I mean seriously, these cowards fire rockets into Israel, in hopes of getting the UN, or EU to pity them into making Israel stop, or just to get more funds for their shitty government, or just to make Israel look bad. So, Hamas launches a few rockets into Israel, and Israel flattens the whole west bank- can't say that is not funny, or ironic. THEN, after Israel is finished destroying the Gaza Strip(AKA Philistia), and AFTER a cease fire is enacted, Hamas feels the need to fire more rockets into Israel, which, as Irony always lands lightly onto thy tongue, Israel sends in 14 Apache Helicopters and do some more damage. I mean seriously, is Hamas just a glutton for punishment?

 A unilateral Israeli cease-fire a 22-day assault against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip has gone into effect.

Israel says it is halting military operations in Gaza. Its assault killed nearly 1,200 Palestinians, about half of them civilians.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert pledged to stop the offensive early Sunday. But the military warned in a statement that Israeli forces would respond to all violence from Gaza militants.

Israel embarked on its assault to stop nearly daily rocket barrages on its south by militants from Gaza, and to put an end to Hamas arms smuggling. Five of long-range rockets exploded near the southern Israeli city of Beersheba after Olmert spoke but before the cease-fire went onto effect. No one was hurt.

"Olmert says that troops will remain in Gaza - apparently for 10 days," reports CBS News correspondent Robert Berger in Jerusalem. "During that time, Israel and Egypt will work on security arrangements to halt Hamas weapons smuggling to Gaza."

Saying that Israel has achieved its goals in the offensive, government leaders voted to stop the assault during an emergency security meeting Saturday.

"We have achieved our goal," Olmert said. "Hamas has been beaten badly."

Shortly before the Israeli cabinet meeting began, Hamas vowed to keep fighting until Israel pulls its forces out of Gaza and lifts its crippling supply blockade on the territory.

At least one Hamas rocket was fired after the cease-fire announcement, Berger reports.

The Israel offensive has killed nearly 1,200 people, turned the streets and neighborhoods of the Gaza Strip into battlegrounds and dealt a stinging blow to the Islamic militants of Hamas.

In announcing the unilateral cease-fire, Olmert said in a televised address that Israel had achieved its goals, and more: "Hamas was hit hard, in its military arms and in its government institutions. Its leaders are in hiding and many of its men have been killed," Olmert said. But Hamas remained defiant.

Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum in Gaza said in a televised address on Saturday that a unilateral cease-fire was not enough to end Hamas resistance - joining the hard-line stance taken earlier by Hamas leaders in exile.

"The occupier must halt his fire immediately and withdraw from our land and lift his blockade and open all crossings, and we will not accept any Zionist soldier on our land, regardless of the price," Barhoum said.

Gaza militants launched eight rockets into Israel around the time Olmert announced the cease-fire, the military said. There were no reports of casualties. Five long-range Grad rockets exploded near the city of Beersheba in the hour after Olmert's televised address, Israel Radio reported.

Palestinians reacted with skepticism and called on world leaders attending a summit Sunday in Egypt to put pressure on Israel to withdraw from Gaza immediately.

"We had hoped that the Israeli announcement would be matched by total cessation of hostilities and the immediate withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza," said Saeb Erekat, a top aide to moderate Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, a Hamas rival. "I am afraid that the presence of the Israeli forces in Gaza means that the cease fire will not stand and will be fragile."

In Washington, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice welcomed the unilateral cease-fire and urged both sides to end attacks immediately. In a statement, she also expressed concern for the suffering of innocent Palestinian civilians in Gaza and called for immediate efforts to assist them.

Israel began the offensive on Dec. 27 in response to eight years of bombardments on Israeli towns.

Nearly 1,200 Palestinians have been killed in the three weeks of violence, according to Palestinian and U.N. officials. Thirteen Israelis have been killed.

