"Gaza will be paved with fire and hell"

Israel had its troops march on Gaza today as air strikes continued over the strip. Soldiers marched into Gaza one by one, following by tanks and gunboats. The death toll in in Gaza has exceeded 460 on the Palestinian side and 4 on the Israeli side. I do not condone Israel's actions. I do not believe that a rich developed country should invade a small strip of land that is fighting with metaphorical sticks and bone. Whenever I think of Israel invading Gaza is makes me think of images I'd seen of Italy invading Ethiopia where people with guns were killing people with hunting spears.

The main difference however is the hypocrisy of Hamas in all this. They're supposed to be protecting Palestinians, to provide for them... As their elected government they should have their people's best interest at heart, which they don't seem to have. When one thinks about all this it's important to remember that in their charter Hamas has refused to recognize the existence of Israel. It's also important to remember that Israel has aggressively tried to bring settlers into Gaza and the West Bank.

The rhetoric that is ongoing between the two nations is the worst, in an Associated Press article, Hamas was quoted as having said: “Gaza will not be paved with flowers for you, it will be paved with fire and hell.”
Israel has stated that it is prepared for a lengthy war.

Then near the end of the article a Hamas spokesperson said:“Anyone who thinks that the change in the Palestinian arena can be achieved through jet fighters' bombs and tanks and without dialogue is mistaken.”

Wasn't this the same group that said it would pave Gaza with fire and hell? How can anyone think that negotiating a ceasefire will be a viable option. Between Israel's fervor for war and Hamas' relentless threats, I fear that many more innocent civilians will die before any sort of temporary ceasefire is reached.

Muchacho Enfermo