This is a human tragedy of epic proportions [Flood of sewage in Gaza Strip village kills at least five people]
It’s about more than the five Palestinian dead, the ten (or even more) Palestinians missing feared dead, the twenty-five Palestinians injured or the hundreds of Palestinians who have lost their homes and are now even more than ever susceptible to disease and hunger.
It's about the entire Palestinian tragedy. It's about a people whose leadership doesn't really represent their true aspirations and one that is sorely lacking in the ability to face reality and to seek peace with its neighbour.
The devastated Gaza Strip village of Umm Nasser is just one of the sites from which barrages of quassam missiles has been launched in recent years across the border and directly at neighbouring Israeli towns. From time to time, the Israelis fired back so it was said that that it wasn't safe to take the necessary steps to reinforce weak walls and sewerage tanks.
We all know that's only half the story; that things would be different if the quassams stopped and the PA, now controlled by a "unity" government actually kept to its well documented commitments to the international community and to its own people - commitments that if honoured would go a long way to help in bringing peace to the region.
"The Israel Defense Forces offered humanitarian assistance to help clean up the spill. There was no word on whether the offer had been accepted."
The time is right for the leaders of the Palestinian people to accept this offer of help; who knows where this might lead them?
It might even get them and the entire region out of the shit!
[Postscript 29 March 2007 - There are three daily newspapers available in Melbourne and two of them picked up the story today. The third is the Melbourne Age and true to form it covered the Saudi "peace" ultimatum and also had a small piece about the removal of settlers from an abandoned West Bank settlement. Apparently, the Age just couldn't bring itself to publish a story about the incompetence (bordering on corruption) of the PA or of Israel's neighbourly offer of assistance in a time of tragedy proving that even blank pages can produce an awful smell.]
It’s about more than the five Palestinian dead, the ten (or even more) Palestinians missing feared dead, the twenty-five Palestinians injured or the hundreds of Palestinians who have lost their homes and are now even more than ever susceptible to disease and hunger.
It's about the entire Palestinian tragedy. It's about a people whose leadership doesn't really represent their true aspirations and one that is sorely lacking in the ability to face reality and to seek peace with its neighbour.
The devastated Gaza Strip village of Umm Nasser is just one of the sites from which barrages of quassam missiles has been launched in recent years across the border and directly at neighbouring Israeli towns. From time to time, the Israelis fired back so it was said that that it wasn't safe to take the necessary steps to reinforce weak walls and sewerage tanks.
We all know that's only half the story; that things would be different if the quassams stopped and the PA, now controlled by a "unity" government actually kept to its well documented commitments to the international community and to its own people - commitments that if honoured would go a long way to help in bringing peace to the region.
"The Israel Defense Forces offered humanitarian assistance to help clean up the spill. There was no word on whether the offer had been accepted."
The time is right for the leaders of the Palestinian people to accept this offer of help; who knows where this might lead them?
It might even get them and the entire region out of the shit!
[Postscript 29 March 2007 - There are three daily newspapers available in Melbourne and two of them picked up the story today. The third is the Melbourne Age and true to form it covered the Saudi "peace" ultimatum and also had a small piece about the removal of settlers from an abandoned West Bank settlement. Apparently, the Age just couldn't bring itself to publish a story about the incompetence (bordering on corruption) of the PA or of Israel's neighbourly offer of assistance in a time of tragedy proving that even blank pages can produce an awful smell.]
6 comments:
It's sad and it's tragic that the Palestinian people are being jerked around by their leaders while those who claim to be sympathetic to them like the UN Human Rights Council focus on demonizing Israel.
By concentrating on the scapegoat, the innocents suffer whether it be in Palestine, Darfur, Tibet and elsewhere.
The usual mob will find a way to blame Israel but not the mayor of Gaza City -
"Majid Abu Ramadan, who leads a council of Gaza municipalities, blamed the collapse on endemic lawlessness.
He accused local residents of stealing the dirt and selling it to building companies for 300 shekels ($A86.80) a truckload.
A 2004 United Nations report
warned that the sewage facility, built to service a population of 50,000, was handling waste from 190,000 people, and flooding was inevitable. It warned that the lake created by the overflow from the seven basins posed a serious health hazard, providing a breeding ground for mosquitoes and waterborne diseases."
http://www.thewest.com.au/aapstory.aspx?StoryName=368356
It seems that not only were they selling the dirt around the sewers but they were digging tunnels to move weapons around the area. Now the tunnels are like the Palestinian leadership - full of shit!
"Israel helps Palestinians curb sewege levels after floods kill 5"
What are the chances of this story gaining prominence in the AGE?
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/843204.html
Anyone see any flying pigs lately?
Hey, somehow, The Age will find a story that blames Israel for the tragedy.. then, it will run with it.
The problem with the Age is that Ed O'Loughlin is not in Gaza today but instead, he's swanning around in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe where he's writing about the corruption of Mugabe's regime.
What I find amazing about this is that he's been writing from Israel/Palestine for about four or five years now and hasn't made a big deal about how the rotten corruption of Hamas and Fatah have dragged the Palestinians into the mire.
Anyhow, I'll bet Ed doesn't last too long in Zimbabwe if he keeps on writing critical pieces about Mugabe.
Their children are dying in sewerage but still they practice killing the children of others.
Another work place accident in Gaza - http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070330/wl_nm/palestinians_explosion_dc
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