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Offline Miss Mia

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Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« on: January 17, 2009, 04:26:21 PM »

Palestinians inspect the rubble of the Taha mosque after it was struck by Israeli warplanes on Saturday.

Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
By CHIP CUMMINS IN DUBAI, JAY SOLOMON IN WASHINGTON and JOSHUA MITNICK IN TEL AVIV

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said late Saturday that Israel would halt its military offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, laying out a cease-fire plan that will go into effect at 2 a.m. Sunday morning local time.

Mr. Olmert said Israel had made no deal with Hamas, but was acting unilaterally after receiving assurances from Egypt, the U.S. and other Western powers that they would assist Israel in preventing arms smuggling into Gaza. Mr. Olmert said Israel forces will maintain their positions inside Gaza for the time being, and said Israel would resume military operations if Hamas continued to fire rockets into Israel.

Mr. Olmert said that if Hamas holds fire, Israel will consider a troop pull-out, but he gave no timetable. Hamas officials in recent days have said they didn't intend to honor any cease-fire without an immediate withdrawal of Israel troops from Gaza. Palestinian officials expressed disappointment that Israel didn't go far enough in committing to a pullback.

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

Mr. Olmert said that Israel made the cease-fire decision after achieving its military goals in the 22-day offensive against Hamas. Israeli officials have said they have significantly degraded Hamas' governing and military infrastructure, but Hamas has continued to send rockets into Israel throughout the three-week war.

"Hamas has been badly beaten," Mr. Olmert said.
-snip-
« Last Edit: January 17, 2009, 04:57:16 PM by Chris »
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Offline Chris_

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #1 on: January 17, 2009, 04:35:52 PM »
Because less than a total victory worked so well the last fifty ******* times.
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Offline Chris_

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #2 on: January 17, 2009, 04:38:31 PM »
This is the optimal result.  Israel made its point and this should be its official policy from here on out.

But Israel needs to hit HARD if even one rocket comes from Gaza.
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Offline Miss Mia

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #3 on: January 17, 2009, 04:39:14 PM »
Quote from: freedumb2003 on January 17, 2009, 04:38:31 PM
This is the optimal result.  Israel made its point and this should be its official policy from here on out.

But Israel needs to hit HARD if even one rocket comes from Gaza.


Agreed.
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Offline Miss Mia

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #4 on: January 17, 2009, 04:55:48 PM »
Quote
Israel Declares Cease Fire; Hamas Says It Will Fight On



JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel announced late Saturday night that the Israeli military would begin a unilateral cease-fire in Gaza within hours while negotiations continued on how to stop the resupply of Hamas through smuggling from Egypt.

Mr. Olmert, who said all Israeli objectives for the war had been reached, said Israel was responding positively to a call by President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt earlier in the day for an immediate cease-fire, in a clearly orchestrated move by two countries that both see the Hamas movement in Gaza as a threat. Meanwhile, Hamas leaders outside Gaza have insisted that the group will fight on, regardless of any Israeli declaration.

The announcement came on a day in which Israel was again criticized by the United Nations over civilian deaths in Gaza — this time after a tank fired at a United Nations school, killing two young brothers taking shelter there.

United Nations aid officials raised questions about whether the attack, and others like it, should be investigated as war crimes. The Israeli Army said that it was investigating the reports at the highest level but that initial inquiries indicated that troops were returning fire from near or within the school.

The Israeli cease-fire, which becomes effective at 2 a.m. Sunday, could mean an effective end to a three-week-old war that has killed at least 1,200 Palestinians, with more buried under rubble, and 13 Israelis. But even then, the shape of any lasting peace was far from clear.

-snip-
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Offline docstew

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #5 on: January 17, 2009, 05:09:26 PM »
this is a smart move by the Israelis... they can show that they're not seeking genocide against the arabs there, and when (not if) Mamas decides to poke the bear again, they can promptly go back to demolishing them and show that they are not the aggressors.  Not that it will matter, since we all know everyone will blame those damn jooos
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Offline Tess

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #6 on: January 17, 2009, 05:15:30 PM »
Quote from: freedumb2003 on January 17, 2009, 04:38:31 PM
This is the optimal result.  Israel made its point and this should be its official policy from here on out.

But Israel needs to hit HARD if even one rocket comes from Gaza.

Yep!  Absolutely.
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Offline Eupher

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #7 on: January 17, 2009, 05:44:33 PM »
I'm thinkin' that the whole exercise was done because of the lame duck Presidency of George Bush and was planned to end shortly before The Exalted One ascends the throne.

In a power vacuum such as has characterized the Bush administration over the past 6 months or so, other nations will assert themselves.

Off topic just a shade, but I'm kinda surprised that Putin/Medvedev haven't been even more aggressive than they had been, oh, say 4-5 months ago.

