Thankfully, someone is coming to their senses:
Israel’s vice prime minister said today that killing the Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat was one of several options now under government consideration. Meanwhile, a beaming Mr. Arafat soaked up the cheers of supporters who descended on his compound for a fourth successive day.
“Arafat can no longer be a factor in what happens here,” Ehud Olmert, Israel’s vice prime minister, told Israel radio.
Killing Arafat is one option I am willing to immediately explore.
the talking dog
John–
I seriously thought you LIKED Israel, and thought that the deaths of thousands or tens of thousands of innocent civilians, which is what would almost AUTOMATICALLY follow an Israeli assassination of Yasir Arafat, would BOTHER YOU.
Either you aare tongue in cheek here, or you have truly lost it. AS awful a man as Arafat is, and how delighted I would be if he were killed by either natural causes, a palace coup or perhaps Hamas, if ISRAEL took him out, the consequences TO ISRAEL would be catastrophic.
Or do you live in an alternate universe where that’s not so?
John Cole
I seriously thought you LIKED Israel, and thought that the deaths of thousands or tens of thousands of innocent civilians, which is what would almost AUTOMATICALLY follow an Israeli assassination of Yasir Arafat, would BOTHER YOU.
This is different from the status quo how?
If Hamas and the corrupt villains at the PLO were so incensed that they declared an open war on Israel, I would be thrilled. Israel would then have the opportunity to engage them in open warfare and wipe them off the map.
Peace is simply not an option while Arafat and his cronies are alive, so I am willing to explore other options.
dave
…the deaths of thousands or tens of thousands of innocent civilians, which is what would almost AUTOMATICALLY follow an Israeli assassination of Yasir Arafat,
Right…automatically, as opposed to 10 here, 20 there, over time, indefinitely? Bah.
I’m not so sure anyway. The Palestinians lack the firepower to instantly kill thousands, or tens of thousands. The nations that DO have that kind of firepower would be pretty hard pressed to use it, knowing that they’d have to deal not only with Israel’s military, but ours as well. Personally, I think Israel killing Arafat would send the “We’re not screwing around with you lunatics any more” message to the rest of the region quite effectively.
Andrew Lazarus
Talking Dog is right on.
If Israel kills Arafat, it’s looking at possible regional war PLUS economic suicide. Leaving aside the fact that Washington opposes this assassination, do you have any idea what an EU trade embargo would do to Israel? (Israel’s trade with the EU, collectively, is larger than its trade with the USA.) [Hint to Dave: we will be very slow to save Sharon’s ass militarily if he crosses Bush on this issue and war breaks out.]
I might add that I would not expect the Palestinians to melt away after such an act, any more than the Israelis would surrender if Sharon were assassinated (or, for that matter, than they did after the extreme-right-wing Tourism Minister WAS assassinated.)
This idea should have been left at the fantasy stage; it’s the political equivalent of dreaming of making it with the Bush Twins on the White House lawn.
Dean
Regional war, Andrew?
Exactly which states do you think are going to go to war, especially over the Palestinians? The Lebanese? The Jordanians? The Syrians?
Question: Which states went to war on behalf of the Palestinians in ’82? (Lebanese forces don’t seem to have.) How about during the first intifada? Or when the Israelis rolled into Jenin?
The recent experience in Iraq (where the Palestinians were expelled after Saddam fell) and Kuwait (where the Palestinian collaborators were expelled after the Iraqi invaders were defeated) is probably far more reflective of regional sentiments about them.
And, no, no one expects the Palestinians to melt away, not after this or any other attack. That’s not the point. The question is whether there is anything that might make shake them out of their almost mechanical kabuki-dance.
Andrew Lazarus
No one went to bat for the despised PLO in 1982 BECAUSE THEY WERE IN LEBANON. The assassination of Arafat INSIDE PALESTINE would be seen completely differently, and not without reason. It looks more like an attack on Palestinian institutions in general. AFter all, Ehud Olmert (who floated this brilliant idea) has never suggested anything other than perpetual occupation and helotry.
Don’t take my word for how dumb this plan is. Here’s Ze’ev Schiff, probably the most respected Israeli journalist on the military beat.
Kimmitt
The assassination of Arafat would not provoke a regional war. It would, however, diplomatically isolate Israel from the EU — and possibly provoke significant trade sanctions, which could lead to a depression. It would also serve as a flash point for a conflagration of suicide bombings, but only God knows whether or not those were inevitable anyway.
Israel is boned as long as it does not pull back the settlements. The Israeli people simply are not barbaric enough to evict/murder every single Palestinian in the West Bank, and they are not open enough to grant them Israeli citizenship. There is only one way out, and Sharon is going to have to pull a Nixon/China.
Robin Roberts
Israel pulling back the settlements would settle nothing. The Palestinians are not negotiating, but are waging war. In a war, Arafat is a legitimate target and his death would not be an ‘assassination’.
Andrew Lazarus
Actually, pulling back the settlements would benefit Israel on a number of fronts:
1. It would remove the EU’s principle objection to Israeli policy (or excuse, depending on how you look at it).
2. It reduces the OPPORTUNITIES for terrorists.
3. It greatly shortens Israel’s defensive military lines. Right now, the “fence” has to be a fractal curve to include as many settlers as possible.
4. Given that the settlements are just a nasty land grab anyway, it’s morally better.
5. Protection of the settlements is very expensive, and they also consume more than their fair share of non-military resources.
Would the retreat from the settlements solve the problem? No, but it sure wouldn’t hurt.