Sharon: List is Long
Jerusalem Post: PM: Israel̢۪s hit list is not a short one
The long arm of Israel will continue to hunt the terrorists,” Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said in Ashdod Tuesday, hinting that Israel may target Hamas’ Damascus-based leader, Khaled Mashal.
“We have harmed the terrorists. We struck out mortally at their leadership and we will continue to do this. We rid ourselves of the first murderer, and the second. But the business is not finished. The list is not short,” Sharon added.
Israel killed Hamas’ top two leaders, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and Abdel Aziz Rantisi, within one month.
“We have proved to them [the terrorists] that they are the ones who will need to run and hide from our long arm, which will not stop hunting them,” the prime minister said.
If done correctly–precision attacks killing actual terrorists but mainly sparing innocents–this has promise. The point of the global war on terrorism is to render terrorism as a political tactic both illegitimate and ineffective. If he’ll seize it, this gives Ahmed Qorei an opening renounce Hamas and other terrorist groups and to begin serious negotiations with Israel. A dual track approach–where progress is being made by non-violent leaders while terrorists are being routed–could work. Certainly, the old approach of taking occasional aim at terrorists but treating their leadership as off limits hasn’t worked.
Via Laurence Simon at Command Post
