The Daily Clarity

Gaza Strip violence – truce breaking or news breaking?

  It is always a little tempting to apply”conspiracy theories” to the actions of Israel. They are effective manipulators of the press. They carefully release images of any violence in a way to inspire outrage and to play to the sympathies of the pro-Israeli crowd. Israel uses the press much like the RSPCA, showing images of doe eyed dogs, scared and alone, to inspire watchers to reach for their credit card. However, the recent breakdown of the tenuous Gaza Strip truce does feel a little too conveniently timed around the Israeli elections. Most of the regional press carries headlines of a massive rocket attack from the Gaza onto Israeli soil. That is the headline – buried in the copy is the fact that the missile attacks are a reprisal to an attack on the Palestinians. Regardless of what you think of the Israeli-Palestine conflict, equity in reporting an issue is a paramount journalistic code…or should be. Israel goes in to clear the tunnel using ground troops and drone aircraft. There are multiple Palestinian fatalities. That was the start of the violence. The missiles fired from Gaza into Israel were a reprisal.

The sequence of events need to be understood. Israel “suddenly” discovers a tunnel from Gaza into Israel. These tunnels do not appear overnight. They are dug silently and secretly for a long period of time. One can assume on such a closely guarded border that the Israelis had known of the tunnel for a while. Israel declared the tunnel was built for the purpose of “kidnapping Israeli soldiers”. Palestinians say it was built to bring in food needed there and to break the blockade on the Gaza. There is probably some truth in both versions but that the Palestinians would expend such effort and risk to be able to kidnap a soldiers lacks a little credibility.

In the same period, Israel grants building permission to a temple in a contested area of Jerusalem. Part of the temple will be built over an Arab graveyard. It will also mean the demolition of some Arab houses and its construction will close off traditional paths Arabs use to move around Jerusalem. In the week before peace discussions in Egypt this appears a poorly timed act by the Israelis if there intent is to press for peace. Also, Israel is training Golan Heights residents on methods to deal with the press. This is so that any Golan Heights resident is able to answer any press questions with a one or two sentence response that is suitable for on-air broadcast. That is a very odd skill to want to give to your populace.

So why could this be a conspiracy or even more specifically a Likud conspiracy as some allege. It all has to do with the upcoming Israeli elections many believe. Israel’s elections often seem to be marked by an increase in violence. It is almost as if this escalationin the terror level galvanizes the party  base, much like Sarah Palin motivated the Republican base in the US elections. The violence increases the fervor of the Israeli right wing for increased security. It potentially acts as a way to silence the voices of the more moderate Israelis as criticism is equated to a lack of patriotism. This is a play straight from the Rove-Bush book of politics. A manipulation of the potential for danger and terror if the other party is elected. One cannot be certain that the Israeli right wing has both created and is using the increased violence as a political tool for the election. It could be purely coincidental.  Conspiracy theories are always attractive but in this case the timing does appear more than purely accidental.