T. Belman. The PA is also responsible for its failure so its only right.
The “deal of the century” is a farce. We suspected that, of course, but, upon his return from Washington, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed in more detail why the long-anticipated US plan has no basis in reality. Netanyahu told his cabinet there are “no concrete details” to report on the White House peace plan. One has to suspect that the “plan” was, all along, the US disavowal of the so-called peace process and the dropping of the “honest peace broker” act.
In fact, that much has been achieved, especially with the US decision last December to accept Israel’s illegal annexation of East Jerusalem by agreeing to move the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Since then, Israel has initiated a clear strategy to annex the West Bank. Its top officials are contending that the “two-state solution” is not even deserving of a conversation. “We are done with that,” said Israel’s Education Minister Naftali Bennett in remarks to students in New York. “They have a Palestinian state in Gaza.”
The Palestinian Authority of Mahmoud Abbas was, thus, left in an inviable position. It is lashing out left and right, convulsing like a wounded animal.
It is hard to imagine that, at the moment, Abbas is orbiting within a grand strategy of any kind. Random statements and attacks on his Palestinian rivals, the Israelis and the Americans — mostly for betraying him — is all that seems to keep his name in the news. “May God demolish his home,” was one of the statements attributed to the Palestinian leader in response to President Donald Trump’s decision regarding Jerusalem. That was on January 14. A few days ago, Abbas referred to David Friedman, the ardently right-wing and pro-Israel US ambassador to Israel, as a “son of a dog.” Friedman is an avid supporter of the illegal Jewish settlements, but name-calling is not a promising sign of a constructive Palestinian strategy.
Abbas feels beleaguered, disowned by Washington and a victim of an elaborate US-Israeli plot that has cost Palestinians precious time and much land, while leaving Abbas with nothing but an embarrassing political legacy. He is not necessarily angry because the US has betrayed its role in the “peace process.” He is angry because he has, for years, perceived himself as a member of the American camp of “moderates” in the Middle East. Now, however, he matters not. The US government is notorious for betraying its allies.
The US, now run by the most pro-Israel administration in years, has no role for Abbas to play. They renounced him, and carried on to imagine a “solution” in Palestine that only serves the interests of Israel. A recent meeting, chaired by leading pro-Israel officials in Washington, including Jared Kushner, was dubbed a “brainstorming session” on how to solve the Gaza crisis. No Palestinian was involved in the conference.
Since Abbas had hung all his hopes on Washington, he is left with no plan B. The Europeans don’t have the will, desire or political clout to replace the US. They have often served as lackeys to US foreign policy, and it would not be easy, if at all possible, for any European government to replace the US as the new “honest peace broker.”
Abbas’ popularity — and that of the PA — among Palestinians is negligible. In fact, 70 percent of Palestinians want him to step down immediately, according to a poll conducted last December. Yet, at 83 and suffering from ill health, Abbas is still holding on tightly to his chair.
It may appear that, during this time of political uncertainty and isolation, it would be advantageous for Abbas to reach out to other Palestinian factions. However, the opposite is true. Abbas is accusing his main rival, Hamas, of an assassination attempt on PA Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah.
After a promising agreement, signed in Cairo between Fatah — Abbas’ party — and Hamas in October last year, all hopes have been dashed once more. In a joint conference with visiting Bulgarian President Rumen Radev in Ramallah last week, Abbas proclaimed: “The Gaza Strip has been hijacked by Hamas. They must immediately hand over everything, first and foremost security, to the Palestinian national consensus government.”
What “national consensus government” is Abbas referring to? There have been no general elections since Hamas won a parliamentary majority in 2006, while Abbas himself rules on an expired mandate.
Oddly, it is the conflict between Abbas and Hamas that is allowing both sides to impose themselves on the Palestinian public, which is left disenchanted, practically leaderless and facing the brunt of occupation and apartheid on its own. Instead of mending fences with the Palestinian people, Abbas continues with his political one-man show, encouraged by his enablers in the PA, who are equally responsible for the havoc wreaked by the US and Israeli governments.
