History, Politics and Opinion: 2007

Somalia has recently been through the worst period of violence in 2 decades. Gaza is currently in a period of murderous chaos. What do these have in common? Short sighted American involvement.

As I'd said in an earlier post, the United States had intervened in the situation in Somalia under the guise of the so called "War on Terror".

It gives me no pleasure to say that my prediction that it would not go well has come to fruition. After the US backed Ethiopian forces cleared out the Union of Islamic Courts Movement, street fighting promptly returned to the streets of Mogadishu - some of the worst violence that this war ravaged country has seen for two decades no less! The pirates (yes PIRATES) operating in the waters of the horn of Africa, having been routed by the Courts Union are now well and truly back in business. The hard won relative stability the Courts Union had achieved after driving out the murderous clan militias has been pissed into the wind. For what? To kill and capture a few radicals and terrorists? Is US foreign policy being managed by some angry teenager? Does anyone in Dubya's government know what they're doing. For balance I should really mention that Bill Clinton wasn't any better at handling the Somalia question and his decision to pull out and leave them to their fate probably led us to where we are today.

In Gaza the situation is even more serious and the potential fallout is much more far reaching. Whatever one's view on Hamas is the truth is that they hold a legitimately and democratically elected parliamentary majority in the Palestinian territories. It is the right of any country to refuse to deal with any foreign government it chooses not to regardless of legitimacy. Acting within one's rights does not however mean that one is doing the right thing.

Hamas have been portrayed in the media as dangerous loose cannons who decided off their own back to take up arms and fight the armed wing of Fatah, Yasser Arafat’s former party. The British Foreign Secretary called it a “coup d’etat”. I have experienced a couple of coups first hand but never heard of an elected government having to take power in a coup!! The truth is that Fatah had never come to terms with Hamas’ election victory. Yasser Arafat had the leadership of the Palestinian people completely locked down. His Fatah party and all the associated hangers on thought they would also be in power indefinitely. They have refused to relinquish power after losing an election. I have heard it likened to the conservatives winning the general election but Labour insisting that they retain control of the police and MI5. The Fatah party members and associated gunmen bear primary responsibility for the bloodshed and chaos in the Gaza strip.

It is true that Fatah acted with the backing of Israel and the US who egged them on believing that they could defeat Hamas militarily. This strategy has backfired spectacularly and now Hamas are more popular than they ever were! Fatah on the other hand need to tread carefully. They had already been routed electorally because Palestinians had rightly tagged them as fiscally and morally corrupt. They may be providing another nail for their own coffin by associating with Israel and the US. It is a naked ploy for self preservation rather than a move to further the cause of the Palestinian people. They have long since fulfilled the conditions being demanded of Hamas, namely that they renounce violence and recognise Israel. What do they have to show for it?

The current situation in Gaza proves to anyone who may still doubt that policy making based on ideology and dogma alone will almost always produce bad policy. While religion and faith can provide moral grounding pragmatism and practicality must be the governing tenets be policy making.