Even as Israel's 12-member Security Cabinet met to vote on the cease-fire, Israel kept bombarding Gaza. Earlier Saturday, in the northern town of Beit Lahiya, Israeli shells struck a U.N. school where 1,600 people sought shelter. One shell scored a direct hit on the top floor of the 3-story building, killing two boys, U.N. officials said

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon both demanded on Saturday an immediate end to the Israeli assault and pullout of all troops.

A summit aimed at giving international backing to the cease-fire is set for Egypt on Sunday. It is to be attended by the leaders of Germany, France, Spain, Britain, Italy, Turkey and the Czech Republic - which holds the rotating EU presidency - as well as Abbas, Mubarak and U.N. chief Ban.

It was not immediately clear whether Israel would send a representative, and Hamas has not been invited.

Israel's key demand is for guarantees that Hamas halt the smuggling of rockets, explosives and other weapons through tunnels under the 8-mile-(15 kilometer-)long Egypt-Gaza border.

Under the deal, Egypt would shut down weapons smuggling routes with international help and discussions on opening Gaza's blockaded border crossings - Hamas' key demand - would take place at a later date.

My own view, in short, is that the onus is on Israel to exercise restraint, because Israel is holding all the cards. Palestine is barely a country at all -  geographically and politically divided, impoverished, poorly armed. Israel is a modern democratic state packing nuclear missiles, gunships and tanks. There's simply no contest. Hamas is a repulsive organisation, but it's also a relatively powerless one - as ill-equipped to actually govern the territories under its nominal control as it is to defend them.

Neither side seem to have the wisdom or the balls to stop killing each other.  Its as if someone is funding this war from the outside for their own interests. It certainly isn't in the interests of the region.

Its easy to say as someone with no insight, but the history surrounding this whole conflict should be buried and forgotten.  It sums up everything that is wrong with the human race... 

..well apart from the chicken and strawberry trifle my 4 year old neice has just invented and loves to eat. Yuk!

Hamas are basically just terrorists with an official government.  They really don't care how badly things happen for them and the people around them, they aren't going to stop until Israel doesn't exist.  No matter what you do to them they don't care, so Israel has to kill them.

Perhaps they will. But in order to eradicate Hamas (at least by conventional means) Israel will have to kill everybody in the way. The Gaza Strip has the 6th highest population density of any country on earth, 4,118 people per square kilometre - assuming they're even bothering to distinguish between the two, Israel can't hit out at Hamas without hitting out at the civilian population. And the more civilians are killed by Israel, the more legitimate Hamas appears in the eyes of Palestine.

well we can move the isrealians to the southpole, no one has reallly layed claim to that.

Problem solved

The two have kinda fought since the beginning of fucking time. Its not going to stop anytime soon, if ever. I love how Israel was fried in our news for firing a missile at an empty school. What the news fails to mention was that there were turrets and mortars all over the place.

With hamas troopies dashing away from the building, no less. I've got the footage in question, and if the news hadn't made a big stink, I never woulda' noticed anything wrong.

Just watched Adam Sandler's latest film 'You don't mess with the Zohan'.  It's brilliant.  Funny for Hamas and Israelis alike.

The Islamic world needs a charismatic dictator to come along and unite them all. An Islamic Oda Nobunaga. If they could stop fighting each other, western interests wouldn't be so influential.

 Best case scenario: they solve their own poverty and education issues and the radical factions like Hamas wouldn't be able to recruit and occupy so easily.

Worst case, Israel would be dealt with decisively.

Either way, the silly pointless killing back and forth would stop. They'd finally move on to some sort of endgame.

Israel can't end this, because while the western would supports them they would lose that support if they started any serious occupation or expansion.

As it stands, Israel will ALWAYS  be defending itself against some radical group that refuses to accept a Jewish state.

nekkid_monkey


The Islamic world needs a charismatic dictator to come along and unite them all. An Islamic Oda Nobunaga. If they could stop fighting each other, western interests wouldn't be so influential.

The Islamic world needs a couple hundred megaton payload dropped on it courtesy of the US or Israel.

