Anyone see the front page of the NY Times?

[TonyDedo]

Did anyone see the front page of the NY Times this morning? The cover story was another article about the Hamas vs. Fatah violence in the Gaza strip. The accompanying picture's captioned said it showed Fatah militia during a raid on Hamas. Front and center was a ski masked Palestinian militiaman clearly carrying a M16/AR15 (the others all seemed to be holding AK variations). As I read the article, it said that the US & Israel are supporting Fatah in the fight against Hamas, implying (although I don't think it specifically stated) that the support includes arms. And there's the M16 on the front page.

So are we supplying Arab terrorists with US manufactured weapons???

 

[vellnueve]

M16s are easy to get in any arms market in the world.

 

[MarkM]

So are we supplying Arab terrorists with US manufactured weapons???

Yes.


http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/dmn/stories/051807dnintmideast.37fcbeb.html

Israel, U.S. aid Fatah

Fresh Palestinian troops allowed to enter Gaza to counter Hamas

12:02 AM CDT on Friday, May 18, 2007

From Wire Reports

JERUSALEM – Israel this week allowed the Palestinian party Fatah to bring into the Gaza Strip as many as 500 fresh troops trained under a U.S.-coordinated program to counter Hamas, the Islamic movement that won Palestinian elections last year.

Fighting between Hamas and Fatah has left about 45 Palestinians dead since Sunday.

The forces belong to units loyal to elected Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, a moderate Fatah leader whom the Bush administration and Israel have sought to strengthen militarily and politically.

Maria Telleria, spokeswoman for the European Union Border Assistance Mission deployed at Rafah, said the troops' entry on Tuesday was approved by Israel.

The troops crossed into Gaza from Egypt aboard several buses, she said. "We had been informed they were arriving," Ms. Telleria said.

"But this was coordinated between Israel and the Palestinian government. All we did was monitor the crossing."

The troops' deployment illustrates the increasingly partisan role that Israel and the Bush administration are taking in the volatile Palestinian political situation. The effort to fortify the armed opposition to Hamas, which the United States and Israel categorize as a terrorist organization, follows attempts to isolate the Islamic movement internationally and cut off its sources of financial aid.
Training effort

The Bush administration recently approved $40 million to train the Palestinian Presidential Guard, a force of about 4,000 troops under Mr. Abbas' direct control.

........

 

[MarkM]

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3382827,00.html

US pledges aid

Abu Ahmed's threats comes as the Bush administration announced to ask Congress to approve $59 million for Fatah forces. The US said the bulk of the new aid package – $43.4 million – will be used to strengthen Abbas' Force 17 presidential guard units.



According to the announcement, the sum includes $14.5 million for "basic and advanced training," $23 million for equipment, $2.9 million to upgrade the guard's facilities and $3 million to provide "capacity building and technical assistance" to the office of Mahmoud Dahlan, Fatah's strongman in Gaza.

The Bush administration in January pledged $86.4 million to strengthen the Fatah forces, including Force 17, Abbas' security detail, which also serves as de facto police units in the Gaza Strip and West Bank. Last month, Congress placed a hold on the transfer pending a clarification from the State Department as to where exactly the money would end up. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had said she would lower the amount of requested aid.

Some Fatah security members from Force 17 are also openly members of the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. All Brigades leaders are members of Fatah.

 

[Cabinetman]

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend". Ugh!

Rome

 

[M1911]

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend".

It's also the lesser of two evils. Repugnant? Yes. On the other hand, Hamas having full control over the West Bank would be real bad news.

 

[MarkM]

It's also the lesser of two evils. Repugnant? Yes. On the other hand, Hamas having full control over the West Bank would be real bad news.

Hamas probably will have full control in a couple more days, which also mean they will have all the nice stuff we gave Fatah.

 

[Arioch]

M16s are easy to get in any arms market in the world.

Except in MA.

 

[M1911]

Hamas probably will have full control in a couple more days, which also mean they will have all the nice stuff we gave Fatah.

I don't think so. They have full control of Gaza, but no way to get from Gaza to the West Bank. Fatah has more power in the West Bank that Hamas, and the Israeli presence on the West Bank means that if Hamas comes out in the open that they get stomped.

 

[Joe R.]

Israel also uses M-16's and these might have been pickups from battles with the IDF.

Joe R>

 

[drgrant]

Israel also uses M-16's and these might have been pickups from battles with the IDF.

Joe R>

Not so much pickups but guns sold to palis by corrupt people within the
IDF, or guns sold to legit "palestinian security forces" and so on.

-Mike