Reuters Headline: Gaza Truce Failing Because Of “Israeli Brinkmanship”

And by “Israeli brinkmanship” they explicitly mean “Israel’s refusal to give Hamas everything they want”:

Outgoing Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is mounting a last-ditch effort to free a captured Israeli soldier by blocking an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire in the Gaza Strip until Hamas agrees to release him. Whether Olmert’s brinkmanship can produce a breakthrough in the few weeks he has left depends on Israel making difficult concessions that could bolster Hamas, and on the Islamist group taking a gamble on the Jewish state keeping its word. Many diplomats are skeptical all the pieces will fall in place. Hamas has no faith that Israel, which is about to change governments, will abide by commitments under the proposed ceasefire, mainly to keep Gaza’s border crossings open, if captured soldier Gilad Shalit is freed. Wary of taking steps it believes would bestow legitimacy on Hamas, Israel has refused to provide guarantees and has rebuffed a proposal for the U.N. to monitor the compliance of both sides, according to diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Last month Reuters said that a truce was being stymied because Israel wanted it too much. This month it’s Israel’s fault because Israel doesn’t want it enough. Where to even begin with these tools?

(1) I like how the overarching assumption is that Shalit’s fate is incidental to hostilities that went hot when Hamas kidnapped Shalit. Why not just be clear and say that Israel is blocking a truce because they’re insisting that Hamas abide by a truce?

(2) When I say that 15 years of structurally asymmetric negotiations have created a habit of thought where manifestly disproportionate expectations seem balanced, I’m talking about sentences like: “… depends on Israel making difficult concessions that could bolster Hamas and on the Islamist group taking a gamble on the Jewish state keeping its word.” Don’t get distracted by the “sneaky Jews” undertone. The important part is the ostensible balance between Israel making concessions and Hamas psychologically coping with those concessions. Poor babies. I hope it’s not overwhelmingly traumatic for them!

(3) Israel doesn’t trust the UN to monitor Hamas’s compliance? Really? Do you think that’s because UNIFIL has leaked Israeli intel to Hezbollah and done less than nothing to stop them from rearming? Or do you think it’s because the UN always seems to abandon its monitoring agreements when it’s most convenient for Israel’s enemies? Or do you think it’s because UN personnel in the Gaza Strip have – within the last few months – unblinkingly denied Hamas war crimes so they could shamelessly lie about Israel violating the ceasefire? Could be any of them I guess.

(4) Israel is also wary of trusting Gaza Palestinians to abide by a post-election ceasefire because Gaza Palestinians have said that they have no intention of abiding by a post-election ceasefire. I wonder how that got left out.

Last paragraph of this abortion of an article:

Under that six-month deal, Israel was supposed to let 30 percent more goods into the Gaza Strip. Citing Israel’s failure to do so, Hamas pulled out of the deal and renewed cross-border rocket fire, triggering last month’s war.

I’ve been trying to come up with a sarcastic way to insert the link about how Hamas never stopped their rocket fire, which is what caused Israel to periodically and temporarily shut down the crossings. But fuck it. (h/t: MR reader Jerry)

References and previously after the jump…

References:
* Israeli brinkmanship puts Gaza truce in peril
* Mere Rhetoric: Reuters Headline On Israel’s Demand For Long-Term Truce: “Israel Rebuffs Temporary Truce” (Plus: Hamas Rejects Truce. Again.) [MR]
* Obama Envoy George Mitchell: I’m Moving In! [MR]
* UNIFIL Soldiers Catch Hezbollah Moving Weapons, Get Shooed Away [MR]
* Anti-Israel Partisans Set New Record For Decades-Old Trick Of Brazenly Rewriting History, Blaming Israel [MR]
* UN Palestinian Stooge: “It’s Obvious” That Israeli Attack Violated 48-Hour Truce That No One Knew About Until Now [MR]
* Gaza Terrorists: We’ll Keep Trying To Kill Jews No Matter Who Wins The Election [MR]
* Hamas Continues Long Tradition Of “Shaking” And “Threatening” And “Endangering” Ceasefire By Firing Dozens Of Rockets At Israeli Schools And Hospitals [MR]