Haiti: UN Report Says Gang Violence Spreading, Urges Speedy Deployment Of Multinational Security Mission

Wednesday, 29 November 2023, 11:06 am
Press Release: United Nations Human Rights Commissioner

GENEVA/PORT-AU-PRINCE (28 November 2023) - A new UN report out today details a further, shocking rise in gang violence in Haiti as criminal gangs forge alliances and expand to rural areas previously considered safe – killing, raping, kidnapping, and destroying property, among other abuses.

The report, released by the UN Human Rights Office and the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH), calls for the urgent deployment of the Multinational Security Support mission authorized by the UN Security Council in October, in accordance with international human rights norms and standards. Increased efforts will need to be deployed to strengthen Haiti’s rule of law institutions, in particular the police, the judiciary, and the prison system, the report notes.

The report focuses on the Bas-Artibonite district, located in Central Haiti, about 100 kilometres from the capital Port-au-Prince, which has seen a significant rise in gang violence in the last two years. Between January 2022 and October 2023, at least 1,694 people were killed, injured, or kidnapped in Bas-Artibonite.

Kidnapping for ransom by criminal groups has become a constant fear for users of public transport across Bas-Artibonite, the report states. The story of Darleine, a 22-year-old woman is one of many: she was dragged off a bus in March this year by gang members, who held her captive for over two weeks and repeatedly beat and raped her. A few weeks after she was released, she committed suicide.

The report documents criminal groups rampaging through “rival” villages, executing local people and using sexual violence against women and even very young children. The groups also loot farmers’ properties, crops and livestock and destroy irrigation canals, contributing to the displacement of more than 22,000 people from their villages and significantly reducing the amount of cultivated land, heightening food insecurity. In September 2023, more than 45 per cent of the population of Bas-Artibonite was in a situation of acute food insecurity. Gang violence has also left many farming families unable to repay their debts or to access basic services.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk warned that across Haiti, at least 3,960 people have been killed, 1,432 injured and 2,951 kidnapped in gang-related violence this year alone.

“The situation in Haiti is cataclysmic. We are continuing to receive reports of killings, sexual violence, displacement and other violence – including in hospitals,” Türk said.

“With terrible violence against the population expanding – within and outside Port-au-Prince – and the inability of the police to stop them, the much-needed Multinational Security Support mission needs to be deployed to Haiti as soon as possible,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said.

The High Commissioner stressed that the support mission must include internal oversight mechanisms and other safeguards to ensure its compliance with international human rights norms and standards.

Given the worsening violence and further to the October 2023 report of the UN Panel of Experts on Haiti, the report also calls on the Security Council to update the list of individuals and entities subject to UN sanctions for supporting, preparing, ordering, or committing acts contrary to international human rights law.

“There needs to be continued emphasis on the implementation of the arms embargo and sanctions targeting those behind this untenable situation,” the High Commissioner said.

“I also call on the Haitian authorities to fulfil their international human rights obligations and to put in place robust measures to strengthen the country’s institutions and improve governance, including by tackling corruption and addressing impunity.”

© Scoop Media

 

How a New York Paper Became the Voice of a Diaspora

November 17, 2023 

Cristina Caicedo Smit

 

For two decades, The Haitian Times has played an important role in helping a large diaspora stay informed. With an increasingly volatile situation in Haiti, audiences rely now more than ever on its journalism. From New York, VOA’s Cristina Caicedo Smit has the story.

Syrian doctor saves thousands of lives in hidden underground hospital

Amani Ballour recalls destruction caused by forces of Bashar al-Assad regime in Eastern Ghouta amid Syrian civil war

Zehra Menteş |29.11.2023 -



ISTANBUL

A Syrian pediatrician who helped run a hidden underground hospital in the suburb of Eastern Ghouta on the outskirts of the capital Damascus says she saved thousands of lives during the country’s civil war.

Amani Ballour, who worked at a hospital called “The Cave,” told Anadolu about her experiences in the underground tunnels during the conflict, recalling the destruction caused by the Bashar al-Assad regime in the country.

