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Wednesday, September 19, 2007

"Hostile entity"

AFP's biases are obvious here:
Israel declared the Gaza Strip a "hostile entity" on Wednesday, clearing the way for shutting off basic supplies to the Hamas-run territory in revenge for rocket fire.

The Western-shunned Islamist movement slammed the decision as "collective punishment" for the 1.5 million residents of the impoverished territory, one of the world's most densely populated places. (see here - EoZ)

A senior UN official also said the move was against international law, while the United States said it had received assurance from Israel that it would not affect the humanitarian situation in the territory.

"Following extensive legal consulations, Israel has decided to declare Gaza as a hostile entity, with all the international implications," a senior Israeli official told AFP after a meeting of Israel's powerful security cabinet.

An official statement said the unanimous decision would affect supplies of electricity and fuel to the impoverished territory, where Hamas seized control three months ago. Israel provides Gaza with the majority of both.

The elephant in the room is, why doesn't Egypt supply the electricity and water to their Arab brethren in Gaza? Why is it a "declaration of war" for Israel to reduce services to its enemies but when Egypt refuses to provide them to begin with it doesn't mean anything?

Take a wild guess.