Why the Palestinian Civil War is good for Palestine

The fact that Palestinians are now killing Palestinians should come as no surprise.

This is not because of the innate character of Palestinians, or Arabs, or Muslims, as certain anti-Arab bigots would have us believe. Nor is it a deliberate ploy by Israel and the United States to destroy the Palestinians, as Israel-bashers would have us believe. It's because civil war is the natural state of war.

Almost all wars are civil wars. This is because it's more natural to fight over your own country than over someone else's. This is a general application of the principle that competition happens between similar agents. Think about it: despite the fabled "racial tensions" in the U.S., most violence in this country is committed against people of the same race. And cats and dogs may fight like cats and dogs, but cats spend most of their time battling other cats, and dogs battling dogs. Like fights like. Competition is over niches.

So what does it mean that the Palestinians are now in civil war? Most analysts think it hurts their cause of gaining a nation-state. but I have to disagree. The fact that the Palestinians are fighting means that a niche has been carved for them, and that niche will eventually turn into a country.

For a long time, Palestinians fought Israelis, because they viewed themselves as being in basically the same situation the Israelis were in - a landless people struggling for a piece of Britain's shattered empire. For the Palestinians, it was still 1948, and it was "them or us" - there would be an Israel or a Palestine, but not both. There was only one niche.

But it's finally not 1948 anymore. We've had Oslo, the Palestinian Authority, two failed intifadahs, Israel's "separation fence," the Gaza withdrawal, and the Road Map. It's finally become apparent to all parties concerned that neither the Israelis nor the Palestinians are going anywhere. Two niches now exist.

That's why the Palestinians are fighting amongst themselves - not because they have failed to secure a state, but because they have succeeded. Remember, the current violence was started by the results of a Palestinian election - the key hallmark of sovereignty. It was also prompted by Israel's withdrawal from Gaza - an indication that the Palestinians are now absolute masters of at least one piece of land. The West Bank will follow.

It's very sad that people have to die, get shot, lose their homes, and be pushed into poverty in order for this transition to happen. I wish it didn't have to happen that way. But I'm hopeful. I believe that the Palestinians are fighting because they have something to fight over. And when both Fatah and Hamas finally get tired of bloodshed, they'll wake up and realize that Palestine is a reality.