Born and raised in the rural outskirts of Damascus, the 36-year-old said the idea for the tunnels came about because Eastern Ghouta was under siege at the time.

“You know, we were besieged for nearly six years. The Syrian regime prevented (the entry of) food, medicine, medical supplies and everything. So people in Eastern Ghouta decided to make these tunnels to smuggle food and medicine and the essentials of life,” Ballour noted.

“We also used these tunnels to move about because of the heavy bombardments at the time. Sometimes no one could move on the surface in Eastern Ghouta because of the warplanes and helicopters that were in the sky all the time and watching and bombing,” she recalled.

Highlighting that the tunnels was “very important” for the local people and solved a “really big problem” for them, Ballour said: “Of course, it wasn't enough, as we couldn’t spend all our life underground and do everything underground, but it was very helpful.”

Ballour noted that they also connected some of the tunnels to the cave hospital.

“We had like three tunnels to three different places. We moved through these tunnels especially when the bombardment was very heavy. We also smuggled medicine and even sometimes moved bodies through the tunnels to a grave site.”

The tunnels were crucial because there were a lot of bodies in the hospital during the Syrian regime’s last campaign against Eastern Ghouta and they were having trouble coping with the situation, she said.

More than 10 years have passed since the regime struck Eastern Ghouta with chemical weapons on Aug. 21, 2013, but the victims are still haunted by the nightmarish experience which killed more than 1,400 civilians.

Thousands of women and children were affected by poisonous agents in the attack, which is still fresh in the memories of survivors.

Images of the aftermath showed people who survived the initial strikes struggling to breathe, with many foaming at the mouth and convulsing as medics attempted to help as many victims as possible.

*Writing by Zehra Nur Duz

 

Report: Despite stronger fears of gun violence, California immigrants far less likely to own firearms than citizens

by Venetia Lai, University of California, Los Angeles

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Among Latinos and Asians living in California, immigrants are less likely than citizens to own a firearm and more likely to report being afraid of becoming a victim of gun violence, according to a new study from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.

While gun ownership among both groups of noncitizens was in the single digits, more than half of Latino immigrants and nearly three-quarters of Asian immigrants surveyed said they were worried about becoming a gun-violence victim.

"This study shows that the immigrant population's concern about gun violence is significant," said Ninez Ponce, director of the Center for Health Policy Research and principal investigator for the California Health Interview Survey, or CHIS.

Firearm ownership

Prior research showed 17.6% of all California adults own a firearm. However the number is just 6.0% among immigrants, according to 2021 CHIS data in the new study. The authors included naturalized adult citizens in the "citizens" category, as firearm access among naturalized citizens more closely mimics that of citizens than immigrants.

The study, which builds on the earlier research, examines firearm ownership, fears of being a victim of gun violence and firearm storage practices among adults in the two largest immigrant populations in California—Latino and Asian—and compares these with Latino and Asian citizens' practices.

"The United States has the highest gun ownership rate per capita in the world, yet we know very little about ownership rates across different populations of interests, including immigrants," said Clarissa Iliff, a doctoral student at UC Irvine and co-author of the study. "We need to analyze how citizenship, fear of victimization and firearm ownership among immigrant populations change over time."

Study findings show Asian immigrants are more likely than Latino immigrants to own at least one firearm. The rate of gun ownership among Latino citizens was more than four times that of Latino immigrants, at 18.1% versus 4.1%, while ownership rates among Asians were more consistent at 12.6% for citizens and 7.2% for noncitizens.

Fears of gun violence

Yet, 74.9% of Asian immigrants and 53.2% of Latino immigrants said they are "very worried" or "somewhat worried" about being a victim of gun violence. Latino immigrants in that category own more firearms on average compared with Latino immigrants who report being "not too worried" or "not at all worried."

Among Latino citizens, however, the opposite is true: Those least worried about being a victim of gun violence own more firearms on average than those who are most worried.

