I have frequently commented on the wisdom of Ariel Sharon's last foreign policy: give up trying to make peace with the Palestinians, for the latter are incapable of generating the kind of leadership who could or ever would make a deal. Instead, withdraw from the territories and isolate them in so far as possible. Here is the latest obstacle on the road map to peace, from Time:
Hamas and Fatah may have passed the point of no return: The unprecedented viciousness of the renewed fighting between the rival Palestinian factions in Gaza makes any new cease-fire difficult to envisage; this time, it may be a fight to the death.
Since the new clashes erupted on Sunday, gangs have tossed their enemies alive off 15-story buildings, shot down one another's children, and burst into hospitals to finish off wounded foes lying helplessly in bed. The revenge motive alone could now be enough to sustain the civil war.
Gaza right now makes the world of the Road Warrior look like a retirement community. The only thing wrong with Sharon's policy was that building a wall around Gaza wasn't enough. He should have installed bleachers.
Hamas is going to win. In this environment, the prize goes to the most single-minded and ruthless. For all those who think that politics is boring, this is what it looks like when it's really exciting.
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