Israel isnt a problem, radical extremists are. Hamas fires rockets into Israel, killing civilians. Israel retaliates, kills civilians in the process, and their the bad guys? Israel doesnt fuck with anyone until they get fucked with.

I don't see good guys and bad guys. I see two sides with a conflict. Palestine can't stop it's radicals, Israel can't stop it's squatters. There is no good guy. There is no right and wrong side.

Why should Israel give up the land they own and give in to Hamas?

Why should Hamas compromise their beliefs and accept a Jewish nation on the land they consider sacred?

I don't give a flying crap. Whatever brings them to an endgame. Any conclusion is better than endless war.

Solve the damn problem so you can stop killing each other.

And you dont see anything wrong with their belief that a "nation" shouldnt exist ?

The international community can sit back and criticize israel all they want but they would all react in the same way if they were facing such a threat . Too bad india doesnt have the balls to go the israel way .

I'm a true pacifist. If you ask me to choose between the preservation of life or the preservation of a nation I'll choose life every time.

I see nothing sacred in preserving any nation.

BTW, I'm not against Israel. I just don't see how they can ever "win" and end the fighting.  Palestine is too dysfunctional to be bargained with, and they can't really conquer Palestine outright without starting WWIII.

You know what I'd love to see happen? I'd love to see someone go in there and just destroy everything. Totally demolish every artifact, every holy place every building.  If it's bigger than my thumb, blow it up. Israel and Palestine. Then whoever wants to fight over the remainng rubble can have it.  The rest of the world can get on with their lives.

Fucking Jew fucks...

"War has changed."

/facepalm

"War. War never changes."

Edwin


My own view, in short, is that the onus is on Israel to exercise restraint, because Israel is holding all the cards. Palestine is barely a country at all -  geographically and politically divided, impoverished, poorly armed. Israel is a modern democratic state packing nuclear missiles, gunships and tanks. There's simply no contest. Hamas is a repulsive organisation, but it's also a relatively powerless one - as ill-equipped to actually govern the territories under its nominal control as it is to defend them.

I respect your views, really. You did pick a neutral position(and did so VERY well). My opinion on the matter- and this is just my opinion, is that Israel has the right to defend themselves. Do I think they went FAR EXTREME in flattening the whole Gaza Strip? Absolutely. But maybe Hamas will learn not to mess with a country that is 5 times their size(if not more), and FAR more superior and equipped.

immortaldanmx

nekkid_monkey


The Islamic world needs a charismatic dictator to come along and unite them all. An Islamic Oda Nobunaga. If they could stop fighting each other, western interests wouldn't be so influential.

The Islamic world needs a couple hundred megaton payload dropped on it courtesy of the US or Israel.

Israel isnt a problem, radical extremists are. Hamas fires rockets into Israel, killing civilians. Israel retaliates, kills civilians in the process, and their the bad guys? Israel doesnt fuck with anyone until they get fucked with.

What does Hamas not understand about the facts, is this is a world of laws, and the laws of the world gave that land to Israel 60 years ago. And before that Israel, had a claim dating back some 3000 years before the "Palestinians''(The Gaza Stripe used to belong to the Philistines, who, Ironically enough, the Israelites wiped out) ever arrived there. Hamas and the rest just need to get over it. If not, I am sure Israel is set to keep on fighting as long, hard and bloody a war as those Islamic fanatical fascist fools want. The entire war was legal on Israel''s part. They were simply defending against a bunch of idiots who wanted to indiscriminately fire rockets into Israel in attempts to hit civilian targets (rockets in the thousands).

mastachefbkw


The two have kinda fought since the beginning of fucking time. Its not going to stop anytime soon, if ever. I love how Israel was fried in our news for firing a missile at an empty school. What the news fails to mention was that there were turrets and mortars all over the place.

Yeah lol, and believe it or not, O'Reilly brung that up. The old man actually stood up for Israel lol.