Firearm storage practices

Overall, immigrants in California are more likely than citizens to store guns locked and unloaded, at 76.5% versus 45%. Among citizens, 6.1% reported storing at least one gun unlocked and loaded; comparable data for immigrants were unavailable.

The finding that immigrants seemingly take safe firearm storage seriously deserves more attention, the authors said.

"Storing a firearm safely decreases the likelihood of its being used in an accidental shooting in the home, as well as of having the gun stolen and used in a subsequent crime," said George Tita, professor in the Department of Criminology, Law and Society at UC Irvine and co-author of the study. "Understanding why the safe storage message resonates more strongly with immigrant groups might help us craft more effective messaging to the broad population of gun owners."

The authors recommend that future research be undertaken to understand the difference in gun ownership rates across all racial, ethnic and citizenship groups. "We need to continue collecting data on gun violence attitudes and issues to help develop policies that benefit all Californians, whether immigrants or citizens," Ponce said.

More information: Firearm Storage Practices Among Latino and Asian Immigrants in California (2023).

Provided by University of California, Los Angeles 

Unlocked and loaded: How most gun-owning households with teens store firearms

US consumer confidence rises in November after three-month decline

Respondents' recession fears reflect Conference Board's 'short and shallow' prediction for 2024


Data released by The Conference Board showed that the Consumer Confidence Index had increased to 102.0, up from a downwardly revised 99.1 in October. EPA


Kyle Fitzgerald
Washington
Nov 28, 2023

US consumer confidence rose in November after three straight months of decline, although fears remain of a recession within the next year.

Data released by The Conference Board on Tuesday showed that the Consumer Confidence Index had increased to 102.0, up from a downwardly revised 99.1 in October.

A separate measure based on current business and labour market conditions fell slightly from 138.6 to 138.2.

Tuesday's report comes as economic figures show inflation is moderating, bringing relief to consumers who have been burdened by high prices.

“General improvements were seen across the spectrum of income groups surveyed in November,” said Dana Peterson, chief economist at The Conference Board, which gauges consumers' confidence in current economic conditions as well as their expectations for the next six months.

Still, consumers expressed concerns over rising prices, geopolitics and higher interest rates.

The Conference Board found that plans to buy homes, vehicles and appliances trended downwards, “perhaps reflecting the impact of elevated interest rates”.

A separate index found that consumers still fear a looming recession. Two-thirds of respondents believe a recession to be at either “somewhat” or “very likely” within the next 12 months.

The Conference Board noted the index reflects the “short and shallow” recession it predicts in the first half of next year.

The US economy grew 4.9 per cent last quarter. It is projected to grow by 2.1 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2023, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's GDPNow forecast metric.

Philippine Workers to mount Bonifacio Day protest


© STAR/Edd Gumban

MANILA, Philippines — Although Nov. 30 is no longer a holiday, labor groups will still commemorate Bonifacio Day with mass protest actions.

Members of different labor organizations led by the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) are marching to Mendiola in Manila on Thursday.

“We will mark the 160th birthday of our national hero, Andres Bonifacio, to push our campaign for wage hike, jobs, public services, rights and freedom,” the KMU said in a statement.

The group said workers from different areas in Metro Manila will assemble along T.M. Kalaw Avenue then march to the gates of Malacañang.

Philippine government and communist rebels agree to resume talks on ending their protracted conflict




By —Jan M. Olsen, Associated Press

Nov 28, 2023 

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — The Philippine government and the country’s communist rebels have agreed to resume talks aimed at ending decades of armed conflict, one of Asia’s longest, Norwegian mediators announced Tuesday.

High-ranking delegations from both sides met in the Norwegian capital of Oslo last week and agreed to a “common vision for peace” that sought to address key obstacles, according to Norway’s foreign ministry.

Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said the deal was signed at “an important signing ceremony” on Thursday but was only made public on Tuesday.

Since 1969, the Communist Party of the Philippines and its armed wing, the New People’s Army, have fought successive Philippine governments. The rebellion, which opposes the Philippines’ close ties with the United States and wants left-wing parties to be part of the government, has left about 40,000 combatants and civilians dead.

