Gaza gripped by gun battles between factions

They would never admit it but I suspect Bush and Blair are not displeased by the violence erupting between Fatah and Hamas militants in Gaza and parts of the West Bank over the past few days.

After all the sanctions they imposed were done so with the express purpose of bringing down the democratically elected Hamas government. And this fighting is surely an indication of progress according to that dictum.

Indeed, Blair has contributed to the tensions by backing Abbas' call for new elections despite the fact that the Hamas government has years left to govern according to the results of the last election.

Now Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, has said that he will block all Hamas appointments to government positions.

The Palestinian Prime Minister, Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas, urged gunmen to stop spilling blood and said government officials were working to bring the violence under control. The political veto of the government appointments was disclosed yesterday, after a claim earlier in the week by Mr Haniyeh that Mr Abbas was trying to subvert the authority of the elected Hamas government by obstructing the appointments.

Efforts were still under way by two of the smaller Palestinian factions, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, to resolve the tensions through the formation of a "unity government" composed of figures from a broad spread of Palestinian groups.

As this plays itself out, it is worth remembering the importance of this dispute in the wider war on terrorism and how the Baker Report into Iraq emphasised resolving this dispute as an American priority if they are to have any chance of success in the wider war.

The US, EU and Israeli governments have behaved disgracefully by the imposition of sanctions against the Palestinian people for choosing a government that we disagree with.

The fighting on the streets of Gaza between the various factions is an inevitable result of the actions we have taken.

And this is being done in order to establish a government more pleasing to the west, not because we abhor terrorism, but rather because Bush and Blair seek Palestinian representatives more likely to agree to what Israel wants.

When it comes to Palestine the Bush mantra of "exporting democracy" is shown at it's most hollow.

We appear to support democracy only when it yields the results that we prefer. When we do not agree with the results we impose sanctions that result in unemployment rates of 65% and more.

The inevitable breakdown in social order is a predictable outcome of this.

So what we are watching unfold in Gaza and parts of the West Bank is a direct result of our actions. Bush and Blair will pretend to be concerned bystanders, but they are actually the architects of all that we are witnessing.

And, just as in Lebanon, they will watch this carnage and view not the chaos we see, but a great opportunity.

Both these leaders now seem to see violence as the way to spread their message, and both are unapologetic in doing so. After all, they believe they are involved in some epic struggle against hidden forces that threaten to consume us.

When the stakes are that high, anything is permissible. Or so goes the logic that they are both employing.

Rather than encouraging battles between Hamas and Fatah, their time would be better spent encouraging Israel to sit down with the Palestinians and work out a way to end this madness. But Blair and Bush are not prepared to do this, because they fear that Hamas will not agree to what Israel wants.

And the fact that what Israel wants - huge swathes of the West Bank - is forbidden to them under international law is not going to deter Bush and Blair from their mission.

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tag: Bush, Blair, Israel, Palestine, Gaza, James T Baker, EU, Quartet, starvation, boycott, The Baker Report, Hamas, Fatah