Hamas Chief killed in air strike...

[fab]

My God... so they finally did it.

Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, spiritual head of Palestinian militant group Hamas, has been killed in an Israeli air strike.

bbc news

[rassel]

watch and see!

[Piranha]

Sad indeed. Yes, there will sure be hell to pay for this.

Financial markets are already down everywhere...bad times coming up.

[Navarene]

According to the BBC, military sources in Israel had stated that the attack on Sheikh Yasin was personally organised and directed by Sharon himself!

Sharon took the decision to strike at the heart of Hamas. Only a fool could believe that this is going to solve anything. Yasin will now become a martyr of Hamas. Instead of reducing the suicide bombings, this act will serve as a tremendous tool in the hands of Hamas recruiting sergeants. More young people will be prepared to carry out attacks now. This is confirmed by what Abdul Aziz al Rantisi(spelling), a senior Hamas leader, said, "the battle is open and war between us and them is open. Today they killed an Islamic symbol."

The rulers of the US refused to condemn the terrorist act of the criminal gang ruling Israel. They just called for "restraint" on both sides! For Bush and co, state terror is legitimate. Sharon is just copying the methods of Bush on the international arena. He sees his moves against Hamas and other Palestinian organizations as part of the general "war on terror". We have seen how successful Bush' war on terror has been in Spain! Instead of curbing the terrorist threat we saw the terrible killing that took place in Madrid, where ordinary working Spaniards had to pay the price for the imperialist adventures of its government.

This is a crazy world, where we all are prisoners of this evil imperialist forces.

[Edited on 22-3-2004 by Navarene]

[Tehsin]

(Without going into the whole US-Israel-palestine conflict)

Sheikh Ahmed Yassin was an Islamic symbol ???? You gotta be kidding me. No baby killing fundamentalist, who uses islam to hide his cowardice deserves to be a representative (let alone a symbol) of Islam.

[fab]

Agreed! But perhaps to Palestinians he is an Islamic symbol as well... To me and most other muslims I know, he is more of a symbol of Palestine's struggle against oppression.

[Navarene]

Tehsin, whether or not Yassin an "islamic symbol", let alone the palestinian decide it. Whichever way you look at it, government assassinations/state terrorism cannot be justified and must not be tolerated by any civil society.

The nation of Israel will be remembered by history as a thuggish, murderous state who chose to oppress, wall out, and systematically kill Palestinians instead of honestly and ardently pursuing peace. The whole world is aware of it. The blatant acts of Israeli state terrorism must not go unpunished.

[oracle]

Hamas is a dubious organisation. Ever since the PLO lost its "authority": i.e moral and political clout to Hamas, the palestinian cause was going down the drain.

[acker]

Ariel Sharon may wish to remember that in pre 1930s Europe his people thought the Germans were their friends. Could history repeat itself with their freindship with the Americans. I live in Australia and Israel and its supposed religous right to occupy land argument is wearing very thin here.
All Israel appears to have achieved is the creation of a carbon copy of the Nazi state that brang about its creation.
Maybe his real name is Adolf Sharon.

[Carte Blanche]

According to CBC news, the harshest word Bush administration came with on this issue was "troubling". That too off the camera.

[fab]

The guy (Yassin) was no saint but certainly he will now be considered as a romantic figure, much like our 'Pride of Bengal', Shubash Bose..

Anyhow, the butcher's ability to take 1 step forward and 50 steps back a week later never ceases to amaze me. Does he, or does he not want peace?

oracle - The PLO's brief moment of peace eventually proved ineffective and if anything it showed that a peaceful Ghandian process will NOT work with Zionists. What other options do these people have?

[Edited on 23-3-2004 by fab]

[Nasif]

Originally posted by fab
Anyhow, the butcher's ability to take 1 step forward and 50 steps back a week later never ceases to amaze me. Does he, or does he not want peace?

This is not about peace. It is systematic ethnic cleansing that the world has ever witnessed. In such a scale and with such propaganda that common mass (westerna that is) is clueless.

[fab]

But the 'terror' tactics employed by the various militant factions is playing right into the hands of the Western media..

And then the fat assed Arabs aren't doing much to help either.

Whatever the outcome, the Palestinians are screwed

[Edited on 23-3-2004 by fab]

[Nasif]

They are screwed due to failed leadership. Its just sad.

Interesting article :
http://www.usbible.com/War/StolePalestine.htm

[Mridul]

We r holding a Janazah prayer for Sheikh Ahmed Yassin in our University campus today at 1:50 pm. I was told to lead the prayer but most probably I'll let somebody else to do it.

