1. #IsraelUnderAttack has taken Israel by surprise - but shouldn't have done. 80% of Palestinians consider PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas corrupt; Fatah split into three parties to run in the election touted for late May. Things were not looking good for Abbas...
2. In the last elections in 2006, Hamas won a majority of seats both in Gaza and the West Bank, and everyone knew Abbas was about to again lose these elections. And so Abbas just smothered PA democracy and canceled the election...
3. By trampling democracy Abbas' had lost all legitimacy among his own people and popularity was at an all-time low. He needed a conflict to divert anger from him and direct it towards Israel. So he artificially organized the crisis over Jerusalem...
4. Abbas' spokesman told Palestinians, "The battle of all battles is here ... the long struggle against a satanic colonialist power." Fatah's Revolutionary Council called on "all Fatah branches everywhere to act to support our people in occupied Jerusalem who are fighting"...
5. Abbas used the already frequently used euphemism of "peaceful popular resistance" in his TV speeches, which he uses to refer to terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians. The Palestinian public understood it and started attacking Israelis in Jerusalem. ...
6. The Palestinians were attacking Jews for days before the current serious escalation. Al-Aqsa mosque is above the Western Wall. From there they can throw rocks and attack the worshipers at the Wall. Large rocks hitting worshipers from 30 meters high can be fatal.
7. Hamas could not sit quietly and watch Abbas become popular from the conflict. Hamas and Fatah fight for more popularity by unleashing terror against Israel.
Already last week Hamas launched a few rockets into Israel, and ignited fires with incendiary balloons. ...
Already last week Hamas launched a few rockets into Israel, and ignited fires with incendiary balloons. ...
8. When Hamas launched hundreds of rockets again two days ago, it announced for the first time that it was attacking Israel to defend Jerusalem. Never before has Hamas claimed its attacks were defending Jerusalem, but both Hamas and Fatah are claiming to be the city's defenders.
9. Every time Fatah or Hamas launch a terror wave, they pretend they are responding to Israeli aggression and are themselves the defenders. "They are stealing our land and killing us. Help us!" The international community readily adopts this narrative that Israel is to blame. ...
10. And yet the international community, especially the int'l media, blame Israel. The only time the media is sympathetic to Israel is when Israelis are murdered. But, as you see by Israel’s behavior now, we would rather save our people’s lives and forego the media sympathy.
11. You can read a longer form version of this analysis in German at exxpress.at/hamas-und-fata…
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