Palestinian implosion

Tension escalated in the Palestinian territories today after an all-out eruption yesterday. 

The main headline in al-Ayyam, a leading Palestinian newspaper, described it as “Black Sunday”.

No, the Palestinians aren’t engaged in violent conflict with Israel, at the moment.

Nine Palestinians were killed on Sunday in clashes between forces loyal to Hamas and those loyal to Fatah in the worst internal fighting in months.

Gunmen from rival Palestinian factions killed one person and wounded four others in the Gaza Strip and occupied West Bank on Monday as Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas appealed for an end to the internal fighting.

Neither Fatah nor Hamas appears likely to back down, and everyone in the region is caught in this dire crisis. Secretary of State Rice is headed over there later this week for diplomatic relief.

Humanitarian relief for the Christians caught in the midst of the chaos can be anybody’s mission. One of the best organizations on that mission is the Franciscan Foundation for the Holy Land. They’re doing heroic work with meager means. Check them out. They’re the ones trying to preserve the Christian presence in the Holy Land.