Daily Alert Archives

"Moderate" Palestinians of Fatah Undergoing Radicalization

[Jerusalem Post] Barry Rubin - Fatah and the PA continue to be corrupt, incompetent and incapable of self-reform. Given the cult of violence and total victory dominating Palestinian political culture, Hamas is inevitably seen as heroic because it fights and rejects compromise. Based on underestimating Israel (always seen on the verge of collapse) and overestimating its own forces (heroic martyrs aided by history and deity), it expects to win. Compromise is treason; moderation is cowardice. This is the daily fare of Palestinian ideology and politics, purveyed by leaders, clerics, media and schools. Fatah is undergoing a radicalization process which may not displace Abbas, but will install his successor. Public opinion is also more extreme, with support for terrorism zooming upward. Fatah both heeds and feeds the trend. We are now seeing the birth of a new Fatah all right, an even more extremist version, coming from the Aksa Brigades. Contrary to much reportage, this is not an "offshoot" but an essential part of Fatah. The Brigades demand Prime Minister Fayad's firing and replacement by "a new government that would not abandon the armed struggle." Like others in the Fatah leadership, its strategy is not to fight but ally with Hamas. That's the kind of thinking that makes the movement so impossible to change or move toward peace. The main thing keeping Fayad in office is the fact that removing him would kiss good-bye to almost $7 billion in Western aid. Like the U.S. arms abandoned by Fatah in fleeing Gaza, much of the money could end up in Hamas' hands. Or it will pass to Abbas' successor. Many in the West believe that whenever Palestinian leaders reject peace, it must be because they were not offered enough. Westerners think Fatah and the PA merely need to raise Palestinian living standards and get a state to show their people that Hamas is a failure and the PA a success. Yet, as horrible as it sounds, in Palestinian politics success is still measured by the number of Israelis killed and by who never gives up the chance for total victory and Israel's disappearance some day. Given the strategic realities, Israel must deal with the PA and try to keep Fatah in power on the West Bank. But there should be no illusions. Solving the conflict won't happen. Putting it atop Western governments' agenda, blaming Israel for Palestinian intransigence, and romanticizing Fatah and the PA is a big mistake. 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.
2008-03-24 01:00:00
Full Article