Palestinian leader admits they are the problem

Ynet:

Dr Ghazi Hamad, the spokesperson of the Palestinian government, waged scathing criticism against the Palestinian public on Sunday, blaming the Palestinians for turning the Gaza Strip into a lawless and violent place.

"Have mercy on Gaza," he wrote in an op-ed published on Sunday.

"After the withdrawal from Gaza, we hoped for a bright future, we thought that this year we will reap the fruits of our sacrifices. But I ask myself today – why did the occupation return to Gaza. The occupation – wise men and commentators will say – is responsible.

I am not defending the occupation, but I want to stop at our mistakes, which we are accustomed to blame on others.""Anarchy, wanton killing, land steeling, thuggery … is the occupation responsible for all?," he asked, saying that the Palestinians should stop espousing conspiracy theories which "limit our thinking."

Hopes of economic prosperity and peace in the Gaza Strip after Israel withdrew settlers and troops from there have been systematically shattered as the Palestinian Authority failed to enforce law and order and provide basic services to 1.3 million Palestinians living in the tiny coastal strip.

Hundreds of dunams of agricultural land evacuated by Jewish settlers were expected to create as many as 4,000 jobs and generate millions of dollars in revenue. But corruption in the ranks of the company assigned the task of managing the land crippled the once rosy agriculture of Gush Katif and many of the land is now used as training bases by Palestinian groups.

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There are more confessions from the op-ed. Perhaps this is the begining of wisdom, but murdering Jews was not on the list of errors. Hamas is still a death cult, but one of the things the evacuation of Gaza did was take away the excuse of occupation for the failures of the Palestinians. It also took away their sympathy factor in Europe. In that regard the leaving of Gaza was a success for Israel, but it is unlikely to be repeated because of another Palestinian error, the firing of rockets into Israel. The chances are remote that people on the West Bank will get that opportunity anytime soon.