Haaretz-17/05/2007

TBC, (Haaretz)

"Dozens of Palestinians have been killed in clashes between Fatah and Hamas in the Gaza Strip over the past few days. Gunmen and activists of both movements have been hurt, as have innocent bystanders. Since the Palestinians are killing their own people, without outside assistance, this is supposedly an internal matter. Only supposedly, because Israel cannot watch with indifference as events unfold not far from its territory, and because Israeli citizens, residents of the western Negev and particularly Sderot are paying the price of the chaos in Palestinian society.

The primary obligation of every government is to protect the well-being of its citizens and the sovereignty of its territory. The rockets launched from Gaza are striking Israelis despite the Israeli withdrawal to the Green Line. For too many years - about half a dozen - the governments of Ariel Sharon and Ehud Olmert preferred to absorb the blows from what a Sharon adviser scornfully called "flying objects." The citizens under Qassam fire have the right to better protection than that being accorded to them. The hard question is whether in this case the best defense is offense, and if so, what kind.

Both action and inaction have a price, but in the end both are supposed to be based on forethought. The Olmert government is not perceived by the public as worthy and serious. Defense Minister Amir Peretz is already packing for the Finance Ministry, or for home. Olmert, who is refusing to draw the necessary conclusions about himself from the Winograd Committee report, is scuffling with the state comptroller and under criminal investigation. The fateful decisions about Gaza justify the swift establishment of a different government, with more reliable and skilled people in key positions. The soldiers who in the end will be sent to Gaza, if the Palestinians do not come to their senses and hold their fire, and the civilians who will watch them and worry on the home front should be able to trust that the decision-makers have acted in good judgment."

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