The fighting has also stunted economic development in the impoverished countryside. The military says a few thousand Maoist insurgents continue to wage the insurgency to this day.

READ MORE: Chinese ships block, pursue Philippine vessels as U.S. renews warning it will defend its ally

Past administrations had engaged in intermittent peace negotiations with the rebels. Former President Rodrigo Duterte ended peace talks in March 2019, accusing the rebels of attacks on police and military outposts. The U.S., the European Union and the Philippine government consider the New People’s Army a terrorist organization because of its attacks targeting civilians.

Last year, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. took office as the new president and appeared more open to peace talks. He granted amnesty last week to several former rebels, including those from NPA, for offenses including rebellion, sedition and illegal assembly, but not those suspected of kidnapping, killing, terrorism or similar serious crimes.

Marcos’ namesake father declared martial law in the Philippines in 1972, imprisoning thousands of suspected rebels and communist supporters, until he was ousted in a 1986 popular uprising.

The Philippine government and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, the umbrella group representing the rebels, said in their joint statement that they “recognize the need to unite as a nation in order to urgently address these challenges and resolve the reasons for the armed conflict.”

They “agree to a principled and peaceful resolution of the armed conflict.”

“We envision and look forward to a country where a united people can live in peace and prosperity,” the statement said. The text was the result of several informal discussions between the sides held in the Netherlands and Norway since the beginning of 2022.

”I was happy to hear the parties’ decision to finally end the more than 50-year-long conflict in the Philippines,” said Barth Eide, who witnessed the signing. He said that ”extensive work” remained and that Norway “looks forward to continuing to assist the parties towards a final peace agreement.”

Rebel negotiator Julieta De Lima did not say when formal talks will start. She said issues to be addressed include the detention of rebel “peace consultants,” safety guarantees and immunity from arrest for negotiators, release of what the rebels refer to as political prisoners, and the removal of the terrorist designation for the communist movement.

The previous rounds of talks had collapsed over such demands.

In Manila, Presidential Adviser Carlito Galvez Jr. told reporters that despite the agreement, the government’s anti-insurgency operations will continue.

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said it would be up to local officials to decide if they will declare a local, Christmas cease-fire. The head of the Philippine Armed Forces, Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., said it meant the military could shift its focus to external defenses, referring to territorial tensions with China in the South China Sea.

'Lies and misogyny': Rep. Omar blasts challenger for hurling Trump-esque 'sexist' insults

M.L. Nestel
November 28, 2023

Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-MN)


She says he's shilling lies and sexism to score political points.

Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) is leveling a counteroffensive to her opponent who is trying to defeat her in a 2024 primary rematch.

Former Minneapolis City Council Member Don Samuels is in a race against Omar for the Fifth District and he's throwing slings and arrows that she contends channel Former President Donald Trump and are "beneath the dignity of any adult."

Appearing on "The Break Down" podcast last week, Samuels attempted to take a shot at Omar's "lack of town halls."

"To see government not be responsive like that, to the people that pay them, it is offensive to me," he said, according to Racket. "And to not be responsive and available to those people, to meet with them and find out what their concerns are and to answer their tough questions? To not get back to people on the phone? Who do you think you are? And who do you think you're working for?"

He then added: "You're not cute enough, you don't dress well enough, nothing about you is attractive enough to overcome that deficit."

Omar returned with a searing comeback on social media.

"This is beneath the dignity of any adult, let alone someone seeking public office," the Tuesday post reads. "It is reminiscent of the worst kinds of lies and misogyny that we are hearing from people like Donald Trump, who think they can say anything about women and get away with it."

She continued: "Like Trump, instead of engaging in an adult debate, Don relies on lies and sexism. We need civility now more than ever and Don’s behavior should be alarming to anyone who agrees."

Omar is a charter member progressive House Democrats known as "the squad" and won reelection twice.

The Somali American and Muslim has faced some fallout for for condemning the Israeli government’s over its handling of the war versus Hamas.

