Word: gaza
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...Currently, the U.S. and Israel are maintaining an economic blockade of Palestinian territories in the hope of forcing Hamas to renounce violence and recognize Israel. But the resulting deterioration of the humanitarian situation is fueling mounting chaos in Gaza as rival security forces battle for control over the streets - raising the specter of the complete collapse of the Palestinian Authority and even outright civil...
...from "convergence" or a two-state solution, such a collapse would force Israel to resume direct administrative control over the West Bank and Gaza. So, the U.S. and Israel are forced into an awkward back-pedaling posture, in which they're seeking ways of temporarily relieving some of the symptoms of the Palestinian social collapse without appearing to reduce the pressure on Hamas...
...without funds, their standing has already suffered. The PA hasn't been able to pay its roughly 160,000 employees for two months, and frequent border closures by Israel have stanched the flow of goods and services - and money - into and out of Gaza. The U.N., the World Bank, and numerous diplomats warn that the collective and mutually sustaining tolls of the financial and security crises in Gaza and the West Bank could lead to worsened poverty, more violence, and to the collapse of the PA itself...
...casual observer, the clashes appear to be part of a full-scale ideological war between Fatah and the more militant Hamas, which refuses to recognize Israel. But in actuality, as individuals on both sides seem to agree, the conflict is more narrowly defined. A senior Fatah official in Gaza tells TIME that "this is a dispute between Hamas and the Preventive Security Forces," and Hamas spokesman Ghazi Hamad echoes that view, declaring that "there are some individuals who are making up these problems...
...Many current and former PSA leaders - all Fatah members - had used their posts to establish lucrative networks and monopolies in Gaza and the West Bank, all of which was threatened by Hamas' anti-corruption campaign platform. So, says the Fatah official, "they want to take over the Palestinian Authority in Gaza. To achieve that, they need to make their own conflict with Hamas look like a conflict between Fatah as a whole and Hamas." Disorder serves their aims, but more worryingly, says the official, Abbas may believe disorder serves his aims as well, because it could undercut Hamas' assertions that...