Con Coughlin- 25/01/2008

Con Coughlin, (Daily Telegraph)

"It is hardly surprising that Hamas, which is committed to Israel's destruction, opposes a peace process whose primary concern is the security of the Jewish state. And now that the more mainstream Fatah movement of Mr Abbas, which is more inclined to a negotiated settlement, no longer enjoys representation in Gaza, ordinary Gazans have no alternative other than to tolerate Hamas's activities, even if they do not necessarily agree with them. But by maintaining its constant barrage of rocket attacks against Israel, the Hamas leadership could hardly be credited with working in the best interests of the civilian population it claims to represent. When an Iranian-made rocket hit an Israeli power station at Ashkelon - which supplies some of Gaza's electricity - the Israelis had no hesitation in cutting off power supplies.

The dilemma facing the Israelis is how they respond to the endless acts of provocation from Hamas, for whatever action the authorities in Jerusalem take seems to provoke international condemnation. The recent closure of Gaza to all but essential humanitarian supplies by the Israeli military was heavily criticised by aid agencies, which were less keen to condemn the Israeli casualties caused by Hamas's rocket attacks.

And even though the obvious military strategy would be for the Israeli army to re-invade Gaza and tackle Hamas head-on, no one in Israel wants to see their young men and women once again being brutalised by the experience of going head-to-head with well-armed and fanatical terrorists in the lethal back alleys and passageways of Gaza.

But given that the Palestinians are in no position to rein in Hamas's excesses, it seems almost inevitable that it will fall to Israel to deal with the existential threat the terror group poses. To make peace in the Middle East, it is often necessary first to make war."

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