hate the Jews.
Violence begets violence. The only way to peace is through negotiations--When the Clinton failed to negotiate a peace, the cause seems to be lost. I am disappointed that GWB appears to have dismissed the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. As Condi Rice says, "there's always the possibility of a better day in the Middle East." This complies with GWB faith-based government.
India condemns killing of Hamas leader
New Delhi, Mar 23 (UNI) India today expressed its anguish over the killing of Hamas (Palestine resistance movement) Founder Sheikh Ahmed Yassin in an Israeli missile strike yesterday, apprehending that it would exacerbate the cycle of violence and counter-violence not only in Gaza but also elsewhere in the region.
"The need of the hour is restraint and a resumption of the peace process in line with relevant UN Resolutions," an External Affairs Ministry spokesman said.
http://www.deepikaglobal.com/latestnews.asp?ncode=14172
E Timor intervention 'for Gaza'
24mar04
Australia
A FORMER United States ambassador to Israel has recommended an East Timor-style intervention in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Martin Indyk said a United Nations-sanctioned international force should take over to fill the vacuum left when the Palestinian authority collapsed and Israel pulled out.
Otherwise, terrorist groups would take over and would dance on the roofs of the Israeli settlements, Dr Indyk said.
"You have already an advanced state of collapse (in the Palestinian authority)," Dr Indyk told ABC television's Lateline program.
"When the Israelis pull out, if nothing is done to address the vacuum that they leave, then the most likely outcome is that Hamas and other terrorist organisations will fill that vacuum.
"My view is that the international community should move in with an international presence, perhaps taking over the settlements in trust for the Palestinians, and oversee a process of rebuilding the Palestinian security services so they can exert authority ... and oversee holding of new elections which would enable a new, more responsible, accountable and capable Palestinian leadership to emerge."
It would have to be led by the United States but US troops should not be on the ground, he said.
http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5478,9060408%255E1702,00.html
Tuesday, March 23 2004 @ 08:19 AM Eastern Standard TimeContributed by: AdminViews: 20
The Malaysian government and Muslim organizations on Tuesday, March 23, branded as "state terrorism" Israel’s assassination of Hamas spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin a day earlier. "Israel, by taking this means, has actually committed an act of state terrorism," a Malaysian Foreign Ministry statement said. An Israeli strike helicopter fired three missiles at the 67-year-old wheelchair-bound Sheikh Yassin after performing the dawn prayers in a mosque near his home, killing him and at least eight others. "This would only escalate further the cycle of deadly violence and increase tension," said the statement carried by the official Bernama news agency. Malaysia, which holds the rotating presidency of the 57-member Organization of Islamic Conference (IOC) and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), called on the Mideast Quartet "to ensure peace and security as well as the resumption of the peace process."
http://www.turks.us/article.php?story=20040323081929497
A Hamas blow for Pakistan
By Syed Saleem Shahzad
KARACHI - The killing on Monday of Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin in an Israeli helicopter-launched rocket attack in Gaza City certainly eliminates one of Tel Aviv's key opponents, but the ramifications of the talisman resistance figure's death are already being felt in Pakistan, where unrest in the tribal areas continues unabated.
News of Yassin's death spread like wildfire across Pakistan, including the tribal areas on the border with Afghanistan where thousands of Pakistan troops have encountered fierce resistance from tribal fighters as they attempt to track down al-Qaeda fugitives and Afghan resistance members.
The Jamaat-i-Islami Pakistan, an influential religious political party, was quick to organize massive demonstrations all over the country. Although these were held to condemn "Israeli brutality", most of the speakers focussed on the goings-on in the tribal areas, where they are highly critical of the military's intervention in the semi-autonomous region, and of the United States' "meddling" in the region.
Despite attempts by the Pakistan military to implement a ceasefire so that tribal leaders can negotiate the surrender of suspected al-Qaeda members, on Monday night a convoy of Pakistani troops comprising 30 vehicles, which was on its way to reinforce positions in South Waziristan, was ambushed. An eye witness told Asia Times Online by telephone that six cars were destroyed and that the casualties "were not less than 50". When contacted by Asia Times Online, Major General Shaukat Sultan, the director general of Inter-Services Public Relations of the Pakistan army, confirmed the incident, but refused to give any details concerning casualties.
Remainder of article at
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/FC24Df01.html
This guy was the terrorist leader of Hamas. This fabrication of who this guy was shows how twisted to Muslim world is.
As a pacifist, I am weary and saddened by this. The message that a good death for a great cause will bring eternal rewards and the notion that shooting the messenger will end this message has existed throughout history. There is no end in sight to violence when this cycle is continued.
C