Close up: Border collision By Salama A Salama The inevitable finally happened. Thousands of Palestinians broke through the barriers at the Gaza- Egypt border as guards watched helplessly. A desperate human situation, caused by Israel's brutal stranglehold on Gaza, spilled over into Rafah. The Egyptians didn't have a choice. They couldn't be accomplices in Israel's attempts to starve, kill and humiliate the Palestinians. Without electricity, water and medicine, the huddled masses of Gaza walked towards Egypt and Egypt had to let them pass. The same thing happened before. Remember when Palestinian pilgrims got trapped on the border and Egypt had to open Rafah amid Israel's protests? There is a pattern developing here. Israel and America are trying to bring Gaza to its knees. They are trying to make the Palestinians bow to conditions imposed by the likes of Olmert and Barak. Unfortunately, we don't seem to be able to stop them. Arab inability to help Gaza came as a shock to many. Gaza endured a brutal, murderous siege, while the world looked on and declined to intervene. It was only upon an UNRWA call for humanitarian aid that Israel deigned to allow fuel and food to reach Gaza, and that was a one-off measure. Israel was pushing Gaza into a corner: Bring down the Haniyeh government or suffer endless horror. Travel on foot, live in the dark; bleed until you die, or do what you're told. The pressure went on and on. One wonders if Israel could have acted with such impunity without some encouragement. One wonders even if the Arabs haven't given it their implicit or explicit endorsement. One wonders if Israel could have introduced such draconian measures, many reminiscent of Nazi tactics, without at least a measure of collusion. The Europeans helped Israel along when they pulled their monitors from the border, thus putting on hold the agreement on access and movement. Why, then, should Egypt be the only one abiding by that agreement? Why did Egypt hesitate in opening the gates at Rafah? Robert Malley, Middle East programme director at the International Crisis Group, says that Hamas offered a few weeks ago to stop firing rockets from Gaza in return for an end to Israeli attacks and the opening of Gaza's crossings. Israel turned down the request, for it wanted to keep the heat on Hamas. Israel and the US think that to abandon the siege would strengthen Hamas. So they're punishing the Palestinians in Gaza in order to boost the flagging fortunes of President Abbas. They're also hoping that their actions give them the kind of peace settlement they want. Apparently, this same approach is adopted by the Quartet and some Arab countries. But it is misguided, at least according to Malley, who maintains that Hamas's losses are not necessarily gains for Fatah. Israel is the only one benefiting from current divisions in Palestinian ranks. Egypt also has much to lose, for it seems to be failing the Palestinians on every count. Egypt is being blamed for Palestinian infighting, Arab ineptitude and international collusion combined. Gaza is a problem that Israel has long wanted to export to Egypt. Now it has succeeded.
