(Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs) Yoni Ben Menachem - On Jan. 4, 2014, the Palestinian newspaper Al-Quds revealed a conversation between Mahmoud Abbas and Secretary of State John Kerry, which dealt with the Palestinian motion at the UN Security Council. When Kerry despaired of convincing Abbas to desist from his move, he reportedly threatened Abbas with the words: "You will lose the Authority, you will lose the two-state solution, and you will lose yourself." Muhammad Ashtiyeh, a member of the Fatah Executive Committee and a close associate of Abbas, defined the Palestinians' new strategy in an interview with Al Jazeera on Jan. 4: "The Palestinians are now moving to a strategy of internationalization of the conflict with Israel, but it will not win real success if it is not accompanied by a nonviolent popular intifada."
2015-01-07 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive