The world's biggest prison just got bigger.

Amid dramatic tears, 8000 Israeli settlers, around 0.5% of the population of the Gaza Strip, were forcibly evicted from their houses built on land comprising around 20-25% of the entire Gaza Strip, which they had occupied illegally.
The 1.4 million Palestinians in the tiny sliver of land that is the Gaza Strip, their economy strangled - 60-70% of the population live below the poverty line, around half the children are anemic and approximately a fifth of children aged 6mths to 5yrs - regain this land, however the Israeli government still holds control over the airspace, the sea and the land borders.

The building of the "fence", an 8m (~25ft) concrete wall, continues to de facto annex land outside the 1967 borders. It's estimated the wall will de facto annex as much as 50% of the West Bank when completed.
Settlements continue to be built on occupied land, including in East Jerusalem the intended capital of a future Palestinian state, which will also be cut off from the rest of the West Bank when the Israeli wall is completed.

In all likelihood as a former General, PM Sharon, probably saw this as a strategic move - in return he has gained concession from President Bush that the U.S. Administration will support Israel's wishes to keep at least some settlements on the West Bank and to deny the right of return for Palestinians. Commentators have noted that without pressure from the rest of the world the Gaza pullout may become an end to a process rather than a beginning.

Was the Gaza pullout a good thing? Was it a bad thing? Will it lead to a renewal of the peace process?
What has the Gaza pullout achieved other than making the world's biggest prison camp a little bit bigger?

I know 🙁 The middle East and Africa are beyond my puny minds understanding 🙁

Was the Gaza pullout a good thing? Was it a bad thing? Will it lead to a renewal of the peace process?

its really little wonder that the middle east peace process moves at a snails pace when people view situations in this way

Originally posted by jaden101
its really little wonder that the middle east peace process moves at a snails pace when people view situations in this way

Originally posted by xmarksthespot
And what exactly is that supposed to insinuate?
The answer to all three of those questions for me is "no", with the last one being "no, unless further positive steps are taken on both sides".

Anyways, I think it was a good thing.....still not fair but better than before....the Palastines deserve an own country....and every movement towards that I regard as good....

The Israelites are gonna get criticized whatever move they make, that area wont see peace in our lifetime too many hot headed indoctrinated persons of importance on both sides

Originally posted by Bardock42
Sorry that's just funny......so no is the answer to "Was it a good thing" and to "Was it a bad thing?" (and you asked four question, although these two are practically the same)
Anyways, I think it was a good thing.....still not fair but better than before....the Palastines deserve an own country....and every movement towards that I regard as good....

Originally posted by xmarksthespot
There were three quoted questions. Perhaps I should have said "a qualified no". The pullout was a good step, but it should have been a bilateral step and all indications are that the Palestinians in Gaza and their collapsed economy will still be effectively constricted. It was symbolic but little more than that, when hundreds of thousands of settlers still occupy land in the West Bank and the Israeli wall continues to be built.

Yes I know...but just because not everything was achievved its not necessarily a bad step.....

Well, considering teh pull out from the strip was happening at teh same time as a build-up on the west bank, I think the solution is a temporary one. This will not lead to peace, only more resentment and violence.

On top of that, the wall they're building is only one aspect of the Israeli defense initiative. There is an automated missle defense system being built. This means that every missle(1) launched by Palestine at Israel will be met with a return payload of five missles. This defense system is fully automated and does not require humans making descisions. It's much akin to the defense systems used by the US and Russian governments during the cold war. That is a bad idea.

I think the best thing we could do is stay out of the situation with regards to Israel. Much of the resentment for the US in the middle east comes from our involvment there. When you listen to the news, it's always 10 Israelis killed in a Starbucks. Our support for the Jews has turned Israel into a mini-America in the desert. I propose we do nothing and let them fall flat on their ass. I'm sure being the chosen people of god, the Jews will land on their feet. Right?

Originally posted by xmarksthespot
And what exactly is that supposed to insinuate?
The answer to all three of those questions for me is "no", with the last one being "no, unless further positive steps are taken on both sides".

well lets see...you title the thread...the worlds biggest prison just got bigger...not a question...a statement...totally biased so please dont, after writing that, then try and hide behind a false notion of objectivity when you clearly dont accept anything the israeli's are doing as good

Originally posted by Capt_Fantastic
I'm sure being the chosen people of god, the Jews will land on their feet. Right?

The Jews will be fine.

However, I'll wager that, if the United States stops aiding Israel, we will not be for long.

Originally posted by FeceMan
However, I'll wager that, if the United States stops aiding Israel, we will not be for long.

May I ask why you think so? Just playing devil's advocate.

i honestly cant keep up with all the ins & outs over there.. its just complicated 😖

poor excuse i know,, but its true

Originally posted by jaden101
well lets see...you title the thread...the worlds biggest prison just got bigger...not a question...a statement...totally biased so please dont, after writing that, then try and hide behind a false notion of objectivity when you clearly dont accept anything the israeli's are doing as good

Originally posted by Capt_Fantastic
May I ask why you think so? Just playing devil's advocate.

