Arafat Dead...

[Eli]

Watching Arafat's body being delivered to its burial site on CNN, I was just waiting for the crowd to grab the coffin, send it crashing to the ground busting it open, and his body tumble out. Oi vey. Thankfully that didn't happen.

Israel's biggest fear was and still is that the mob will grab the coffin and march with it to Jerusalem with the intention to bury Arafat in the Temple Mount.
Scenarios like this tend to end with Apaches firing into crowds to stop them.

[germanos]

Originally posted by Eli

Watching Arafat's body being delivered to its burial site on CNN, I was just waiting for the crowd to grab the coffin, send it crashing to the ground busting it open, and his body tumble out. Oi vey. Thankfully that didn't happen.

Israel's biggest fear was and still is that the mob will grab the coffin and march with it to Jerusalem with the intention to bury Arafat in the Temple Mount.
Scenarios like this tend to end with Apaches firing into crowds to stop them.

Is there a cementry on the Temple Mount or would Yassir be the first to be burried there?

[Imran Siddiqui]

Well, now Imran is defending terrorists. His conversion to leftism is complete.

I didn't know you were a leftist if you backed the US founding fathers .

I think you overestimate the amount of support that Hamas had at the end of the 20th century. There could have been a civil war in Palestine, but I doubt it would be one that Hamas could win

I think you underestimate Hamas's support. They are really the only ones for a lot of the people who are backing social programs for the people. You have many people who back Hamas because of all the schools and welfare programs they have for ordinary Palestinians.

[Drake Tungsten]

Yes, Arafat and Thomas Jefferson have so much in common...

[GePap]

Originally posted by Drake Tungsten
Yes, Arafat and Thomas Jefferson have so much in common...

NO, Arafat didn't own slaves.

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

I didn't know you were a leftist if you backed the US founding fathers .

There are ends and then there are means.

The means were decidedly different and mark the greatness of the founding fathers while the barbarity of Arrafat.

[GePap]

Barbarity? Please.

Teh Reagan praised Jonas Sabimvi as the equal of our founding fathers, and he was responsible for far more deaths than we can even argue were Arafat's fault.

That said, Arafat was a pretty ineffective leader.

[Wezil]

People with a dislike for Sharon (not my argument) should remember that unlike Arafat, Sharon can be VOTED OUT of power.

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Guess what? Jonas Sabimvi was not a founding father.

US founding fathers did not attack civillians and target children in their efforts to achieve independence. Any attempts to link them to the likes of Arafat on a moral basis for their actions in the struggle for independence is by definition falacy.

[our_man]

I think you underestimate Hamas's support. They are really the only ones for a lot of the people who are backing social programs for the people. You have many people who back Hamas because of all the schools and welfare programs they have for ordinary Palestinians.

In Gaza there is no doubt that Hamas is immensely popular; they are however not much of a threat to PLO dominance of the West Bank, even as things stand now.

I stand by what I say; even if there was a civil war, I cannot see the radical groups triumphing. The Palestinian people want peace, and I believe that if the Camp David agreement had been signed a lot of them would more away from radical groups. The Palestinians also have (or used to have) a rather secular culture compared to some of their loss tolerant neighbours, so I don't believe there would be much support for Islamic fundamentalism in the aftermath of a peace deal with Israel. Finally I believe that the PLO would have indirect support from Israel as it would be in their interest for the 'moderates' to win the fight.

[Spiffor]

The fact is that he dedicated his life to murder and the destruction of an entire people. He never wanted peace, only victory. Is that a hero? Is the suffering that his people live with every day the legacy of a hero? Are his people better off because of his leadership? In the long run, he will probably be looked at as a hero, but while those of us who remember his crimes still live it will be at best a divided proposition.

Agreed 100%. And that's why there's so much glee and so much sadness over his death. The opinion is clearly divided about him.

[The Mad Monk]

Originally posted by our_man


In Gaza there is no doubt that Hamas is immensely popular; they are however not much of a threat to PLO dominance of the West Bank, even as things stand now.

I stand by what I say; even if there was a civil war, I cannot see the radical groups triumphing. The Palestinian people want peace, and I believe that if the Camp David agreement had been signed a lot of them would more away from radical groups. The Palestinians also have (or used to have) a rather secular culture compared to some of their loss tolerant neighbours, so I don't believe there would be much support for Islamic fundamentalism in the aftermath of a peace deal with Israel. Finally I believe that the PLO would have indirect support from Israel as it would be in their interest for the 'moderates' to win the fight.

The problem won't be Hamas, it will be Hezbollah, which by all reports is taking over territories held by the other groups, thanks in large part by it's not-so-indirect Iranian funding.

[The diplomat]

The burial was scary for a moment. I thought there was going to be an all out riot, especially when the Hamas henchmen showed.

[Gangerolf]

crazy

[Imran Siddiqui]

Yes, Arafat and Thomas Jefferson have so much in common...

I was more thinking about Samuel Adams who led tar and feathering of many a tax collector, who are, btw, civilians.

US founding fathers did not attack civillians

Yes they did. Tax collectors are civilians and being killed by boiling tar being spilled over you and then covered in feathers is a humiliating as well as a painful way to die.

In Gaza there is no doubt that Hamas is immensely popular; they are however not much of a threat to PLO dominance of the West Bank, even as things stand now.

That is an issue though. Having two different areas of control seperated by another country requires a government to have power in both areas. As Pakistan found out, that may not always work out.