The reality is that the Palestinians cannot have or accept peace, because they cannot afford it! Should the region be blessed with a real peace, what then for the Palestenians who have lived off the welfare of the world donors for so long? They (along with the rest of the Arab world with their billions of dollars) have no concept of building, be it infrastructure, enduring social programmes, institutions of REAL learning etc. They sit and live off the goodwill of others, earned by their lamenting tales of hardship created by their own actions. "We need a billion dollars, let's lob a rocket at Israel, accuse them of genocide and watch the world send us money"... For all the trillions of dollars earned from oil etc, show me one progressive, dynamic Arab country. When the oil dries up, these countries will be left with nothing and the people will return to the desert with their tents and camels. If the Palestinians were genuine, they would behave like a commited people - committed to a better future for all, and from the peace they would reap rewards in society that Israel would have no choice to help fund. But then a mature Arab leader is an oxymoron!!

Against missile fire, yes. It wasn't designed to defend against mortar shelling, because mortar fire really cannot reach the populated portions of Israel. You sound smug. Are you rooting for the terrorists? Perhaps we can arrange to have a mortar fired at YOUR house; come back and tell us how you feel.

There will never be REAL REAL PEACE between JEWS & MUSLIMS,like you can mix electricity with water

All of this is a result of Sharon abandoning the Gaza Strip. The IDF warned him about the consequences-but `peace and reconcilliation' was in the air- at the expense of the Jewish people. The IDF presence in the Strip would have made it impossible for Hamas to function, to develop tunnels and get the proxy support of half of the nuts in this world. Netanayu should look at this fasco as a template in the making of any decisions regarding the West Bank and future protocals of understanding with the Palestinians.

Why don't the so called brothers of the Palastinians (Arabs) give them a home? Israel belongs to Israelis forever!

Do not ask what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country. We can be sitting ducks with rockets and mortars raining on us, while our country sells us out , conducting ineffective and meaningless militairy actions, that produce zero results. We can be lied to, stolen from, cheated out of and deprived of any right due to us. As one can read in this aticle here in Israel we count the dead as a messure of peace, the more dead the more peace we talk. Israelis in general do not understand that peace means the absence of war and bloodshed. So when Hamas, Hibullah and Syria fire thousands of rockets at us, that means we really did sign a peace accord with our neighbours. We will pay the price in blood while our fine elite will survive in their well supplied bombshelters.

At least they dont take hand me downs from the States. Israel cant do it on their own lol. Why do you think Israel still exist. Dont forget to thank your GOD for America and Britain as they have done all the work for your country. Nice try though

now accuse Israel of protecting the lives of the Jews of southern Israel... What a cynical world!!! P.S. And this when the GDP in Gaza has gone up 17%...!!

And I used to think Canadians were an educated bunch!. Of course Israel has been helped by the USA (NOT Britain who are the most anti-semetic, two faced nation you will ever meet - see Cameron as an example). The USA has funded much in Israel, but becuase it benefitted Israel. The power of the ISraeli HiTech industry and the progressive developments in all spheres have been of immeasurable benefit to the USA - not to mention that Israel has been the ideal testing ground for Americam weaponry! WIZ, Open your eyes buddy before some bleeding heart fundamentalist pops a bomb under your kids pram!!

Israel should capture Hamastan, dethrone the Taliban, and effect a regime change with Pro-Israel Gazans ruling Gaza. This operation should be limited to one day.

So Marcel, you are saying it is Gods will that these rockets be fired. You are implying even that God fired them or commanded those who did. let me ask you, Did God tell you this, did you read it in Scripture, or did you think it up all by yourself? Read Psalm 83 Marcel. You are putting God in the camp of the enemy.

It's the 10 day of thunder!!!! Three days before Yom Kippur and you entertain this charade of 'PEACE' to continue...send the B home and stop this charade....

Apparently you don't understand Israel's economy. Israel has a GNP of over $160 billion/year. So I doubt the $3-$5 billion/year that Israel receives in various kinds of aid, would make any real difference in Israel's total economy. I just don't think a 1%-2% cut would seriously affect the economy. Plus most people, and I include you, really don't understand what the U.S. aid consists of, most, falsely think that the U.S. just hands over that aid in cash. That is simply not true. But rather than explain how it works, here is a chart of all aid to Israel from 1949-2009. http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/US-Israel/U.S._Assistance_to_Israel1.html As you will see from the above chart, much of the aid is loan guarantees. Put simply, it's like I co-signed a car loan for my son. He gets a lower interest rate on the loan, because my credit is better. I give him NO MONEY, the bank does, he makes the loan payments. The U.S. does that for Israel, big deal. Israel has never missed a loan payment, nor has any loan ever been forgiven. In addition, for the U.S. doing that, 75 cents, of every dollar, must be spent in the U.S., so U.S. workers get jobs building Jets, bombs or whatever else Israel uses the money for. That is just a couple aspects of this complicated arrangement. Of course the anti-Israel writers try to use this to make people mad at Israel. Just a PR trick by the Arabs, more distortions, to manipulate public opinion against Israel.