Do you claim objectivity? After your numerous arguments supportive of past and present U.S. Administration and their policies, including in regard to the Middle East,

sorry...where did i say that i support the US''s backing of Israel...i didn't...i said i understood why they do...because of the large Jewish influence in American political circles...

you want me to prove you factually incorrect...ok...Gaza isn't a prison camp...if it were then no palestinian would pass through from the gaza strip to the west bank...they do...and what caused the economic problems that the people of gaza now experience?...well is it coincidence that the problems increased when the intifada began?...strangely enough if was international money (and a large amount from the US) that prevented total collapse of the palestinian economy

so a prison?...no...factually incorrect

Originally posted by FeceMan
To prevent things from going off-topic, I'll just say my answer belongs in the Religion forum.

Considering how well aquainted we have become, you can guess my response.

Originally posted by jaden101
sorry...where did i say that i support the US''s backing of Israel...i didn't...i said i understood why they do...because of the large Jewish influence in American political circles...
you want me to prove you factually incorrect...ok...Gaza isn't a prison camp...if it were then no palestinian would pass through from the gaza strip to the west bank...they do...and what caused the economic problems that the people of gaza now experience?...well is it coincidence that the problems increased when the intifada began?...strangely enough if was international money (and a large amount from the US) that prevented total collapse of the palestinian economy
so a prison?...no...factually incorrect

Wyre Davies, BBC
It is not without some justification they call Gaza the "world's biggest prison" - 1.3 million people crammed into an area only 360 km square.
Since the beginning of the second Intifada, or popular uprising, in September 2000, it has been virtually impossible for many Gazans to travel outside the occupied territory because of strict Israeli frontier controls.
Even moving within Gaza, from north to south, is a nightmare because of military checkpoints around Israeli settlements like Netzarim and the Gush Katif bloc.

Glenn Kessler, Washington Post
In the emergency spending bill that lawmakers completed late Tuesday, the White House had sought $200 million "to support Palestinian political, economic, and security reforms," as the president said in his February State of the Union address. But the fine print of the document gives $50 million of that money directly to Israel to build terminals for people and goods at checkpoints surrounding Palestinian areas. Another $2 million for Palestinian health care will be provided to Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America, while the allocation of the rest of the money is tightly prescribed.
The bill appears to make it difficult for the White House to give any of the aid directly to the Palestinian Authority, as Palestinians had hoped.
Direct aid to the Palestinian Authority is symbolically important for Abbas, who is also known as Abu Mazen. Shortly after Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat died in November, Bush allowed $20 million to be delivered directly to the Palestinian Authority. Under an agreement with Congress, however, that money was immediately transferred to pay bills owed to Israel's electric company.

If I recall correctly the majority of aid to the Palestinians comes from the E.U. Whereas a third of U.S. foreign aid goes to Israel, amounting to approximately $85 billion over the last 55 years, add to that interest costs and the figure rises to around $130 billion for a single country.

true...but lets imagine for a moment what would happen to israel if it weren't aided by the US...

the Arab nations would round on Israel and pretty much wipe out the jewish population there with backing from Egypt, Iran, Syria, most likely the nuclear equipt pakistan...which would then draw in Israels on ally in the middle east...the nuclear equipt India

and the rest...and most of the middle east...would be...as they say...HISTORY

and how do we know this

1948 war of independance
1956 sinai campaign
1967 six day war
1973 yom kippur
1982 operation peace for galilee

how exactly do you expect a country to react when every one its neighbours are being kept at bay solely because of the US

as for the point of the thread

i apologise if i seemed abrupt but i think that the Israeli's are the only ones capable of taking any action to instigate peace because the palestinian leaders are simply incapable of controlling the likes Hamas and the other "organisations" involved in attacking Israeli's

it was a very difficult desicion for Israel to make...there are far more radical and right wing idealists in the Israeli parliment who are chomping at the bit to full out destroy the palestinians...i'm actually surprised Ariel Sharon has stayed in power long enough to make any difference given that he is hated by a large section of his own people as well as the whole of Palestine

Originally posted by jaden101
true...but lets imagine for a moment what would happen to israel if it weren't aided by the US...

the Arab nations would round on Israel and pretty much wipe out the jewish population there with backing from Egypt, Iran, Syria, most likely the nuclear equipt pakistan...which would then draw in Israels on ally in the middle east...the nuclear equipt India

and the rest...and most of the middle east...would be...as they say...HISTORY

and how do we know this

1948 war of independance
1956 sinai campaign
1967 six day war
1973 yom kippur
1982 operation peace for galilee

how exactly do you expect a country to react when every one its neighbours are being kept at bay solely because of the US

Originally posted by jaden101
i apologise if i seemed abrupt but i think that the Israeli's are the only ones capable of taking any action to instigate peace because the palestinian leaders are simply incapable of controlling the likes Hamas and the other "organisations" involved in attacking Israeli's
it was a very difficult desicion for Israel to make...there are far more radical and right wing idealists in the Israeli parliment who are chomping at the bit to full out destroy the palestinians...i'm actually surprised Ariel Sharon has stayed in power long enough to make any difference given that he is hated by a large section of his own people as well as the whole of Palestine