Hamas VS Israel, Classic Abuse Dynamics

THE Gaza Strip has been turned into a "concentration camp" by two weeks of Israeli bombardments, said a senior Vatican official.

Cardinal Renato Martino, the Vatican's justice and peace minister, was quoted by the online Italian daily Il Sussidiario.

"Let's look at the conditions in Gaza: these increasingly resemble a big concentration camp," said Cardinal Martino.

Cardinal Martino said it was in neither parties interest to carry on fighting and urged both to show more willingness to hold peace talks. (Except that both parties do think it's in their best interests to carry on the fighting.)

"If they can't come to an agreement, then someone else should do it (for them). The world cannot sit back and watch without doing anything.

"We Christians are not the only ones to call this land 'holy', Jews and Muslims do so too. The fact that this land is the scene of bloodshed seems a great tragedy," he added.

Israel's offensive on Gaza has killed almost 700 Palestinians, including 220 children, and injured 3000 since December 27, according to Gaza medics.

Aid agencies have declared a total humanitarian crisis in Gaza, owing to the ailing stocks of basic food, water and medical supplies. (Made worse by the fact niether the Red Cross nor the UN will deliver any more supplies until the Israeli's stop accidently shelling their vehicles.)

In response Israel said the comments were "based on Hamas propaganda".

"Making remarks that seem to be based on Hamas propaganda while ignoring its numerous crimes ... does not bring the people closer to truth and peace," foreign ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor. (One man's inhumane ghetto is another man's propaganda. Where have we heard this before?)

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Cardinal Martini isn't quite right. Gaza is Israel's very own Warsaw ghetto more so than a concentration camp.

A friend of mine said he thought the relationship between Israel and Palestine was like that between an abusive husband towards his wife. First there is the build up of tension, then the explosion, then a phoney honeymoon, and then the cycle starts again. I think he has a point.

This is a cycle that has been going on way too long. It's time the West quit confusing the State of Israel with historic Jewish persecution. The behavior of the State of Israel does not reflect in any way, shape, or form that Jewish history. Or does it? I think it does. It reflects the exact opposite of that abuse dynamic. Israel has become that which it hated, and is now acting the part of the victim turned predator. Hence it made the Gaza ghetto.

I don't know if the current political players in either Israel or Hamas could psychologically survive without each other conveniently acting in ways that raise the tension, tip the scales to explosion, and then engage in a phoney honeymoon phase. The danger of this is that the explosions generally become more violent and happen with more frequency. The vast majority of Palestinian and to a lesser extent Israeli civillians, are like the children caught up in domestic violence, they can't leave, there is no where to go, and so they must endure with in the abusive relationship.

Cardinal Martini is correct when he says: "If they can't come to an agreement than someone else should do it for them. The world cannot sit back and watch without doing anything."

Someone intervening is generally how domestic violence dynamics are finally broken. That someone is generally not vested in either side of the domestic pair. That someone should be a united UN, and maybe that's finally happening as the US gave up it's opposition to the UN's general resolution even though it abstained in the voting. But resolutions and hand wringing are not terribly effective in stopping abusive relationships.

The UN has to act and not only end this cycle, but find a way to prevent another; and that will take a US government that can make the distinction between the actions of Israel the Nation State, and the Jewish people.

In the meantime, Israel is becoming the darling of the neo nazis. How ironic.