Future Palestinian Strategy

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The election of Mahmud Abbas as the president of the PLO signaled another setback to the Palestinian struggle toward achieving their national aspirations, not because of any doubts that pertains to Mr. Abbas integrity or sincerity as much as his agenda for liberation.

Mahmud Abbas believes in subduing the Intifada by demanding demilitarizing the Palestinian resistance in the name of peaceful approaches. No one would argue against peaceful means if it could actuate the Palestinian national goals, as it would seem naïve to seek violence when peace can achieve the same objectives. What are baffling though, the missing grounds that impel Mr. Abbas to pursue his route, when Mr. Sharon has declared his goals, more than once, that negates the legitimate national objectives of the Palestinians.

Apparently then, Mr. Abbas is following a road that leads to a dead end, unless of course he can convince us that he knows a lot more than Sharon's declared maximum "concessions".

During the Ehud Barak's premiership, we were all, and not to our surprise, presented by the known document co-authored by both Mr. Sharon and Netanyahu, which in clear details, drew the final position of the Likud party on any future peace with the Palestinians.

Such declaration was finally ratified by building the famous Israeli "security" wall which falls almost exactly on the previously declared lines set forth by the Sharon-Netanyahu document, emphasizing that the wall represents the final borders of Israel.

Further research on the subject of the wall will clearly show that Israel's "security" wall would have been more secured if it was built on the "green" lines that pertains to the 1967 borders and would even cost much less to build and maintain. So if the wall represented the final borders of future Israel, what is left for Mr. Abbas to negotiate about with Israel? Is there any doubt in the minds of most Palestinians that Mr. Sharon has also devastated the future hopes of any peace when he declared very emphatically that the Palestinian right of return has been erased from any future peace negotiations? So if peaceful negotiations are to start with Israeli wall and negation of the right of return how could anyone on the Palestinian side hope for any progress on the peaceful front?

Again even if we were to assume that Mr. Abbas knows a lot more than what the public knows, what guarantees do we have that the Likud could be forthcoming on the main issues of negotiations?

Haven't we learned anything, in not trusting the Israelis after the devastating results from Oslo, Wye River, Sharm El-Sheikh and Aqaba?

Mr. Abbas himself in compliance with Israeli and American demands carried with him to the White House firm commitments from the Islamic organizations that promised to stop all violence for two months provided that Israel will stop its violence and start withdrawing to its previous positions.