In a post last week I argued that Hamas's best chance to save itself from defeat was a renewed Intifada in the West Bank. An article today in Haaretz suggests that there's not likely to be a new Intifada. According to the report:
It's quiet in Ramallah. At the northern entrance to the city, not far from the mall, a new fountain spouts water. Next to it lies a sign in English: "Gaza under fire." But it seems the Gaza Strip has never been so far away. Tel Aviv, meanwhile, feels closer than ever. Almost every day at 1 P.M., a demonstration leaves Manara Square in the city center, expressing support for the residents of the Gaza Strip. The number of participants has declined, however, on a daily basis, and on Wednesday the demonstration was called off for a lack of protesters.
The Al Jazeera bureau chief in the West Bank commented:
The residents of the West Bank lost a great deal in the course of the last Intifada, but saw no achievements. They are very afraid of more losses, mainly in light of the crisis of confidence between the Palestinian street and its leadership.
The report also outlines other reason for the failure of the West Bank to explode.
...it is difficult not to get the impression that the relative apathy of the Palestinians in the West Bank stems from several reasons that the public does not like to bring up, certainly not in times like these. First and foremost, the historical gaps between the residents of the West Bank and the Strip. The residents of Ramallah and other West Bank cities have always looked down on their brethren in Gaza. Second, the Hamas coup in the Strip about a year and a half ago left behind quite a few scars. To see innocent Palestinian citizens killed in bombings is sad, but for quite a number of Fatah supporters, Hamas brought this upon itself. Mohammed, a 46-year-old businessman, offers another reason for the apathy: "We're afraid to see the tanks outside the house again."
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