THE WORLD FROM BERLIN
'Hamas' Strength Is Not Broken'
Israel says its offensive in Gaza could be "in the final act," as it sends top envoys to Cairo and Washington. But German newspapers on Friday look at the prospect for a cease-fire wonder if Hamas won't come out of the violence with a stronger image on the Arab street.
With top envoys dispatched to Cairo and Washington to discuss terms for a cease-fire with Hamas, Israel says its offensive in Gaza is in the "final act." Three weeks of fighting which have left more than 1,100 Palestinians dead could come to an end as the two sides indirectly negotiate a truce via Egypt. Israel launched the attacks on December 27 with the stated aim of halting rocket fire by militants into southern Israel.
Low-level fighting continued on Friday but with less intensity than on Thursday, when Israel seemed to make a last push into the Gaza Strip before a deal was brokered. The relative lull came a day after Israel killed Hamas Interior Minister Said Siam in an air strike and shelled a United Nations compound.
On Friday Israel's chief negotiator, Amos Gilad, flew to Cairo to seek clarifications and express Israeli views on the latest Egyptian proposal for a cease-fire. Sources told Reuters that Israel had rejected some of Hamas' conditions, including its timeframe of 12 months. "A time limit on any period of quiet is a mistake," a senior Israeli source said.
Israel wants Hamas to accept that Western-backed President Mahmoud Abbas' Palestinian Authority be involved in controlling border crossings into Gaza. Hamas, which won parliamentary elections in 2006, ejected Abbas' Fatah party from Gaza after fierce fighting in June 2007.
Meanwhile Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, who is hoping to win the parliamentary elections on Feb. 10, has traveled to Washington to hold talks with US President George W. Bush on Friday.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's spokesman Mark Regev said the briefings by envoys in Washington and Cairo could be followed by swift decisions by the Israeli Security Cabinet as soon as Friday or Saturday.
"Hopefully we're in the final act," he told reporters.
German newspapers on Friday argue that the international pressure is mounting on Israel in the face of rising civilian casualties in Gaza. Most conclude that Hamas can claim a kind of victory just by holding out in the face of overwhelming Israeli firepower.
The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes:
"It doesn't take a prophet to predict that Israel's attack on Gaza is in its final stages. There are reasons for this: Hamas is decisively weakened, which has reinstated the deterrent effect of the Israeli military in the Middle East. In a few days a new American president will take office; Israel will hardly want to do him the injustice of making him cut through the oldest and thorniest knot in the Middle East conflict. The public pressure on Israel is getting stronger because the destruction in the Gaza Strip is growing, including so-called collateral damage. (German) Foreign Minister Steinmeier, on his second trip to the Middle East in a few days, warned that Israel was losing international support. He didn't need to go to the conflict zone to make this assertion, he could have voiced it to Ms. Livni over the telephone -- never mind that the Israelis know it already. Otherwise the journey was unnecessary. It won't bring results, only images for the (German) election campaign."
The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes:
"The Islamists are continuing to fight. They think they can defy the overwhelming power of the Israeli army for a while longer -- even if this is borne by (Gaza's) civilian population. Hamas is waiting for a halfway acceptable offer to end the war."
"The Israelis don't want to give up the economic blockade of Gaza. They want the border with Egypt used by weapons smugglers to be overseen by international monitors. And any reconstruction funds for the destroyed Gaza Strip should be distributed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. ... Apparently new elections in Gaza are also being considered. Hamas won a clear election victory over Abbas' Fatah party in 2006. On the other hand, Abbas' mandate as president ran out five days ago."
"In short: Part of the cease-fire agreement is obviously intended to deprive Hamas of power. Is the intention to bring Mahmoud Abbas and Fatah back into Gaza? Israel's Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni has often said that the war cannot result in a 'return to the status quo.' However, this kind of cease-fire model is hardly going to push Hamas toward a speedy capitulation."
The left-leaning daily Die Tageszeitung writes:
"Hamas' strength is still not broken. If it survives -- and there is every indication that it will -- then it will celebrate its strategy of digging in as a heroic victory over Israel. And on 'Arab street' it will enjoy a revival. It has held out for three weeks against the overwhelming Israeli firepower … The political compromises that they will have to make for a cease-fire will only damage them marginally if the reward for an effective border control and the halt to rocket fire into Israel is the opening of Gaza's borders."
"Fatah and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have been wrong-footed. Both have been marginalized in this conflict. Abbas was too quick to blame Hamas for the outbreak of the war and so was suspected of collaboration with Israel. Even if this is ridiculous, the accusations of deserting their own people could cost Abbas and Fatah dearly."
