Many long-time observers of Israeli-Palestinian
dynamics since 1967 were not surprised. They knew that Abbas, who is considered
a “moderate and reasonable” Palestinian leader, was a long-time Nazi
sympathizer and apologist, having written a Holocaust denying PhD thesis titled
“The Connection between the Nazis and the Leaders of the Zionist Movement”. In
it he argued that the Nazi-perpetrated Holocaust had been exaggerated, claiming
that the “few” Jews that were killed by the Nazis were actually the victims of
a Zionist-Nazi plot aimed to fuel vengeance against Jews to facilitate their
mass extermination.
But his speech in Arabic at the UN last week
went beyond anything we’ve heard from him before, at least in public.
Lt Col. (ret.) Jonathan D. Halevi wrote this
week in the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs (jcpa.org):
- “Mahmoud Abbas’ speech to the UN General Assembly reflects the political reality that there is no Palestinian partner today for a settlement with Israel based on compromise.
- He revealed the true face of the Palestinian Authority with its open support for terror as a legitimate tactic.
- Abbas charged Israel with genocide and blamed Israel for the Islamist terrorism sweeping the region. He never mentioned Hamas terrorism or the thousands of rockets fired at Israel’s cities from Gaza.
- Abbas promised to “maintain the traditions of our national struggle established by the Palestinian [Fatah] Fedayeen”(terrorists) as far back as 1965.”
Halevi continues: “Abbas portrayed Israel as
the apex of human evil and as the wellspring of terror, incitement, hatred, and
the Islamic radicalism that is sweeping the Middle East and the world at large.
Abbas accused Israel of a “new war” of
genocide perpetrated against the Palestinian people…and of planning another “nakba”
(mass expulsion of Palestinians), neglecting to mention any of the terror
attacks and the firing of thousands of rockets from Gaza at Israeli cities,
strategic facilities, and its international airport.
Abbas, in his speech, denied any Israeli
right to self-defense, and justified the warfare and terror attacks of Hamas
and the other Palestinian terror organizations, declaring that “the Palestinian
people hold steadfast to their legitimate right to defend themselves against
the Israeli war machine and to their legitimate right to resist this colonial,
racist Israeli occupation.”
And as if this wasn’t enough, Halevi
continues to point out that in the same UN speech Abbas:
- Demanded that Israel pay the full price for its “war crimes”.
- Claimed that Israel is cultivating “a culture of racism, incitement and hatred”…
- Attributed terror and the roots of terror to Israel, which, he says, was established in 1948 by expelling innocent and peaceful Palestinians from their homes.
- Pinned the blame for the phenomenon of Islamic terror, as recently manifested by the Islamic State (ISIS) on Israel when he said:
- “We, and all the Arab countries, have constantly cautioned about the disastrous consequences of the continuation of the Israeli occupation and the denial of freedom and independence for the people of Palestine. We have repeatedly drawn attention to the fact that allowing Israel to act as a state above the law with impunity and absolving it of any accountability or punishment for its policies, aggression and defiance of the international will and legitimacy have absolutely provided fertile ground and an environment conducive for the growth of extremism, hatred and terrorism in our region.”
- “Confronting the terrorism that plagues our region by groups – such as “ISIL” and others requires much more than military confrontation.
- What is primarily needed is a comprehensive, credible strategy to dry out the sources of terrorism….It requires, in this context and as a priority, bringing an end to the Israeli occupation of our country, which constitutes in its practices and perpetuation, an abhorrent form of state terrorism and a breeding ground for incitement, tension and hatred”.
As for the Israel-Palestinian peace process,
Abbas made his feelings crystal clear about not continuing the talks, even on
the basis of draft agreements reached between Rabin and Arafat in Taba, Egypt
in 2001, Ehud Barak and Arafat at Camp David in 2002, Ehud Olmert and himself
(!) at Annapolis in 2007 and others, when he loudly declared last week at the
UN:
“It is impossible, and I repeat – it is
impossible – to return to the cycle of negotiations that failed to deal with
the substance of the matter and the fundamental question. There is neither
credibility nor seriousness in negotiations in which Israel predetermines the
results via its settlement activities and the occupation’s brutality”.
“There is no meaning or value in
negotiations for which the agreed objective is not ending the Israeli
occupation and achieving the independence of the state of Palestine with East
Jerusalem as its capital on the entire Palestinian Territory occupied in the
1967 war. And, there is no value in negotiations which are not linked to a firm
timetable for the implementation of this goal.”
Uh…Mr. Abbas, or Abu Mazen (whatever you
prefer) – you may want to reconsider that last statement after looking at the
transcripts of the draft agreements mentioned above. Almost all your
“fundamental questions” were met, one way or another.
And by the way – did you notice how empty
the room at the UN was when you spoke? And how little air time you personally got
on American and EU media? Newsflash: After 100 years, the world is not really
interested in the Israeli-Palestinian issue any more. If you don’t embrace the
current US brokered deal, your successor (assuming Fatah is still in business…)
probably will. And what, Abu Mazen, will your legacy be then?
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