Apparently, over the last couple of weeks there has been a rare disharmony between Israel and the White House over Palestinian civilian casualties, the humanitarian crisis in the occupied territories and the siege and destruction of Arafat's compound. Sharon's trip to the US, his seventh in 18 months, was aimed at reducing tensions between the two countries and restoring their unwavering support for each other. However, the stern US criticism of Israel's action did not result in Israel being told to fall in line, but rather quite the opposite, Bush was persuaded, once again, to adopt Sharon's views on world affairs. Sharon fearful of being set "red lines for Israeli operations in the West Bank and Gaza Strip," walked away with a carte blanche to carry out his heart's desires.

So, why the suspected disharmony reported throughout the media? The Bush administration is keen on getting the support of the Arab world in a war against Iraq, if not by direct military assistance, at least by not hindering America's campaign to topple Saddam Hussein. This, of course, is harder to achieve and maintain if Israel continues to kill scores of Palestinian civilians, further cripple the dire humanitarian situation in the occupied territories, attack Lebanon over the Wazzani River and retaliate forcefully against a potential Iraqi attack. So, lately Israel has been under a lot of pressure from both the US and Britain to practice self restraint and ease the suffering of Palestinians. This message was delivered by Daniel C. Kurtzer, the American Ambassador to Israel, in a letter that sternly criticized Israeli actions, calling for troop withdrawals, the easing of restrictions on the movement of Palestinians and the hand over of PA frozen funds. Furthermore, the US has requested that Israel resolves its dispute with Lebanon by diplomatic means "if possible".

Despite the fact that Sherard Cowper Coles, Britain's Ambassador to Israel, said that the West Bank and Gaza were "the largest detention camp in the world" and that Ari Fleischer, White House spokesperson, said "the president has a lot of humanitarian thought toward the legitimate needs of the Palestinian people and he wants to continue to impress the message on Israel", Sharon managed to walk away from his meeting with the President wearing a big smile. While prior to the meeting the US administration wanted Israel not to respond to an Iraqi attack, by the end of the meeting Bush stated, "If attacked, Israel will know how to defend itself." Furthermore, Sharon and his advisors told Bush they would not scale back Israel's military actions against Palestinians, and a senior Israeli official said that the Bush administration did not ask Israel for such restraint. In effect, Sharon got everything he wanted and the US was whipped into shape. After all, by now it seems obvious that Israel takes precedence over American interests.

Before leaving for the US, despite the supposed pressure not to further escalate the situation conflict, Sharon allowed the assassination of Mohammad Abayat, probably hoping the Palestinians would respond and force Bush to back off pressuring Israel to reduce it operations. Having finished his meeting with the President, which turned out better than Sharon could have ever imagined, Sharon took America's renewed support for his actions and let his military carry out another horrifying operation that lead to eight dying in Rafah, most of them women and children, and over 50 injured, many of whom are in critical condition.

The results of the meeting are on par with what Palestinians expected, Israel to be given renewed affirmation and support of its killing of countless Palestinians. Bush called Sharon a "close friend", Sharon praised Bush for his unwavering support and love for Israel saying "as we look back towards many years now, I think we have never had such relations with any president of the US as we have with you." Any suspected disharmony evaporated instantly and any presumed red lines were erased. In a recent speech given to East Literature Magnet School, Nashville, Tennessee, on teaching American history and civic education, George W. was trying, unsuccessfully, to recall an old saying that goes like this, "you fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me," referring to why he wants to overthrow Saddam. Well, Mr. Bush you have just been fooled again, but not by Saddam, rather by your "close friend" Sharon.