Earlier this month, when the Jamaican-born Samuels announced he wanted a rematch against Omar (he lost to her back on August 9, 2022 by 2,466 votes) he claimed to be a uniter while she was a constant divider.

“Our congresswoman has a predilection to divisiveness and conflict,” he said.

Israel lobby offers another candidate $20m to run against Rashida Tlaib in Michigan

November 28, 2023 

Nasser Beydoun revealed on social media that he had been contacted by the Israeli lobby group AIPAC and offered $20 million to run against Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib in Michigan [@NasserforMich/X]


Nasser Beydoun revealed on social media that he had been contacted by the Israeli lobby group AIPAC and offered $20 million to run against Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib in Michigan. Beydoun is the second candidate who has been offered funds to run against Tlaib, with Senate candidate Hill Harper speaking of a similar offer last week.

Taking to X, Beydoun wrote: “Even knowing where I stand on AIPAC’s influence on our elections and foreign policy, the pro-Israel lobby had the nerve to suggest that I would even consider taking a dime from them.”

Adding that he had been asked to “run against my friend Rashida Tlaib.”

“The pro-Israel lobby will go to any length to remove anybody from the US Congress that has any opposition to their agenda and their total unequivocal support for Israel, good, bad, or indifferent.”

Tlaib, who represents Michigan’s 12th District in Congress, is the only Palestinian-American in the US House of Representatives. She is known for her criticism of Israel’s occupation and its invasion of Gaza.

Earlier this month, the House of Representatives voted to censure Tlaib for some statements that angered the Zionist lobby and the right-wing movement in the US, such as the use of the slogan “From the river to the sea.”

Politico first reported on 22 November that a Michigan businessman had offered Harper $20 million in campaign money if he stood against Tlaib in next year’s Democratic primary race, identifying Linden Nelson as the figure.

Indian trade unions stand with Palestine, reject sending workers to Israel

SPECIAL

Members of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions and All India Trade Union Congress hold a pro-Palestine rally in Bhubaneswar, Orrissa, Nov. 29, 2023. (Jayant Das)


SANJAY KUMAR
November 29, 2023

Indian workers rally on International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People

Unionists denounce plans for 90,000 Indians to replace Palestinian workers

NEW DELHI: India’s main trade unions urged the government on Wednesday to uphold its historical support for Palestinian statehood and scrap plans to send tens of thousands of workers to Israel.

Representing some 100 million workers, Indian trade union organizations said earlier this month that the government was considering manpower exports to Israel, which would see some 90,000 Indian construction workers replace their Palestinian counterparts.

As plans to facilitate their replacement with Indians began to emerge, 10 prominent trade unions issued a statement saying the Israeli occupation of Palestine had decimated its economy, making Palestinians dependent on Israel for employment. Facilitating it would “amount to complicity on India’s part with Israel’s ongoing genocidal war against Palestinians,” said the statement.

The unions repeated their call as they observed the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People on Nov. 29.

“(The) Indian working class cannot be party to this genocidal initiative by Israel and marching orders to Palestinian workers working on Israeli soil is a part of that overall genocidal attack. Workers cannot be a party to the heinous exercise,” Tapan Kumar Sen, secretary-general of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, told Arab News.

Members of the CITU, as well as of the All India Trade Union Congress and other Indian members of the World Federation of Trade Unions, wore black badges to work on Wednesday and took part in sit-ins, marches and site protests.

“This is an observation in support of solidarity with Palestinians and demanding that the Indian government play (a role) instead of being soft on Israel,” Sen said.

“We demand that Israel must vacate all the occupied territory of the Palestinian areas identified as Palestinian homeland with Jerusalem as capital.”

In Tamil Nadu, in India’s south, workers in more than half the state’s districts organized rallies.

“This protest is in response to the call given by the World Federation of Trade Unions to observe Nov. 29 as a solidarity day,” Vahidha Nizam, a member of AITUC in the state, told Arab News.

