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中国日报网环球在线消息:2008年,美国《华盛顿邮报》发表美国前总统卡特署名文章说,巴以之间的此次战争本可以避免。
我的经历告诉我,以色列对加沙的大规模袭击本可以避免。
去年4月,我和妻子罗莎林到访了以色列南部的斯德洛特,见到了饱受哈马斯火箭弹袭击的居民经历的心灵创伤,我就明确地说,哈马斯发射火箭弹的行为不可原谅,这是恐怖主义作为。尽管哈马斯的袭击没有造成太多的人员伤亡(7年中只有3人死亡),但常常不期而至的火箭弹袭击却让这个小城创伤累累。目前已经有3000多名当地居民离乡背井、另寻住所,城里的街道、广场和店铺基本上无人光顾。斯德洛特一些市民和市长在市长办公室中接待了我们,并向我们诉苦,抱怨以色列政府没有采取有效措施阻止来自加沙的火箭弹袭击,无论是通过外交途径还是军事行动。
他们知道我在叙利亚停留时会见到哈马斯的领导人,于是我向市长承诺尽量促成停火。负责在巴以双方间斡旋的埃及情报机构高官告诉我们,巴以双方有着根本的冲突,哈马斯想要在约旦河西岸和加沙地带都实现停火,但以色列则拒绝讨论任何与加沙无关的话题。
加沙地区有150万人生活在贫困和饥饿之中,正如联合国报告中所言,加沙地区居民严重的营养不良已经堪比撒哈拉以南非洲的最贫困国家,有半数以上的巴勒斯坦家庭每天只能吃上一顿饭。
被关押在加沙地区的巴勒斯坦领导人对加沙的整个局势没有义务,他们声称只有火箭弹袭击才能让外界知道他们被关押的现实和他们所遭受的人道主义困境。而哈马斯领导人则表示,若以色列不再对加沙发动袭击,同时承诺提供正常的人道主义援助,哈马斯可以考虑在加沙地区停火。双方进一步谈判后,哈马斯决定接受以色列和巴勒斯坦民族权力机构主席阿巴斯可能达成的任何和平协议。
因为我们只是观察员,而非谈判方代表,我们只能是将这一消息传递给埃及,然后让他们做出停火提议。大概1个月之后,埃及和哈马斯方面通知我们,双方可以在6月19日开始实现6个月的停火,以色列同时将把对加沙的人道主义援助恢复到2005年撤军前的水平,大概每天有700辆卡车运送物资入境。
当时我们还无法确认双方停火协议能否实现,因为以色列不愿承认任何与哈马斯谈判的结果,但很快双方实现了停火,而且食品、饮用水、药物和能源的援助逐渐也恢复了,但只恢复到承诺的20%的水平。但双方脆弱的停火协议仅仅坚持到11月4日,以色列就开始向加沙的防御性地道发动进攻。
去年12月中旬,我再次访问叙利亚,旨在努力延长巴以双方6个月的停火协议。很明显,当时最突出的问题就是要打开前往加沙的通道。卡特中心代表在耶路撒冷与以色列官员进行了非正式会面,并与以方协商停火的条件。以色列政府虽没有正式表示,但也同意如果哈马斯在48小时内停止火箭弹袭击,以方将恢复对加沙地区15%的人道主义援助。这对哈马斯是无法接受的,双方的敌对情绪再度爆发。
目前,以色列对哈马斯的军事行动已经持续了第12天,以色列国防军报告称,以军已经在加沙摧毁了1000多个哈马斯的军事目标。当时,以色列在布什政府的支持下,将国际社会促成停火的努力拒之门外,导致17座清真寺、美国在加沙建立的国际学校,以及很多民居和基础设施被毁。包括基本的水电和卫生设施都未能逃过劫难。各国医疗机构的志愿者已经向我们宣布了大规模的平民伤亡,而那些受伤幸存下来的人们也只能在简陋的柴油灯下接受治疗。
目前的希望在于,双方的仇恨不再,以色列、哈马斯和美国可以在国际社会的监督下达成并宣布新的停火协议,而无休止的火箭弹袭击可以停止,巴勒斯坦地区的幸存者们也能获得足够的人道主义援助。下一步才可能是中东地区的全面永久和平。
(环球在线:霍默静)
An Unnecessary WarI know from personal involvement that the devastating invasionofGaza by Israel could easily have been avoided.