Still, the Palestinian leadership (whether in the PA or the PLO) continues its desperate attempts to resuscitate the “peace process.” They are lonely warriors in a political illusion that has been abandoned even by its own masters.
For Abbas and the PA, participating in the US-led project was the final bridge they hoped would not be burned. However, the decision to relocate the US Embassy signaled that the last bridge was indeed up in flames — but Abbas is yet to be convinced of this obvious reality.
From American and Israeli viewpoints, the “peace process” could be considered a success. It allowed the US to define the political agenda in the Middle East and for Israel to shape the physical reality of the Occupied Territories in any way it found suitable.
The Palestinian leadership has emerged as the biggest loser. It first sat at the negotiation table to talk of borders, refugees, water, territories and Jerusalem, only to be left with nothing. It has lost both credibility and legitimacy. The space in which it was permitted to negotiate has withered year after year.
The Palestinian people must reflect on this current harsh reality, but also hope for a new beginning predicated on unity, the re-articulating of national priorities, and a new strategy.
- Ramzy Baroud is a journalist, author and editor of Palestine Chronicle. His latest book is ‘The Last Earth: A Palestinian Story’ (Pluto Press, London, 2018). Baroud has a Ph.D. in Palestine Studies from the University of Exeter and is a Non-Resident Scholar at Orfalea Center for Global and International Studies, University of California Santa Barbara. His website is www.ramzybaroud.net.
I’ve just been reading that Trump’s plan, along with his associated Arab allies, is for Jordan to reoccupy a part of YESHA, and Egypt the Gaza strip. The PA is OUT. It’s a sort of “informed” guess, ending with a question mark, but it doesn’t please me at all. Why should Jordan be allowed to “re-occupy”.They belligerently captured and illegally occupied some of YESHA for 19 years total, and practically destroyed it, along with the 56 Beitim Mikdashim.. many of them ancient, and made latrines and walls from the tombstones on the Mount of Olives. But they did us one favour. They pushed out all Jews, murdered only some……….!!.
It’s OUR Land, lawfully, and to hand it to stinking terrorist entities is an abysmal way to make the “Deal”..
Let’s hope it’s all wrong, and that Trump keeps his word and allows Israel to make it’s own choices, as he has so often said.
This article has some facts on the internal power plays between the PA, Fatah, Hamas, some half truths on their politics and some false notions and narrative concerning the US and Israel, who actually would love to see peace but cannot accept through an act of national suicide by Israel. The simple fact that the Palestinians are a fabricated nation, never keep an agreement is missed, the non-acceptance of Israel’s right to exist and continued quest to destroy Israel and commit genocide is ignored yet these are the major underlying causes of failure of all efforts to obtain lasting peace. It ignores the fact that excellent peace offers have been rejected, that Abbas always finds any excuse to rant and walk away from any atttempt to put a peace process in place. That is why there is no peace process and never will be. Israel must stop this decades-old farce by winning the next war, which is already being planned by its enemies and take all of the land that the Almighty gave to them, disarm and kick the arabs out and back to wherever they came from in the surrounding countries. Then there may be peace, at least for while.
“PA the biggest loser…”? The Palestinians are losers period. Over many decades of
terrorism, corruption and malfeasance they have achieved absolutely nothing while Israel has accomplished much to become the success it is now on so many levels. The Pals are the losers of the world and are quite keen on remaining such.
As long as anyone claims that Israel is ILLEGALLY occupying anything, there is no basis for discussion. This goes much further than just this article: many UN members alledge that the “settlements” are illegal or that Israel is illegally occupying the Gaza strip. All of these cases can be shown to be wrong with the best case being that some regions in Judea and Samaria may be of undecided ownership – which does not make Israeli presence there illegal. Of course, it is much more fun to repeat the lies rather than face the facts.
The PA is likely to implode or explode into complete dis-functionality and violence sometime soon as Abbas dies or physically incapable of continuing his function. Various leaders or contenders for his post are trying to gather armed support to back them to take over. This is likely to lead to either anarchy or war-lord type control in certain cities of the PA.
Israel needs to be able to take control of these PA areas
Pseudo article by Mr. A R A B …”All Rubbish And Bull…!!