I can't believe I'm wading into the morass of an I/P diary, but I haven't seen this news item posted yet, so here we go. It won't be a Bud Light party.
Apparently, the Israeli government is going to "immediately" ease the blockade of Gaza, bringing the list down to weapons and military use materials. Now, before there is a flood of "they'll call everything military use" comments, I understand that's a big loophole.
Discussion and links below the jump.
From the Huffington Post and AP:
Israel's government decided Sunday to draw up a list of items banned from Gaza limited to weapons and materials deemed to have military uses and said the easing of the three-year-old blockade of the Palestinian territory would be implemented immediately.
The list of banned goods replaces an old list of allowed items that permitted only basic humanitarian supplies for the 1.5 million Gazans. Under the new system, the government said practically all non-military items can enter Gaza freely.
So. A big loophole that I'm sure both sides will scream about and try to take advantage of. Please set that aside. What I find very interesting is mentioned later in the article:
In Washington, President Barack Obama's spokesman Robert Gibbs welcomed the easing of the blockade and said Israel responded to calls of the international community....
The White House also announced that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would be meeting with President Obama in Washington On July 6.
Can you say "quiet back channel diplomacy?" I knew you could. Israel doesn't respond to international pressure; they feel the UN is set against them. The US is the only country Israel responds to pressure from. Remember when the whole mess with the relief flotilla went down, Netanyahu was scheduled to meet with President Obama a few days later. That was quickly canceled, officially by the Israelis. Somehow I don't think the White House wanted the optics of Obama meeting with Bibi right after this mess and quietly suggested Netanyahu should go back home. Missing this meeting couldn't have been welcomed by the Israelis, because being seen in the White House after the "victory" over the flotilla would have validated the raid.
A few weeks later, now the blockade is quietly breaking down and coincidentally, Netanyahu is coming to dinner. I'm not a dreamer suggesting this is the total end to the situation in Gaza, nor do I believe this is the beginning of the US pulling back support from Israel. I do believe the Obama administration made it clear the blockade couldn't continue and there wouldn't be bilateral talks until the situation changed. So, here's some progress.
That is what's important: here is some progress in the Gaza humanitarian situation. It's not over, but I see slightly better days for Gazans and I give the Obama administration credit. Before all the haters of the good and worshipers of the perfect crawl out of their holes, I do agree this isn't the ideal and there's still work to be done, blah, blah, blah. And no, Obama didn't totally throw over Israel and end the wars and get me a better job and single payer and plug the hole and get my son a bigger candy cane for Christmas in his first year. Shut up, I don't care. There is progress in Gaza and more food in the coming weeks and I credit the Administration.
Update 1: I hate the "breaking" titles, so I didn't put it out there. Will that make a difference of how many read this? Who knows.
But also of interest was this article from Time that suggested the Israelis are looking to fob Gaza off on another country:
Giora Eiland, a retired major general chosen to head one narrow inquiry into the day's events, said in an interview with TIME that Israel could end the sea blockade by permitting sea cargo only from "trusted countries." With Gaza reliably supplied by sea, Israel could permanently seal off its land portals into the territory. That would mean walking away from its legal obligations as an occupation force, inviting yet more international opprobrium, but has the appeal of making the Gaza Strip someone else's problem.
Update #2: First time on the rec list, but I had to go I/P to get there. Sigh. I need a shower now, I feel a little dirty, like I've done something I shouldn't be proud of.
But as I thought, there seems to be a cadre of folks that can't recognize progress as a good and continue to dwell on the perfect.
Update #3: And right back off. I think that's a good thing. I don't have any specific links pointing to White House pressure that led to this move by Israel. In my opinion, that points to good diplomacy.
Also, I'm happy to notice that doughnuts were rather rare in this diary. I think all the participants are too familiar with how close to the line they can push, and there were few outside the usual I/P folks. My thought that Obama and/or Hillary had a lot to do with this was drowned out by the usual I/P shouting match. I'm not that surprised, as both sides seem to be rather comfortable in their rhetoric, like the US and USSR over the years of the Cold War.