Israel Funds Gaza Militias: 'Strategic Mistake' or Feature?
The New Arab reports a Gaza militia leader, Shawqi Abu Nassira, openly stating Israel provides his Khan Younis-based group with arms, provisions, and security. What gets lost in the immediate shock value is the historical echo. This isn't a new tactic. For decades, Israeli strategists, as detailed by journalists like Avi Shlaim, preferred to 'manage the conflict,' often by tacitly or overtly
bolstering factions perceived as less threatening than unified Palestinian leadership. In the 1980s, Israel allegedly supported Islamist groups in Gaza as a counterweight to the secular PLO. (See: 'Lion of Jordan' by Avi Shlaim, specifically accounts of early Israeli policy in the territories.) So, when you see headlines about 'rogue elements' or 'splits within Palestinian factions,' one might
wonder if these divisions are always organic. Or if perhaps, some factions are simply better funded, better fed, and conveniently 'protected'. It's not a 'strategic mistake' if it's the strategy itself: divide and conquer, then lament the resulting chaos as a justification for further intervention. The cycle continues, generously sponsored by your tax dollars and expertly ignored by pundits.