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Zarrar Khuhro Published August 12, 2024
RECENTLY, Benjamin Netanyahu entered the US Congress like a conquering hero, garnering over 50 standing ovations in a 60-minute speech from fawning Congressmen and women clapping for their AIPAC dollars like trained circus seals. While several Congress people boycotted the proceedings and Rashida Tlaib staged a lonely, one-woman protest in the hall, the overwhelming impression was that this is America’s genocide as much as it is Israel’s. In Pakistani parlance, they are absolutely on the same page.
Around the same time, half a world away, Hamas and Fatah — bitter rivals at the best of times — met in Beijing to sign a national unity agreement under the auspices of the Chinese government. Hamas, Fatah and 12 other Palestinian groups agreed to lay the groundwork for an “interim national reconciliation government” that would govern post-war Gaza.
While this does not mean that the problems between Hamas and the Fatah-run Palestinian Authority (PA) — widely viewed by Hamas and its allies as Israel’s accomplices — have ended, it does put a crimp in one of the proposed US-Israeli plans for a post-war Gaza.
Although Netanyahu claims that he wants all of Gaza under direct Israeli control, while holding out the option of a ‘deradicalised’ Palestinian governmental presence, there have been several other proposals that offer insight into what America and Israel envisage happening.
For example, anonymous Israeli officials have let it be known that they were “open in principle to Palestinians securing areas of the Gaza Strip cleared of Hamas”. This statement tallies with US discussing ways to ‘revitalise’ and reform the PA with an aim of having it at least participate in the governing of a post-Hamas Gaza. This proposal was formally rejected by Hamas and also Israel, but Israeli media reported that Netanyahu ‘unofficially’ expressed interest in the plan, though that could have been just to string the US along. The Beijing agreement now makes that an impossibility; even before that, the PA had begun to realise that obeisance to Tel Aviv will not stop the killings of Palestinians in the West Bank nor the illegal seizure of their land, all of which has increased manifold since Oct 7.
In addition to this, support for Hamas in the PA-controlled West Bank has increased manifold, with 82 per cent Palestinians polled there expressing understanding for why Hamas launched the attacks and 88pc calling for PA President Mahmoud Abbas to resign. All this means that the PA is in no physical or political shape to take over Gaza, even if it wanted to.
Before this, another option considered by Israel had come to a premature close. This was to hand over control of Gaza to local clans, who would ‘govern’ the area while also keeping what was left of Hamas suppressed with Israeli aid, and acting as intermediaries for Tel Aviv. Gaza is home to many clans and large family groups of varying influence and power. And while most tend to be law-abiding and benign, some, like the infamous Doghmush clan, formed gangs that engages in murder, kidnapping and racketeering, especially in the chaos preceding and immediately after the Hamas takeover.
Realising that credibility would come from establishing control, Hamas quickly cracked down on such groups and publicly executed those accused of criminal activities, attacks on Hamas leaders and collaboration with Israel. In 2017, one such condemned man, Hisham al-Aloul, accused Israeli intelligence of betraying him before he was executed.
With Hamas under fire and Gaza being decimated, some in Israel decided to give this plan another go earlier this year by once again looking to members of the Doghmush clan as accomplices. Once again, we saw an embattled Hamas take swift action by executing a major clan leader of the tribe in March this year. This was followed by a joint statement from the heads of Palestinian tribes, clans and families rejecting any notion of being used as a governing political body.
Soon after, Basem Naim, a top member of Hamas’ political bureau in Gaza, announced that all Palestinian tribes “have rejected this ‘Zionist offer’ and know that these offers and plans are malicious and aim at dividing the Palestinians”.
Words were followed by action and we saw Fatah, along with numerous clans, civil society groups and factions, stepping in to help provide security for the aid convoys that Israel had relentlessly targeted with the excuse that these transported Hamas members.
This leaves the fantasy of a ‘multinational’ or ‘Arab/Muslim-led’ security force that would magically appear and take over control of whatever is left of Gaza. But given that the only country to even reportedly express interest in this is the UAE, an Arab ally of Israel, this option can be viewed as dead on the ground, much like the children of Palestine.
The writer is a journalist.