Curious to see what comes out of Russia in the next couple months or so.
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Offline DumbAss Tanker

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #8 on: January 17, 2009, 05:54:39 PM »
Sounds to me like they just exhausted their target list and now don't have any particular reason to stick around any longer.
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Offline ReardenSteel

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #9 on: January 17, 2009, 06:41:22 PM »
Quote from: DumbAss Tanker on January 17, 2009, 05:54:39 PM
Sounds to me like they just exhausted their target list and now don't have any particular reason to stick around any longer.

Yeah I think that's right. Having met all their military objectives, was there really any doubt they would leave? I'm thinkin' "nope".

Hope its a long peace this time. God knows what Obama might say or do when the next one starts.
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Offline rich_t

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #10 on: January 17, 2009, 10:57:11 PM »
Quote from: Eupher on January 17, 2009, 05:44:33 PM
I'm thinkin' that the whole exercise was done because of the lame duck Presidency of George Bush and was planned to end shortly before The Exalted One ascends the throne.

In a power vacuum such as has characterized the Bush administration over the past 6 months or so, other nations will assert themselves.

Off topic just a shade, but I'm kinda surprised that Putin/Medvedev haven't been even more aggressive than they had been, oh, say 4-5 months ago.

Curious to see what comes out of Russia in the next couple months or so.

You make a pretty good point there.  One that matches a few of my own thoughts on the current Israel/Hamas  issue.

The Big O, will be challanged pretty hard within his 1st year.  I suspect a major terrorist attack against the US or US interests.
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Offline Baruch Menachem

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #11 on: January 18, 2009, 12:29:51 AM »
I wonder if the goal here is to get the senior hamassholes to come out of hiding long enough for the Israelis to find them and squish them.
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Offline Atomic Lib Smasher

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #12 on: January 18, 2009, 12:38:44 AM »
Quote from: Baruch Menachem on January 18, 2009, 12:29:51 AM
I wonder if the goal here is to get the senior hamassholes to come out of hiding long enough for the Israelis to find them and squish them.


That'd be a good plan. Like Islamist Whack A Mole. lol
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Offline JohnnyReb

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #13 on: January 18, 2009, 01:36:51 AM »
Quote from: Miss Mia on January 17, 2009, 04:26:21 PM

Palestinians inspect the rubble of the Taha mosque after it was struck by Israeli warplanes on Saturday.



Now that's the way to destroy an ammo dump.......WHAT? You thought it was a church?
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Offline BlueStateSaint

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #14 on: January 18, 2009, 05:14:24 AM »
Remember this song . . . ?

[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAkfHShATKY[/youtube]

I guess the line, "Drop your bombs between the minarets" at 2:39 was taken literally, eh?

And, "the jet pilots wailed . . . "

Oh well.  Will the Hamastards learn?  No.  They're radicals.  You can't negotiate with radicals--all one can do is to kill them.
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Offline DumbAss Tanker

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #15 on: January 18, 2009, 12:17:40 PM »
Quote from: BlueStateSaint on January 18, 2009, 05:14:24 AM
Oh well.  Will the Hamastards learn?  No.  They're radicals.  You can't negotiate with radicals--all one can do is to kill them.

It's human nature, not unique to the Moslems, that the Gaza Palestinians will be far more angry at the Isrealis than they are at Hamas, and ultimately Hamas (if enough of the leadership survived, or some successor organization if not) will come back even stronger.  Success in the kind of war Israel can wage on them is purely tactical and does not work a long-term change in the strategic dynamic.
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Offline Chris_

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #16 on: January 18, 2009, 03:19:22 PM »
Quote from: DumbAss Tanker on January 18, 2009, 12:17:40 PM
It's human nature, not unique to the Moslems, that the Gaza Palestinians will be far more angry at the Isrealis than they are at Hamas, and ultimately Hamas (if enough of the leadership survived, or some successor organization if not) will come back even stronger.  Success in the kind of war Israel can wage on them is purely tactical and does not work a long-term change in the strategic dynamic.

The only permanent solution is expulsion, or annihilation........

doc
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Offline DumbAss Tanker

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #17 on: January 18, 2009, 06:18:42 PM »
Quote from: TVDOC on January 18, 2009, 03:19:22 PM
The only permanent solution is expulsion, or annihilation........

doc

It is what it is, I was not making a value judgment either way...rhough I do regard the Israelis as our allies, I do not take stock in a religious basis for backing them.
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Offline rich_t

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Re: Israel to Halt Offensive in Gaza Strip
« Reply #18 on: January 18, 2009, 11:42:46 PM »
Quote from: DumbAss Tanker on January 18, 2009, 06:18:42 PM
It is what it is, I was not making a value judgment either way...rhough I do regard the Israelis as our allies, I do not take stock in a religious basis for backing them.

IMO it has less to do with religion than it does their right to live as simple human beings.
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