Tanzim intended to stop terrorism

[Seth Ackerman]

Doug Henwood wrote:

> 1) Was the Gaza attack intended to derail the cease-fire plans?

Check out the quotes from the officials brokering the cease-fire....

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Israeli raid wrecked Palestinian pledge to end civilian attacks:
report

Agence France Presse
July 24, 2002

LONDON--Israel's deadly air strike in Gaza scuppered a Palestinian
pledge to end suicide bombings against Israeli civilians, according
to Western diplomats cited by The Times newspaper on Wednesday.

The Palestinian statement was being put together with the help of a
high-level European diplomat and an American who has worked with the
Palestinian leadership for two decades, the paper said. Backed by
senior officials in Palestinian leader Yasser Arafats Fatah
movement, it contained a commitment to do everything in the militias
power to stop attacks on civilians, including settlers in the West
Bank and Gaza.

International mediators involved in drafting the document, a copy of
which the paper claimed it had seen, confirmed that two hours before
the strike late Monday a very senior Fatah leader met militant Hamas
leaders in Gaza to secure their support.

Diplomats said they suspected the raid was timed to wreck what might
have been a breakthrough for peace.

"Those directly involved in drafting the statement believe that this
(attack) was a purposeful initiative on the part of the Israeli
leadership to undermine what the Palestinians believed was the
chance to stop the suicide bombs," said one of the international
officials involved.

Israel's bombing raid in Gaza killed the military chief of the
Palestinian radical Islamic group Hamas, his bodyguard and 13
civilians, including several children.

"This was a very ham-fisted operation on the part of the Israelis,"
the official said.

"They were apparently desperate to short-circuit whatever they
wanted to short-circuit and obviously in the short term the chance
of any such declaration is now gone."

The unsigned declaration promised a partial end to violence, leaving
open the prospect of attacks on Israeli soldiers in the occupied
territories, the paper said.