After visiting Sderot last April and seeing theseriouspsychological damage caused by the rockets that had fallenin thatarea, my wife, Rosalynn, and I declared their launching fromGazato be inexcusable and an act of terrorism. Although casualtieswererare (three deaths in seven years), the town was traumatized bytheunpredictable explosions. About 3,000 residents had moved toothercommunities, and the streets, playgrounds and shopping centerswerealmost empty. Mayor Eli Moyal assembled a group of citizens inhisoffice to meet us and complained that the government of Israelwasnot stopping the rockets, either through diplomacy ormilitaryaction.
Knowing that we would soon be seeing Hamas leaders from Gazaandalso in Damascus, we promised to assess prospects for acease-fire.From Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, who wasnegotiatingbetween the Israelis and Hamas, we learned that therewas afundamental difference between the two sides. Hamas wantedacomprehensive cease-fire in both the West Bank and Gaza, andtheIsraelis refused to discuss anything other than Gaza.
We knew that the 1.5 million inhabitants of Gaza werebeingstarved, as the U.N. special rapporteur on the center to foodhadfound that acute malnutrition in Gaza was on the same scale asinthe poorest nations in the southern Sahara, with more than halfofall Palestinian families eating only one meal a day.
Palestinian leaders from Gaza were noncommittal on allissues,claiming that rockets were the only way to respond totheirimprisonment and to dramatize their humanitarian plight. ThetopHamas leaders in Damascus, however, agreed to consider acease-firein Gaza only, provided Israel would not attack Gaza andwouldpermit normal humanitarian supplies to be delivered toPalestiniancitizens
After extended discussions with those from Gaza, theseHamasleaders also agreed to accept any peace agreement that mightbenegotiated between the Israelis and Palestinian AuthorityPresidentMahmoud Abbas, who also heads the PLO, provided it wasapproved bya majority vote of Palestinians in a referendum or by anelectedunity government.
Since we were only observers, and not negotiators, we relayedthisinformation to the Egyptians, and they pursued thecease-fireproposal. After about a month, the Egyptians and Hamasinformed usthat all military action by both sides and all rocketfiring wouldstop on June 19, for a period of six months, and thathumanitariansupplies would be restored to the normal level that hadexistedbefore Israel"s withdrawal in 2005 (about 700 trucksdaily).
We were unable to confirm this in Jerusalem because ofIsrael"sunwillingness to admit to any negotiations with Hamas, butrocketfiring was soon stopped and there was an increase in suppliesoffood, water, medicine and fuel. Yet the increase was to anaverageof about 20 percent of normal levels. And this fragile trucewaspartially broken on Nov. 4, when Israel launched an attack inGazato destroy a defensive tunnel being dug by Hamas inside thewallthat encloses Gaza.
On another visit to Syria in mid-Decr, I made an effort fortheimpending six-month deadline to be extended. It was clear thatthepreeminent issue was opening the crossings intoGaza.Representatives from the Carter Center visited Jerusalem, metwithIsraeli officials and asked if this was possible in exchangefor acessation of rocket fire. The Israeli governmentinformallyproposed that 15 percent of normal supplies might bepossible ifHamas first stopped all rocket fire for 48 hours. Thiswasunacceptable to Hamas, and hostilities erupted.
After 12 days of "combat," the Israeli Defense Forcesreportedthat more than 1,000 targets were shelled or bombed. Duringthattime, Israel rejected international efforts to obtain acease-fire,with full support from Washington. Seventeen mosques,the AmericanInternational School, many private homes and much ofthe basicinfrastructure of the small but heavily populated areahave beendestroyed. This includes the systems that providewater,electricity and sanitation. Heavy civilian casualties arebeingreported by courageous medical volunteers from many nations,as thefortunate ones operate on the wounded by light fromdiesel-poweredgenerators.
The hope is that when further hostilities are nolongerproductive, Israel, Hamas and the United States will acceptanothercease-fire, at which time the rockets will again stop andanadequate level of humanitarian supplies will be permitted tothesurviving Palestinians, with the publicized agreement monitoredbythe international community. The next possible step: apermanentand comprehensive peace.