[Ockey]

I don't believe this! Yassine, the leader of the one of the most brutal terrorist organization is being treated as a martyr in the Muslim world. Let's recount the situation.

Ahmed Yassine supported the campaign of terror against civilians IN THE NAME OF ISLAM. Hamas has declared Jihad against Israel and for the last four years we have seen the consequences. Let us not kid ourselves- the Palestinians are further away from any peaceful resolution than ever before because of the violence that is being supported by the various groups within "Palestine".

In the Muslim world there is growing support of this so-called "Jihad" and hence the means to achieving it via suicide bombings. In recent history the consensus among the hard-line Muslims seems to that the only way the Palestinians will be free is by the total annihilation of the Israeli state.

Muslims have believed that there is really one side to this story: Israel never made any steps to recognize a state for the Palestinians. This was true for decades till the 90's. Now let us look at why peace has failed in the Middle East.

In 1993, a comprehensive peace plan brokered by the then US administration of Bill Clinton was agreed upon by the Palestinians and the Israels. Things were headed in the right way when Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by a radical Israeli in 1995. Right before the elections to choose a new leader were underway, Arafat and Hamas stepped up their campaign of bombings there by shifting power to the hard-line Likud party of Benjamin Netanyahu. In the elections Netanyahu became the victor over Shimon Peres, who was the odds on favorite to succeed Rabin. Every since then I believe the Likud party has been able to maintain power because of the relentless campaign of violence by Hamas.

Also, let us not forget the peace plan offered by Ehud Barak at the end of the tenure to Yassir Arafat, where the Israeli government was ready to concession that no previous government had. Arafat rejected it, giving in to pressures from the militant groups. Having seen the consequences of the past, I ask myself, why should any Isareli government want to offer a peace plan knowing very well that, if it was agreed upon by the two sides, there is no one in the Palestinian side to implement it.

And then there are the Arabs who stood on the sidelines for years and years sucking their thumbs or taking unilateral military action caused more harm than good. Who can forget the provocations by Egypt and Syria that led to war in 67 and 73, and embarrassing defeats on both accounts. After each war the Palestinians suffered the most, being displaced into refugee camps and losing more and more land. One only has to examine why Syria lost the Golan Heights to realize they don’t deserve any sympathy.

They added fuel to the fire by getting together and then decided never let any Palestinian become a citizen of their respective countries. Their rationale was if the refugees were to become citizens then everyone from Palestine will flee and Palestine will never become independent. Only God knows how the Palestinians have suffered languishing in refugee camps in the Middle East or being treated like third class citizens by their "brothers". Here is an article from the Human Rights Watch. http://www.hrw.org/campaigns/israel/return/arab-rtr.htm

What I find ironic is that more Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza rely on work from Israel than any other surrounding Arab nation. Is one to assume that with all their wealth and wisdom the Arab nations cannot help the Palestinians economically and socially? The truth of the matter is many of the Middle Eastern nations benefit from the Palestinian situation. As long as they can divert the focus of their respective citizens on the conflict, Israel and the US, they will attract less attention on themselves.

When foreign governments and the media sidelined Yasser Arafat for being deceitful and corrupt, some Palestinian had turned to Yassine was their new leader. Let's not confuse the issue of Palestinian independence through a peaceful resolution with Yassine's agenda of waging Jihad against the Jews to bring glory back to the Muslims.

[Edited on 28-3-2004 by Ockey]

[fab]

Yassin will be remembered as a terrorist by the West, but many Palestinians will remember him for the humanitarian work he (and Hamas) was involved in.

Things were headed in the right way when Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by a radical Israeli in 1995.

I'm surprised you didn't mention WHO assassinated Rabin which caused the deadlock...

Also, let us not forget the peace plan offered by Ehud Barak at the end of the tenure to Yassir Arafat, where the Israeli government was ready to concession that no previous government had.

I remember reading about these so called 'concessions', they were pathetic. Here is more information about them:
Link 1
And here's more information about the man himself:
link 2

What I find ironic is that more Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza rely on work from Israel than any other surrounding Arab nation.

I am not a person to defend oil rich Arabs, but there are more Palestinians living outside Palestine, who by that token rely on work from countries other than Israel.
link 3

Anyhow Ockey, I am really surprised you gave such a one sided view of the situation..

[sage]

Palastinian people are very hot headed. They make wrong decision so often. I remember one palestanian student were cursing his teacher for giving him a D in front of the teacher and other students.

Palastinian have suffered a lot. They have no way out too. Very Sad!!

[Shubho]

Sheikh Yassin dead...good riddance.
Now can we shoot Ariel Sharon too, please?