If you've been wondering why you can't seem to figure out where to come down on the battle raging between Israel and Hamas, you aren't alone. Further there's a simple reason you can't figure it out. It's like that old tune . . . "there ain't no good guy, there ain't no bad guy". Each side is to blame in roughly equal measure, and each is the victim as well.
In a brief but compelling piece (Playing into the hands of Hamas) this week in "Haaretz" (Israel's Oldest Daily Newspaper) Bernard Avishai and Sam Bahourmake make the case that, at the risk of seeming to make light of a terrible tragedy, a tie goes to Hamas and Israel is playing into Hamas' hands with their brutal incursion into Gaza.
This piece is must reading for anyone confused by the situation because it is the perspective of two people very close to the issue and representing both sides.
Until we take action to strengthen the hand of moderate forces in the middle east, the radicals in both Israel and Gaza will drive policy by inciting their respective sides and creating deeper and deeper animosities.
Resources:
Bernard Avishai's Blog
Sam Bahour's blog
"Mr. Lincoln's Legacy"
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