The United States has long invested in the training of Palestinian Authority “security forces.” The problem, of course, is that the Palestinian Authority is divided between two terrorist organizations. The United States supports Fatah, which to my knowledge has never lifted a finger to eliminate its terrorist infrastructure. Reporting from Ramallah earlier this week, Aaron Klein updates a disgusting story: “Fatah militant: U.S. training was key to intifada’s success.” Klein reports:
Under an agreement signed this month by Secretary of State Rice and Palestinian Arab Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, Force 17 officers are slated to take course work and conduct VIP protection exercises under the State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security.
The new training program aims to help the Palestinian Authority “deliver security for the Palestinian people and fight terrorism, build confidence between the parties, and ultimately help to meet the security needs of Palestinians and Israelis alike,” a State Department press release said.
The training program, which includes courses in the use of weapons, paid with $86.5 million in funding granted to the Palestinian Authority by Congress in April.
Many members of Force 17 and the Preventative Security Services also openly serve in Fatah’s declared “military wing,” Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, which took credit along with the Islamic Jihad terror group for every suicide bombing in Israel between 2005 and 2006. The Brigades is responsible for more terrorism from the West Bank than any other Palestinian Arab organization.
If they were paying attention, or if they didn’t support “the Palestinians,” the mainstream media could seriously embarrass the Bush administration.
Notice: All comments are subject to moderation. Our comments are intended to be a forum for civil discourse bearing on the subject under discussion. Commenters who stray beyond the bounds of civility or employ what we deem gratuitous vulgarity in a comment — including, but not limited to, “s***,” “f***,” “a*******,” or one of their many variants — will be banned without further notice in the sole discretion of the site moderator.