Daily Alert Archives

The PA's Choice: Palestinian State or Palestinian Cause

(Huffington Post) Ben S. Cohen - In less than two decades of existence, the PA has received tens of billions in aid from the EU, the U.S., Japan, Canada and other democracies. Yet recall the record of successive U.S.-sponsored negotiations. First the PA plays hard to get, then it dismisses serious offers from the Israeli side as not really offers at all. Then it makes threats. The key here is how the PA plays the image of powerlessness to its advantage. Negotiations would have resulted in a Palestinian state as much as a decade ago, but the unwillingness of Palestinian leaders to compromise on final status issues habitually confounds anything more than an interim agreement. Yet a real state can only happen through an agreement with Israel. Ultimately, the PA has a choice: either a Palestinian state or a Palestinian cause. The writer is Associate Director of Communications at the American Jewish Committee.
2010-12-22 09:10:05
Full Article