Mixed Signals
There is a fascinating piece in the Jerusalem Post this week, by the diligent journalist Khaled Abu Toameh. His subject is the conflicting messages the Palestinian Authority sends both to its own people and to Israel (even the Americans).
Toameh, a Palestinian himself, has special insights into this intriguing issue. It is both complex and simple.
On the one hand, the PA/PLO publishes the most inflaming rhetoric about Israel and the Jews. Nasty stuff. Bush league. Mahmoud Abbas is as corrupt and evil as his dwarf predecessor, Yasser Arafat, and he controls the PA. At 85, Abbas won’t be around much longer, but he knows where his bread is buttered. Were it not for Israeli security, “Abu Mazen” would long ago have been dead or exiled.
But Toameh cites two recent incidents that show the PA actually cooperates very well with Israel on security issues. These are for practical and pragmatic reasons, of course, but the fact remains that it benefits both sides.
A woman found herself in a PA controlled area, but security forces shuttled her out of danger. Then a few days later, a busload of Israeli soldiers made a wrong turn and ended up in Hebron, now a stronghold of Hamas (Isn’t that tragic? The site of David’s first rule).
Again, all this for practical reasons. The PA knew that if anything had happened to these Israeli women or soldiers, the security crackdown would have been fierce and sustained.
But then Toameh says this key thing:
“The closer Abbas moves toward Israel and the US, the more he loses points with the Palestinian street.”
This suggests a deeper problem: years of radicalization have turned the majority of Palestinians into Jew haters.
“The PA’s actions on the ground may be good for Israel in the short term. These actions place the PA on the side of the good guys in the war on terrorism. In the long run, however, the anti-Israel rhetoric emerging from Ramallah is further radicalizing Palestinians. The PA, in other words, is driving more Palestinians into the welcoming arms of its own rivals, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.”
This problem has existed forever, but was tolerated by the evil Bill Clinton regime and really, from presidents up to Trump. Now the illegitimate Biden regime is walking the same road.
In fact, the team that is really running the show in Washington is following the same diplomatic playbook America has mostly followed all along. Appease the Arabs, cajole Israel into concessions, then attend a party on Martha’s Vineyard. It’s a game. Meanwhile, thousands of Israelis have been killed and maimed, and at the same time, average Palestinians continue to live in a hellhole with no real future.
Toameh sums it up perfectly:
“The PA’s deeds and rhetoric suggest that it is both an ally and an enemy. It is an ally when it comes to working with the IDF in maintaining security and stability in the West Bank. It is an enemy when it comes to the fiery rhetoric of PA officials and media outlets.”
I know that both Abbas and Arafat were schooled by the Soviets and the East German and Romanian police in the fine art of terrorism, including and especially propaganda. They mean to keep their sworn enemy off-balance any way possible, and the above is just one way.
This thing ain’t getting solved until the Messiah comes.
May it be soon!