-- Siobhán Dowling, 12:20 p.m. CET
'Hamas' Strength Is Not Broken'
Israel says its offensive in Gaza could be "in the final act," as it sends top envoys to Cairo and Washington. But German newspapers on Friday look at the prospect for a cease-fire wonder if Hamas won't come out of the violence with a stronger image on the Arab street.
With top envoys dispatched to Cairo and Washington to discuss terms for a cease-fire with Hamas, Israel says its offensive in Gaza is in the "final act." Three weeks of fighting which have left more than 1,100 Palestinians dead could come to an end as the two sides indirectly negotiate a truce via Egypt. Israel launched the attacks on December 27 with the stated aim of halting rocket fire by militants into southern Israel.
Low-level fighting continued on Friday but with less intensity than on Thursday, when Israel seemed to make a last push into the Gaza Strip before a deal was brokered. The relative lull came a day after Israel killed Hamas Interior Minister Said Siam in an air strike and shelled a United Nations compound.
On Friday Israel's chief negotiator, Amos Gilad, flew to Cairo to seek clarifications and express Israeli views on the latest Egyptian proposal for a cease-fire. Sources told Reuters that Israel had rejected some of Hamas' conditions, including its timeframe of 12 months. "A time limit on any period of quiet is a mistake," a senior Israeli source said.
Israel wants Hamas to accept that Western-backed President Mahmoud Abbas' Palestinian Authority be involved in controlling border crossings into Gaza. Hamas, which won parliamentary elections in 2006, ejected Abbas' Fatah party from Gaza after fierce fighting in June 2007.
Meanwhile Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, who is hoping to win the parliamentary elections on Feb. 10, has traveled to Washington to hold talks with US President George W. Bush on Friday.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's spokesman Mark Regev said the briefings by envoys in Washington and Cairo could be followed by swift decisions by the Israeli Security Cabinet as soon as Friday or Saturday.
"Hopefully we're in the final act," he told reporters.
German newspapers on Friday argue that the international pressure is mounting on Israel in the face of rising civilian casualties in Gaza. Most conclude that Hamas can claim a kind of victory just by holding out in the face of overwhelming Israeli firepower.
The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes:
"It doesn't take a prophet to predict that Israel's attack on Gaza is in its final stages. There are reasons for this: Hamas is decisively weakened, which has reinstated the deterrent effect of the Israeli military in the Middle East. In a few days a new American president will take office; Israel will hardly want to do him the injustice of making him cut through the oldest and thorniest knot in the Middle East conflict. The public pressure on Israel is getting stronger because the destruction in the Gaza Strip is growing, including so-called collateral damage. (German) Foreign Minister Steinmeier, on his second trip to the Middle East in a few days, warned that Israel was losing international support. He didn't need to go to the conflict zone to make this assertion, he could have voiced it to Ms. Livni over the telephone -- never mind that the Israelis know it already. Otherwise the journey was unnecessary. It won't bring results, only images for the (German) election campaign."
The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes:
"The Islamists are continuing to fight. They think they can defy the overwhelming power of the Israeli army for a while longer -- even if this is borne by (Gaza's) civilian population. Hamas is waiting for a halfway acceptable offer to end the war."
"The Israelis don't want to give up the economic blockade of Gaza. They want the border with Egypt used by weapons smugglers to be overseen by international monitors. And any reconstruction funds for the destroyed Gaza Strip should be distributed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. ... Apparently new elections in Gaza are also being considered. Hamas won a clear election victory over Abbas' Fatah party in 2006. On the other hand, Abbas' mandate as president ran out five days ago."
"In short: Part of the cease-fire agreement is obviously intended to deprive Hamas of power. Is the intention to bring Mahmoud Abbas and Fatah back into Gaza? Israel's Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni has often said that the war cannot result in a 'return to the status quo.' However, this kind of cease-fire model is hardly going to push Hamas toward a speedy capitulation."
The left-leaning daily Die Tageszeitung writes:
"Hamas' strength is still not broken. If it survives -- and there is every indication that it will -- then it will celebrate its strategy of digging in as a heroic victory over Israel. And on 'Arab street' it will enjoy a revival. It has held out for three weeks against the overwhelming Israeli firepower … The political compromises that they will have to make for a cease-fire will only damage them marginally if the reward for an effective border control and the halt to rocket fire into Israel is the opening of Gaza's borders."
"Fatah and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have been wrong-footed. Both have been marginalized in this conflict. Abbas was too quick to blame Hamas for the outbreak of the war and so was suspected of collaboration with Israel. Even if this is ridiculous, the accusations of deserting their own people could cost Abbas and Fatah dearly."
-- Siobhán Dowling, 12:20 p.m. CET
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