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Do Abbas and Fayyad Have a Mandate to Negotiate?

(Hudson Institute-New York) Khaled Abu Toameh - A president whose term in office expired in January 2009, and a prime minister who won about 2% of the vote when he ran in an election, have now been invited by the U.S. to hold direct peace talks with Israel on behalf of the Palestinians. Mahmoud Abbas, the president, and Salam Fayyad, his prime minister, won the "backing" of the 18-member PLO Executive Committee, which is dominated by unelected veteran officials. Only nine PLO officials attended the meeting. The PLO constitution requires a minimum of 12 members for a quorum. This means that, contrary to reports in the Palestinian and international media, Abbas and Fayyad do not have the support of the PLO committee to negotiate directly with Israel. Would Abbas and Fayyad be able to sell any agreement to a majority of Palestinians after they told their people they are going to the talks only because the Americans and Europeans threatened to cut off financial aid? Any agreement they bring back home will be seen by many Palestinians as the fruit of "extortion" and "threats." Abbas and Fayyad are well aware of the fact that they do not have a mandate to sign any agreement with Israel. This is why they will search for any excuse to withdraw from the direct talks and blame Israel for the failure of the peace process.
2010-08-24 07:22:06
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