The leading Egyptian daily, al-Ahram, ran an unsigned editorial this month that expressed an understanding of suicide bombings ("martyrdom operations" in the Arab jargon) and blamed Israel for their occurrence. "Any objective observer of the current events would realize that these martyrdom operations carried out by the Palestinian young people express a deep desire to liberate their country," the newspaper declares. Nonetheless, the Egyptian daily considers the end of such attacks to be necessary for "Palestinian factions... to reach a unified stance...." On the other hand, this cannot happen, al-Ahram states, until Israel understands that it "must demonstrate a reasonable vision of settlement accepted by the Palestinians." Explicitly reversing the sequence of historical events in Israel, the Egyptian editorial warns, "Violence will not yet come to a halt, unless provocative Israeli actions stop."
In a similar vein of revisionism, the al-Akhbar newspaper writes, in its own editorial on the topic, "The Israeli military escalation against the Palestinians in the occupied territories is confronted by a Palestinian counter-escalation."
And the al-Gomhouria newspaper writes that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has the opportunity to "save every Israeli citizen jeopardized by martyrdom operations in response to the brutality of the Israeli occupation forces." However, the Egyptian editors go on to imply that, in fact, terrorism against Israelis has worked. Sharon, the newspaper explains, tried to bring "security through force" and, so doing, he "wasted [the] time and lives of his people who believed him in his lie...." That Sharonian policy, the Egyptian editorial says, is "a myth that Palestinian resistance destroyed and upon its debris laid the foundations of an independent Palestinian state pursuant to the Road Map."
In a similar vein of revisionism, the al-Akhbar newspaper writes, in its own editorial on the topic, "The Israeli military escalation against the Palestinians in the occupied territories is confronted by a Palestinian counter-escalation."
And the al-Gomhouria newspaper writes that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has the opportunity to "save every Israeli citizen jeopardized by martyrdom operations in response to the brutality of the Israeli occupation forces." However, the Egyptian editors go on to imply that, in fact, terrorism against Israelis has worked. Sharon, the newspaper explains, tried to bring "security through force" and, so doing, he "wasted [the] time and lives of his people who believed him in his lie...." That Sharonian policy, the Egyptian editorial says, is "a myth that Palestinian resistance destroyed and upon its debris laid the foundations of an independent Palestinian state pursuant to the Road Map."