Issues Under Fire: Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Primed to Ignite Intifada 3.0
As ISIS and affiliates are busy engaging Russia and Iran in Syria, while at the same time battling Western favored forces in Iraq and now Afghanistan, one would think this region of the world couldn't handle another full blown conflict. Unfortunately, young Palestinians feel their condition can wait no longer and neither will they. After weeks of stabbing incidents, shootings, beatings, arrest and homes being destroyed, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been primed to ignite the next intifada.
Now that street protest in the West Bank have given way to reported rocket fire into southern Israel, leading to air strikes over Gaza, resulting in the death of a pregnant woman and her three year old son, its becoming obvious to this observer, this conflict has all the ingredients to create one hell of an explosive event. These stories are growing in number, intensity and severity daily now. After witnessing how similar events led to Israel's blood soaked Operation Protective Edge in the summer of 2014, its difficult to see this violence tapering off before escalating out of control.
All the elements are in place now for an ugly fight to ratchet up to the next level. Young Palestinians are sick and tired of the Palestinian Authority's inability to "shit or get off the pot" and the Israeli government has proven to be politically impotent against Right Wing religious extremist. There is literally no credible leadership on either side of this ever expanding divide and there is no entity able or willing to provide a bridge between the two. Regrettably, as predictable this looming crises has always been it was never preventable.
The only thing the Obama administration and the U.S. State Department has done to date, was to phone Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority to condemn the violence and request each make efforts to restore calm. If that's the extent of U.S. engagement after the rapidly spreading killings over the highly combustible Haram al Sharif/Temple Mount issue, one could say the United States is preparing to turn a blind eye to this latest episode of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Still, the pressure will only mount on the United States and its Western allies to do something, anything to quell the violence as the death toll mounts. As per usual, since Israel has the decided advantage militarily and that advantage is provided and maintained by the United States, the Palestinians will suffer massive losses while Israel will easily thwart any real threats the Palestinians can muster against its forces. If history is any guide, the world had better ready itself for a bloody and protracted confrontation.
Bottom line: With the region littered with islamic militants looking for a fight, Israel would make an easy target. If too many pictures and videos begin bleeding on to social media documenting another slaughter of rock throwing teens and their mourning mothers, this conflict could finally go global. Something like this could inspire islamic malcontents cooling their heels in Jordan and Lebanon refugee camps to join the conflict. After all, what else do they have to do with their lives. Podcast below!
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