X: @zarrarkhuhro
Published in Dawn, August 12th, 2024
Editorial Published August 12, 2024
THE rumbling within the Supreme Court grows louder. In an order pertaining to held-up pension payments by the National Bank of Pakistan, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah has underlined that implementing the apex court’s verdicts is not ‘optional’.
“To disregard or delay the implementation of [the Supreme Court’s] verdicts is to challenge the very framework of our legal system,” he has remarked in the order, noting that when the apex court issues a verdict, it does so as the ultimate interpreter of the Constitution. He has warned that non-compliance sets a dangerous precedent that could lead to executive overreach.
Justice Shah’s observations, also reflected in his remarks a day later at a conference, have stirred speculation over how proceedings in the reserved seats case may unfold. It may be recalled that the government recently enacted legislation designed to frustrate the Supreme Court’s order in the case, while its representatives and allies have taken turns to attack both the judgement and the eight judges behind it.
“The power to hold individuals or entities in contempt for failing to comply with a court order is fundamental to the judiciary’s ability to function effectively,” Justice Shah observes in his order. “Without this power, the judiciary would be rendered toothless, unable to enforce its decisions, thereby jeopardising the administration of justice.”
If the sword of contempt is unsheathed, the ECP could be its first casualty. Having acted on multiple occasions as if it is under no compulsion to obey the laws or court orders, the ECP has, in this instance too, refused to respect the Supreme Court as the final arbiter of the Constitution. It should have allotted whatever reserved seats accrued to the PTI by now in line with court directives, but has chosen, instead, to play tag-team with the government in subverting the verdict.
Still, it must be acknowledged that part of the blame falls on the court itself. Due to certain past actions and decisions, the apex court earned the distrust of the political class, lending itself to controversy. Such actions include the endorsement of military takeovers, and its role in dislodging at least two prime ministers. It must be noted, however, that even in these cases, its verdicts were implemented.
Secondly, the court must also acknowledge that the absence of the detailed verdict in the reserved seats case continues to foster controversy. While it should take adequate measures to enforce its writ and uphold the constitutional order, it must also realise that it needs to announce the detailed verdict soon for the objections against it to be addressed with finality.
The reserved seats case has turned into a charged political issue. Wisdom and restraint are needed in abundance to see the matter through.
Published in Dawn, August 12th, 2024
THINGS appear to be stabilising in Bangladesh after ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed made a swift exit on Aug 5, following massive and bloody protests against her iron-fisted rule. Microfinance pioneer and Nobel laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus — hounded by Sheikh Hasina’s regime — has effectively taken charge as prime minister, though he is being referred to as the country’s ‘chief adviser’. Moreover, an interim cabinet has also been sworn in. There had been fears that the powerful military in Bangladesh would once again take the reins. Yet the cabinet consists mostly of civilians, including technocrats, rights activists and student leaders. Only one ex-military man is part of the set-up. The primary challenge before Dr Yunus and his colleagues is to ensure a peaceful democratic transition through free and fair elections at the first available opportunity. He has not yet given a date for the polls, only saying that they will be held “within a few months”. Of course, law and order are a prerequisite for fair polls. The anti-Hasina protests were marked by huge demonstrations, and often violent reprisals by the erstwhile Awami League government. But while the wounds may be fresh, the interim set-up must ensure there are no revenge attacks against those associated with the former administration. By all means, those involved in violence must face the law, but this should entail a transparent process. Moreover, the Awami League is a political reality in Bangladesh, and for the next polls to be credible, all parties must be given a level playing field, including AL.
There have also been reports of attacks on Hindu temples and houses over the past few days. The Bangladesh authorities should ensure that all minorities are protected under the new set-up. There is both hope and trepidation in Bangladesh. People are hopeful that they will be given political freedom and economic opportunities that many felt they were denied during Sheikh Hasina’s long rule. However, there are also worries that if the democratic transition falters, the military might step in and send the interim set-up packing, initiating a new round of martial rule. Therefore, once the dust settles, Dr Yunus should announce a date for fresh polls. This should close the door on speculation, and send a message to potential adventurers that the voters will determine Bangladesh’s future.
Published in Dawn, August 12th, 2024
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