the israeli assault on gaza and its repurcussions

operation cast lead launched by the IDF against the HAMAS base in the gaza strip has ended in a moral victory for the HAMAS as the purported aim of the assault has not been acheived, HAMAS is still very much there in Gaza strip. it amazes me how the israeli strategists could feel that a ground and air strike could affect the damage they wanted to effect on the HAMAS cadres.
what they have ended up doing is antagonise a major chunk of palestinians and firmly put peace out of the equation, it will now see the resurgence of islamic fundamentalism of the worst kind in the region. all this has been fuelled by the SURGICAL strikes that the IAF has been carrying out and has ended up killing more children and innocent civilians than the top brass of hamas, the notable kill was that of Raazin, the primary protagonist of the al quasam brigade and that too killed 11 children of his family.
the guardian reports that of all casualties 57% were children and if this is not a case for war crimes then one wonders what does actually. how many innocent lives need to be sacrificed before the UNSC can manage to pass a resolution. USA has already vetoed one resolution moved by the arab states that had demanded immediate cessation of violence but it never saw the light of the day.
secretary of state condeleeza rice had to abstain from a human rights cessation conference called by her under pressure from the israeli government, such is the leverage that israel exercises to defend its acts of terror.
the primary trigger for this escalation was the continual firing of rockets by the HAMAS and one of those katyushas actually hitting askhelon that really made the israelis jittery followed by reports that the dimonia nuclear reactor was also a potential target.
the problem is that the HAMAS are deeply entrenched in the gaza strip and they cannot be removed unless backed by a people's mandate which am afraid has only gone in favour of the HAMAS, the reputation of the HAMAS has gone up in the eyes of the ordinary palestinians who now see it as the last bulwark against israel especially when the FATAH leader Mahmoud Abbas failed to stop the genocide against his own people and preferred rhetoric rather than action.
the image of the FATAH has taken a more or less fatal beating. what also falls in direct contrast against conventional wisdom is that Israel fails to recognise a democratically elected set up of the HAMAS, this is unbecoming of a country that calls itself as the Oasis of democracy in the middle east.
further in direct contravention of the basel convention on use of depleted uranium weapons such weapons have been used against none other than civilians. this is simply disproportionate usage of military might.
there have been some tectonic shifts in the way HAMAS thinks and operates especially given its increased focus on the shariat, this is indicative of only one thing that the HAMAS cadres have been infiltrated by the al quaeda that has been struggling to establish a power base in the region. this does not bode well for israel as the resources that a HAMAS-QUAEDA link shall commmand shall be immense and this shall be more direct in the sense that patronage shall be more overt not the current mode of covert funding by iran.
this can be understood if one compares the armed strength of the hezbollah one that receives direct funding by iran and that of the HAMAS
this conflict shall cause a cathartic cleansing among the HAMAS ranks as the realisation has seeped in that the strategy of rocket attacks has exhausted its utility and also that HAMAS cannot acheive much on its own unless it:
1.aligns with the FATAH
2.establishes control over a major portion of palestine and not just gaza

israel has lost a lot of face in the international community especially over the incident of the UN school being bombed and then UNRWCA convoys being attacked by israeli tanks. it was always going to be a tough choice for israel given the region it is existing, with iran describing it as a tumor and HAMAS rockets pouring into israel almost everyday,
israel is a country always on the edge but it was israel that violated the HUDNA or the cease fire that was in effect. also where the fight was happening is a glorified refugee camp alone and the last thing israel wanted was to engage was to engage in a door to door fight with the HAMAS in an area where the HAMAS enjoy popular support, also the memories of the august mishap with the hezbollah is still very fresh in israel's memory as was evident with the over cautious manner the ground forces were moving in.
to conclude a chapter that has just begun to unfurl i feel that a 3rd intifada is well on the making, the loss of the people of palestine people is collossal, practically all available infrastructure in gaza has been destroyed and still the region is being suffocated by the israelis and egyptians.
a solution could be to engage in direct talks with the HAMAS and recognise them as the voice of the people and end the war before it is too late. meanwhile let us wait before common sense prevails on israel and the international community becomes vehement in its criticism of the murder of innocents in this war of attrition......