“About 20 districts in Tamil Nadu are holding protest marches in solidarity with the Palestinian people.”

In Bhubaneswar, the capital of the eastern state of Orrissa, six trade unions and activists held a joint protest against Israeli military and settler violence and the support it receives from the West.

“The way the Israel-America axis attacks Palestine ... they are snatching their homeland, they are snatching their rights,” Ramkrushna Panda, AITUC state secretary, told Arab News.

“Trade unions have jointly organized the protest ... Though the Indian government has taken a stand in a different way, our foreign policy has always been in favor of Palestine. The people of the country stand with Palestine, in solidarity with Palestine.”

Support for Palestine was an important part of India’s foreign policy even before independence from British colonial rule in 1947.

Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of India’s freedom movement and one of the fathers of the independent country, had opposed the formation of a Jewish nation-state in Palestine, deeming it inhumane.

“Indian citizens and Indian workers have always stood with the rights of Palestinians to have their own homeland,” said Amarjeet Kaur, secretary-general of the All India Trade Union Congress.

“The Indian government deciding to have a treaty with Israel to send Indian workers there to replace Palestinians goes against the Indian ethos.”

Official: Over 17,000 foreign workers left Israel since 7 October

November 28, 2023 

Travellers arrive to check-in at Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv on October 14, 2023 

GIL COHEN-MAGEN/AFP via Getty Images]


Over 17,000 foreign workers have left Israel since 7 October, after Israel launched its bombing campaign against the besieged Gaza Strip, the Maariv newspaper reported citing a senior official.

The Director of the Immigration and Population Authority at the Ministry of the Interior, Eyal Sisso, told the paper that 9,855 Thai workers in the agricultural sector, 4,331 workers in the construction sector and 2,997 in the nursing sector have left Israel since 7 October, adding that this, in addition to preventing the entry of 85,000 Palestinian workers from the occupied West Bank into Israel has created a shortage of about 100,000 foreign and Palestinian workers.

Sisso said the exodus of thousands of Thai workers came upon the request of the Thai government, after a number of the workers were taken as prisoners of war by the Palestinian resistance.

Sisso said the ministry has worked around the clock to fill the need for foreign workers and has brought in 3,485 workers from India, the Philippines and Sri Lanka, adding that work was done to significantly raise the quotas of foreign workers coming from India from 30,000 to 50,000, and the quotas of workers coming from Sri Lanka and Uzbekistan were also raised.

He explained that foreign workers have also been arriving from African countries including Zambia and Malawi to work in the field of agriculture, and communications began to bring foreign workers from Moldova and Georgia.

Sisso explained that as part of dealing with the emergency, it was decided to extend work permits for foreign workers in the nursing, agricultural and construction sectors.

A three-month temporary permit has also been granted to private companies to bring in foreign workers, depending on the criteria.

Sisso said Israel still continues to bring in Jordanian workers into the hotel sector, where 1,100 Jordanian workers are currently working in hotels in Eilat. Soon, he added, Israel will have to allow the entry of some Palestinian workers in the occupied West Bank into the construction and agricultural sectors.

Hamas’s position is stronger than many think

Hamas has demonstrated surprising resilience and capability since its founding in 1987. It would be a mistake to believe it can be eliminated.

Palestinian supporters of Hamas wave an Islamic flag next to posters of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat during a rally calling for the release of prisoners held in Israeli jails in 2003 in Gaza City. ( Abid Katib/Getty Images)

BEN SCOTT

LOWY INSTITUTE

Follow @Ben_G_Scott

Published 28 Nov 2023 

Hamas has demonstrated surprising resilience and capability since its founding in 1987. It would be a mistake to assume that its 7 October attacks on Israel were a “catastrophic success” that will lead to its downfall, or that it can be militarily eliminated.

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant’s promise to remove Hamas from the face of the earth is reminiscent of former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s commitment at the start of the 2006 war to remove Hezbollah from southern Lebanon “forever”. Hamas will be able to claim victory – as Hezbollah did – simply by surviving. Although Lebanon suffered greatly, Hezbollah came back stronger.
Many saw this split as a new opportunity to strengthen the PA and weaken Hamas. But the opposite happened.

