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Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/opinions/dealing-with-iran-must-come-first/
Why Prospects for Peace with Palestinians Are Slim
(Israel Hayom) Prof. Eyal Zisser - Chances of a deal to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are slim for several reasons. First, in reality, we are no longer dealing with a two-state solution but rather with a three-state solution, namely, Israel, a Palestinian state in the West Bank, and a Hamas state in Gaza - which is not going anywhere. Second, Arab leaders have no real intention of going over PA President Mahmoud Abbas' head and accepting a deal on the Palestinians' behalf. Third, the Palestinian leadership simply cannot make the necessary historic decisions. Abbas can definitely protest that "Jerusalem is not for sale" as much as he wants, but the bottom line is that there is no reason why the U.S. should give the Palestinian Authority hundreds of millions of dollars in aid only to be disrespected, while Abbas respects Russian President Vladimir Putin who has never given the Palestinians a dime. The writer is a lecturer in the Middle East History Department at Tel Aviv University.