...if it frees itself from political islam, the worst outgrowths of which are shit like hamas and islamic jihad. only a materialst, secularist perspective away from the "havens" of religion, culture and people's ideologies offer anything close to freedom to the people in gaza.

2% yes in the long run, true freedom will mean the end of not only political islam but all political clans a sects, governments and states.

98% wrong - Islamic Jihad and Hamas exist exactly because the prevented unity in the secular PLO and were therefore funded by israeli secret service in the 80's. Political islam is a boon to Israel as it can stand back and say 'negotiate? but our opponents are nuts!'. And Israel continually provokes such groups (like the army entering the jerusalem mosque in the 90's, the assassinations to this day) so that they are constantly pushed back to their most extreme positions. Hamas is ready to recognise Israel, it cannot say as much too often for its political reasons, but it is clear. So, israel have made sure since Hamas' election to attack, and provoke opinion in gaza and the west bank so that no discussion can be had.

Responsibility overhwelmingly lies with israel.

But doesn't gaza have a border with Egypt? So can't it get all it needs from Egypt?

Yes Gaza does have a border with Egypt, but it is administered by a combination of Israel and a multinational force, with only one border crossing at Rafah. Israel has a veto over who or what comes in and out, and the site is also geographically remote. Many Palestinians are left destitute in Egypt because they leave Gaza at this point for education, healthcare, jobs or to visit family, and are then not permitted to return. The border with Egypt is similar to that of the West Bank with Jordan, where although there is none of Israel physically between the two points, the border crossing points are administered by Israel and staffed by Israeli soldiers and border guards, and any Palestinians wishing to leave via it have to apply weeks or months before for permission, and then may be refused or not allowed to use their passes if the border is closed by Israel, as often happens randomly and without notice.

Not for much longer:

 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4720495.stm

Thanks for the link, puzzled, but if you look at the last three paragraphs of the BBC article the shift from Israeli to Egyptian troops is far from definite, and such measures have been announced and withdrawn before depending on the shift of politics. Also note the comments re the Egyptians and Hamas - I'm no great fan of Hamas myself, but Arab states such as Jordan and Egypt have rarely proved themselves genuine friends to the Palestinians, and there is no guarantee that an Egyptian takeover will improve civil rights for residents of Gaza, or that Egypt would not continue to co-operate with Israel in terms of imposing draconian controls on Palestinians individuals and trade crossing at Rafah. There have also been suggestions that Egypt and Israel will not co-operate with the de facto Hamas government in Gaza and may only work with the Fatah-aligned security forces to operate the border crossing, which given the current political situation in Gaza would be unworkable.
See:  http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article7135.shtml