As part these efforts, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and CIA Director William Burner flew to the occupied territories to closely manage the crisis. In a meeting with senior Israeli officials, Blinken once again pledged Washington’s firm support to this regime and then went to meet Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority (PA), in order to encourage him to continue pro-compromise approach and confront the emergence of a new Palestinian intifada in the West Bank.
Media reports maintained that in this meeting, Abbas, to surprise of all, once again announced his readiness to cooperate with the US in order to revive the compromising talks with the political justification of “ending the occupation and forming a Palestinian state on the borders of 1967”. Ending settlement projects and punishments against the PA by Tel Aviv, which include stalled payment of tax revenues to PA and finding a political perspective to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, were among the important demands of Abbas from the top US diplomat.
Also, Abbas said in a meeting with Burns that despite the announcement of the complete suspension of security cooperation with the Israeli regime, part of the security coordination with Tel Aviv is still in place and is being implemented. This is while the PA announced a few days ago in reaction to the attacks by the Israeli forces on the Jenin that it would temporarily suspend intelligence cooperation with Tel Aviv. With the latest remarks, it seems that Abbas plans to continue his good services to his Israeli masters.
The leaked news suggest that the US has chosen an economic approach that includes assistance to settle PA economic troubles to persuade Abbas to work with the Israelis to control the West Bank and also attend the Negev Summit that is set to be hosted by Morocco in the spring. The holding of the summit, which is meant to revive the stagnant normalization process, has been shrouded in uncertainty as Abbas said he will not participle in it. Also, Jordan said that if Palestinian leaders do not attend, it would not attend either.
According to media reports, the head of the CIA has made suggestions to Abbas that focused on economic plans. In this meeting, Burns asked Abbas to stop the operations of the Palestinians, but Abbas said that due to financial and economic problems, he cannot even organize and control the PA forces. The Israeli government imposed sanctions on the PA two weeks ago, according to which $39 million of financial aid to this organization will be cut off, causing financial difficulties for Abbas and his circle.
The comments by the PA president appear to mean that Abbas is betraying the popular anti-occupation resistance in the West Bank once again in exchange for cash.
Abbas struggling to stay in the game
Abbas’s play in the field of political and security interests of the Israeli regime comes while he and the PA no longer have legitimacy and a place among the Palestinians. Palestinian groups based in the West Bank, due to Abbas’ compromising policies and his cooperation with the Israeli occupation, are moving against the PA path, and even many young fighters in the resistance groups have defected from the body of PA’s security apparatus mainly because several-decade experience of compromise to Tel Aviv has taught them that the only genuine way to liberation is armed struggle.
Now, the Palestinians do not identify the PA as their representative on the international stage, and any compromise made by Abbas to the Israeli enemy is invalid to the Palestinians. Abbas’s cooperation with Tel Aviv is an unforgivable betrayal of the Palestinian cause in the eyes of the Palestinians, and this good service to the Israelis is done at a time when the Israeli forces step up their crimes in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip everyday. Therefore, the more Abbas plays in the Tel Aviv game, the more the Palestinians’ anger and hatred at him and the PA will increase.
Setting new hopes on the disloyal US
It is obvious that Washington is a supporter of Tel Aviv and in any compromise process between Palestine and this regime, it will take the side of the Israelis to guarantee their interests. Meanwhile, Abbas’s renewed trust in the Americans is mainly driven by a feeling that he is the main loser and a sidelined actor in the Palestinian developments and clings at any tool to rebuild his legitimacy.
30 years have gone since Oslo Accords have been signed, but the US as the guarantor of implementation of terms of agreement, which include establishment of of an independent Palestinian state and end of ending occupation, has done nothing yet. This time, too, claims of support to the two-state solution are empty to lure Abbas into returning to cooperation with Tel Aviv and sow division among the Palestinians in best interest of Israeli regime.
The criticism by officials of hardline new Israeli government against Blinken’s trip is just a sham fight to give a false hope to Abbas that the US promises about support to a Palestinian state this time are serious and he needs to return to the so-called peace process with Tel Aviv.
Abbas is once again setting heart to the empty promises of Washington while the evidence shows the White House is not afraid to plot to remove him from Fatah and PA leadership and install someone closer the American agenda. Recently, the BBC, citing British documents, revealed that after the second intifada escalated in 2001, George W. Bush sought to find a replacement for Yasser Arafat, the late president of the PA.
The moves against the leadership of Abbas come while he has
provided precious services to the Israeli occupation from Hamas members
arrest and handover to Tel Aviv to canceling presidential and
parliamentary elections, all serving Israeli goals. Actually, the US,
seeing the PA as its instrument the intelligence coordination with which
can block resistance operations and bring back calm to the West Bank,
is playing Abbas with empty promises in a unilateral game.
/129