Everybody wants to see the violence end?

The United States blamed Hamas Wednesday for the latest round of fighting in the Gaza Strip, accusing the radical Palestinian group of trying to undermine the peace process with Israel.

U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said the attacks by Hamas against the Palestinian security forces seek to destabilize the Palestinian government and thwart negotiations with Israel.

"Everybody wants to see the violence end. But let's be clear about who triggered this latest wave of violence," McCormack said, referring to Hamas.

"There are those who are irreconcilable to any political process that would result in negotiations with Israel to resolve the Israeli- Palestinian conflict," McCormack added.

White House spokesman Tony Snow said Wednesday the Palestinians "are going to have to sort out their politics and figure out which pathway they want to pursue, the pathway towards two states living peaceably side by side or whether this sort of chaos is going to become a problem." Link

db: One thing I'm sure of - 'everybody' does not want to see the violence end. Many would like to see Hamas destroyed, at any cost to the civilian population. Much like those same parties wanted to see the destruction of Hezbollah via Israeli bombs last year. The plight of civilians matters little when there is a chance of eliminating Islamist opposition to 'western backed' entities.

The US and the EU have undermined both the political wing of Hamas and the very concept of democracy by their failure to engage with the elected government - predictably giving more power to those who would rather use violence to further their aims.