Palestinians Hope Refugee Camp Killings Show How Ready They Are For State

“In addition to these incidents, we’ve had the phenomenon of international Palestinian terrorism since the 1960’s, such that by now, everyone should be aware of the Palestinian readiness for a functioning state.”

Ein el-Hilweh, Lebanon, April 9 – Fatah and Salafi militants in this Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon engaged in yet another firefight today, resulting in the deaths of five participants, in an incident Palestinians anticipate will further demonstrate to the international community their readiness to govern a sovereign entity of their own.

The clashes took place this afternoon (Sunday) amid ongoing sectarian tensions among Palestinian factions, showcasing the continued and worsening fractures of the Palestinian nation. That characteristic divided polity, say leaders, provides a foretaste of any eventual Palestinian State, which the world should work to establish as soon as possible.

“In the interest of stability of the region – indeed, of the world, given the specter of terrorism with Palestinian statelessness at its root – this culture of political violence and the utter lack of a central monopoly on force couldn’t be a clearer representation of our readiness to govern a sovereign state,” asserted Fatah official Saeb Erekat. “Of course all that needs to change is the oppression and occupation by the Jews, and the world can expect a peaceful, smoothly-functioning government apparatus of the State of Palestine.”

While previous iterations of deadly violence among Palestinians have highlighted the imminent preparedness of Palestinian society for a state, the most recent bout of intramural shooting has made the issue even more pressing, say analysts. “There’s are only so many ways, and so many times, Palestinians can make the point they are ready to assume the responsibilities of statehood,” observed John Kerry, until recently the US Secretary of State. “In addition to these incidents, we’ve had the phenomenon of international Palestinian terrorism since the 1960’s, such that by now, everyone should be aware of the Palestinian readiness for a functioning state. The fact that this aspiration continues to suffer frustration, for any number of reasons – I can think of the existence of six million Jewish Israelis, for example – has caused these demonstrations of Palestinian readiness to become more and more emphatic. Just ten years ago there was a mini-civil-war in Gaza, and the rifts have only worsened since. I don’t know how much longer we can expect the Palestinians to be so ready.”

Kerry noted how hard he worked to give the Palestinians their desires. “President Obama and I did everything we could to bring that dream closer,” he recalled. “We worked behind the scenes during the 2014 Gaza War against Israel to enable unbridled Palestinian violence, but unfortunately, that wasn’t enough. And it appears that under the current president, no real progress is likely. That’s a shame.”

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