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Are the Palestinians as Desperate as the West for Peace?

[Jerusalem Post] Barry Rubin - Arafat had the power to make a deal if he wanted to. Of course, he did not. The Palestinian leader was restrained by his own character and ideology, and by fear of his own people, whom he had trained toward extremism for decades. PA leader Mahmoud Abbas is more willing to make peace. Yet this is more than counterbalanced by his extraordinary weakness. Not only has Hamas seized control of Gaza, but Abbas does not have control over Fatah itself. But aren't the Palestinians desperate for a solution, given all their suffering? The answer is no. The ideology of extremist nationalism and Islamism, the belief that total victory is possible, the miscomprehension of Israel and suspicion of the West are all still in place. Indeed, who acts as if they desperately need a diplomatic solution right away and will pay anything to get it? Not the Palestinians or the Arab states, but the West and the U.S. The writer is director of the Global Research in International Affairs Center at IDC Herzliya and editor of the Middle East Review of International Affairs.
2008-01-15 01:00:00
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