... that Abbas does not speak for the Palestinians? Why are we even bothering to go through with this -- yawn -- useless charade? Drop a few really powerful explosives on Gaza, just to swat those annoying little gnats and remind them of their place, tell Hussein Obama (or his proxy, Hillary Clinton) that there is no point in "negotiating" with someone who cannot get his own house in order, bring Bibi back home, and call it a day. We know where to go from here. Won't it be NICE to be able to drive throughout Judea and Samaria without worrying about life and limb? Just think ... no security fence ... no stone-throwers .... no knife or gun-wielding Palestinian terrorists. Can't wait!

They bully the innocent palestinians down south. very stupid.

Wake up Dave ! God told His people Israel to drive out the moon god worshipers and never,never ,never surrender a milimeter of His land to them under any circumstances.Exodus 23 Peace only comes from doing things His way not by way of the EVIL false peace Road Map. What is happening from Gaza is because of Israel's obedience to the false god of no peace in Washington they worship and serve..and their disobedience to Him.

You elected them in the first place. Don't come crying to us to fix your mistakes; we've been fixing things for you for over sixty years and, frankly -- we are tired of it. Take ownership of your mistakes, and settle your issues peacefully. Do you realize how arrogant it is of you -- having worked so hard to get Israel to leave Gaza -- to come, beggar's bowl in hand, asking us to get rid of the very leadership that YOU elected? Why should Israel pay any attention at all to you now? You people will never be independent; never have a state of your own. Admit it: things were much, much better when Israel ran the show. Weren't they? Israeli medical facilities at your beck and call; well-paying jobs in both Gush Qatif and Israel proper, and no bombs falling on your heads. You wanted autonomy; you have it. How do you like it now?

At, say, 10% mobilization and more emphasis on getting the job done (as opposed to collateral damage; just like NATO has done in Afghanistan and Iraq), it wouldn't take more than six hours. Of course, Israel's military is far superior to any of the NATO forces serving in Iraq, Afghanistan or Waziristan, so, better make it two hours. Home in time for lunch.

However, in the Hamas charter it's written that their goal is only the destruction of Israel and replacement with an Islamic State. Their charter does not specifically say that any agreements made by Abbas is null and void. That was Haniyeh who cancelled all past agreements between PA and Israel in 2007. Hamas HAS signed an agreement to adhere to PLO Legislation regarding elections in order to participate in 2006. That law states that the President (Abbas) can disband parliament if he sees fit. The Hamas bloody coup was enough for that - and now Hamas is illegitimate and just a terrorist group. Referring to Tibi, he's just a shmuck. The only solution Israeli Arabs want is a dissolution of Israel in lieu of an Arab State. They won't get that, plus his issue is an internal one while talks with "Palestinians" are a foreign policy issue. If Tibi and Israeli Arabs relate more to Abbas, they can move there. That is their right.

A couple months ago, the US wrote a huge check to Gaza, followed by the EU, and of course, the collective donations from the globe through the UN, for free healthcare, education, food, employment. A Wall Street Journal article was very articulate in defining "Palestinians" as a welfare population who have been trained to fail at self-sufficiency thanks to global donations like these. At the same time, money comes from Iran to the tune of millions of $$$. And with all this income - high unemployment, no real economy, tons of violence and oppression in Gaza, and no viable infrastructure. Quick - name 3 things the "Palestinians" export or are known for globally....besides terrorism? I believe even Canada donated a huge chunk of change to the "Palestinians" recently. Haniyeh thanks you for supporting his illegal arms tunnel network.

That will help us target them better. Right now, terrorist gangs and Hamas leaders hide among you, and your "innocent palestinians" do nothing. Your fault. I remember when one Hamas leader's house was being targeted, he called for Gazans to come and protect it. Gazan civilians ran to surround the house and stand on the roof. Obviously, the IDF called off operations but it only proves that Gazans are NOT innocent. They support the terror activities and thus lose their protection. So, do yourselves a favor. Voice loudly against being used as human shields and stay away from terrorists. Otherwise....

I would like to grab the same numbers of US aid to Arab countries in order to show a more fair contrast, which people like Wiz (euphemism for "piss") deliberately ignore. I'd also like to find the aid agreements which dictate how and for what the aid is spent. Unlike Israel, the Arab countries usually provide no oversight of the money nor proof of its final use.

If I had the time, I'd pull them down for you and post links, but what you can do is google "US Free Trade Agreement with _______" (insert the name of the country in lieu of the blank). You can also google "Bilateral Trade Agreement with _______" (insert the name of the country in lieu of the blank). You are quite correct about oversight. Israel provides excruciatingly detailed and meticulous documentation with respect to how the money is spent; one of the biggest dilemmas that the GAO (General Accounting Office) has is that 90% of the countries that receive aid never provide documentation as to how it is spent. Small wonder -- how in the world would Abbas explain away his private Gulfstream jet and his lavish villas in Ramallah, Damascus and Monte Carlo and his very luxurious apartment in Belgravia (London)? By the way, thanks for the chuckle I enjoyed when reading your comment about the word "wiz."

..to have some sort of success at anything...strictly for his resume(CV),keeps sending Mitchell and HillBill on losing missions,demanding this and that.of Israel and nothing ofthe worthless Abbas and his herd of illerterate sheep,never considering for a moment that is hamas that holds the power in so called palestine. These talks are ...again... a total farce.

I'm glad I could help. I saw that Sarah B. found a way to get the other numbers.