GAZA DISARMAMENT. We hear too much about a ceasefire and not enough about a full disarmament. Because that came first in the post-WWII allied occupation and reconstruction of Germany. Yes, I said occupation, which must precede reconstruction. And little or no controversy surrounded that word after WWII.
Gaza needs occupation by peacekeeping forces in order to rebuild. And peacekeeping means disarmament of the losing side. Yes, the Palestinians lost the Gaza War. But they are trying to act like winners, dictating the terms of “ceasefire” and “hostage release.”
No, the winners decide the terms, adapting them to what will work on the ground. The Germans realized that, gave up their arms, and let the allies help them rebuild. They cooperated with the allies’ terms and got started down the road to long-term peace and prosperity. Read Harald Jahner’s Aftermath: Life in the Fallout of the Third Reich 1945-1955.
The lasting success of the 4 D’s
They called the allied plan the four D’s. First disarmament, also called demilitarization. Then denazification, decentralization and democratization. To destroy Hamas—dehamasification—you need disarmament first. Locate and remove all weapons from Gaza and the terrorists with them. Don’t let humanitarian aid in until the terrorists are out of Gaza and the hostages are released. And don’t let any terrorists or weapons back in except weapons carried by peacekeepers.
Palestinian Arabs should find the third D “decentralization” attractive. Arabs have always identified more with tribes and local communities than Western-imposed nation-states. Rebuilding should accommodate that preference.
The fourth D “democratization” would prove more difficult. Maybe we need a better term for that phase. As long as it’s not “dictatorship,” which many protested during the Arab Spring, but reverted to afterwards. Few Arab states have the legal institutions necessary for building a democracy.
Few will deny that the 4 D’s had lasting success in devastated Germany. Either the Trump plan or the Egypt plan for Gaza could adopt those essential principles. But disarmament must be the first D. Otherwise, terrorists will disrupt the rest of the plan. And the vicious cycle of violence will begin all over again.
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Pexels image from David Peinado
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