The cease-fire is holding thus far between Israel and Gaza, but for how long can it last? Certainly not much if things remain the way they are. Thankfully, with Bush gone and Obama as President, the United States will do things differently, at least that is the new plan. For eight years, we have made empty promises of helping the region find peace, yet doing nothing for it. While Gaza remains closed off to the world, it will forever breed the endless cycle of violence between the people there and the Israelis outside. If Barack Obama has his way, we just might be able to break the cycle.
From The Financial Times:
“The outline for a durable ceasefire is clear: Hamas must end its rocket fire: Israel will complete the withdrawal of its forces from Gaza: the US and our partners will support a credible anti-smuggling and interdiction regime, so that Hamas cannot re-arm,” the US president said.
“As part of a lasting ceasefire, Gaza’s border crossings should be open to allow the flow of aid and commerce, with an appropriate monitoring regime, with the international and Palestinian Authority participating.”
It may not be a panacea to the problems over there, but it is certainly a start. Simply giving arms and aid is not enough. You can not simply throw money and the might of the military-industrial complex and think that high-tech bloodshed will solve anything. Decades have passed and by the looks of the latest mini-war, we obviously had not learned the lesson shown to us over and over again. Both sides must now try something different. Perhaps it can be Obama's plan that will be a new beginning.
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