If fighting resumes after the current ceasefire, the cost of Israel’s military operation will grow while the benefits will diminish. Many in the international community will hold Israel responsible for the mounting humanitarian crisis. The Israeli Defence Force will find it progressively harder to identify and destroy Hamas personnel and infrastructure. Washington has signalled that its support for operations in south Gaza will be contingent on a plan to protect civilians. Hamas will do everything it can to prevent that.

Hamas is far from popular in Gaza but it has no viable rivals. There no actors willing and able to govern its place. Any Israeli reoccupation would generate continued insurgency. Washington wants the Palestinian Authority (PA) to return to Gaza, but neither it, nor any Arab states, will risk being seen as the new occupying force. International donors will keep footing the bill for humanitarian aid, allowing Hamas to continue ruling Gaza while avoiding most of the responsibilities.

Even if Hamas is evicted from Gaza it will live on, just as the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) did for decades. Indeed, Hamas’ long-term goal is to supplant the PLO. Hamas is probably more interested in leading the Palestinians than in ruling Gaza. Gaza is not the only route to leadership.
Hamas is far from popular in Gaza but it has no viable rivals.

PLO leader Yasser Arafat animated Arab, Muslim and global public opinion to extract support from regional governments and put the Palestinian issue on the geopolitical map. In 1974, the UN General Assembly recognised the PLO as “the representative of the Palestinian people”. In 1994, Israel recognised the PLO and allowed the creation of the PA to administer parts of Gaza and the West Bank.

Arafat’s Fatah faction swept the PA’s first elections but his maladministration and failure to advance negotiations for statehood cost Fatah public support. Hamas convincingly won the 2006 legislative election but was prevented from exercising any real power, so it took Gaza by force in 2007.

Many saw this split as a new opportunity to strengthen the PA and weaken Hamas. But the opposite happened. As Israel’s West Bank settlements expanded, the Ramallah-based PA lost legitimacy and authority. Meanwhile, Israeli restrictions on access to Gaza inadvertently made Hamas-dominated smuggling from Egypt more cost effective, strengthening Hamas’s economic position. Hamas used periodic conflict to burnish its “resistance” credentials and extract concessions from Israel. It obtained far more than the PA did, including the release, in 2011, of 1000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for an Israeli soldier kidnapped five years earlier.

Hamas’s regional fortunes rose and fell with those of “the Arab Spring”. It was especially heartened by the ascendancy of a fraternal neighbour, the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. Hamas pivoted away from Iran as tension between Sunni Islamists and Iran’s Shia “axis of resistance” grew. In 2012, the leader of Hamas’ political bureau relocated from Damascus to Qatar.

That seemed like a good idea at the time but Egypt’s 2013 counter-revolution saw the return of generals who cracked down harder than ever on the Brotherhood and Hamas. Most Arab monarchies followed suit. More broadly, the Arab Spring failed to deliver a groundswell of regional support for the Palestinians. Arab civil wars and domestic turmoil commanded more attention. The seeming loss of interest in the Palestinian issue enabled Arab governments to normalise relations with Israel to win favour with Washington and counter Iran.

Now the Palestinian question has returned to the top of the regional agenda but with Hamas in the lead. Support is not limited to Iran and its partners and proxies. Qatar, which hosts Hamas’s political leaders, is enjoying praise in the Arab world and, for its mediation efforts, from Israel. Saudi Arabia, which was on the verge of normalising relations with Israel, is now calling for a ban on weapons exports to Israel.

The 7 October attacks stirred memories of Egypt’s surprise attack on Israel 50 years earlier. Popular support for “resistance” from the “river to the sea” is louder than it has been for decades, and will grow if the war continues. Overt support for Hamas may be muted but no one is demonstrating for the PLO, the PA or Fatah, and it is Hamas that is negotiating with Israel in Qatar.