Abbas aides defiant on settlement freeze ahead of Mitchell meet

What is wrong with you, buddy? My blog's comments were not moderated for over 12 hours, and likewise other opinion pieces. I am getting annoyed with this. Do your job, and don't forget our guests Benny Morris and Carlo Strenger. And our regular columnists also deserve some attention!

The immediate effect will be some violence, a third Intifada, which the Israeli military estimates will be not as bad as the previous one. But this estimate does not take the political effects into account. Clearly, Abbas will be weakened and lose prestige with his people, while Hamas will be "proven" to have been "correct" in their negative attitude. 1. The result may very well be a reconciliation between Hamas and the PA and an independent declaration of a Palestinian state, with new elections in which Abbas will not participate. I doubt that the US will veto admittance of this state to the UN. From there it will cause endless diplomatic trouble to Israel. 2. Another possibility is that Abbas will simply retire. By law, his temporary successor is the speaker of Parliament, a Hamasnik. 3. Alternatively to point #2, but perhaps leading to the same outcome, is that the PA will dissolve itself, forcing Israel to exercise direct control over the West Bank. No more donations from the world, the financial burden will fall on Israel, as well as the stigma of Apartheid. Not pretty.

It is about consolidating the nation of Israel and returning the arabs to their homelands. The irrational left has it in for the nation of Israel. They are hell-bent on destroying both what the UN itself and God Almighty have proclaimed to the world; that there is a place for the Jews and it is within the borders of their old homeland of Israel.

Any fool could see this charade of peace talks end in failure. The US and EU have never done anything for the peace process other than support the Israeli position on occupation and settler enterprise, like the Israeli sycophants they are.

But what a fool believes he sees No wise man has the power to reason away What seems to be Is always better than nothing And nothing at all... Keeps sending him somewhere ... Where he can still believe there's a place ... Someday, somewhere, she will return But what a fool believes he sees No wise man has the power to reason away

“Yet Abbas may be reluctant to walk away from talks because his international standing and future as a leader are tied to the quest for a peace deal”. This is questionable since Abbas is 75 and has already attempted to retire. Domestic political expediency is certainly present in these negotiations but not so much from him.

Overwhelming consensus to be more accurate. So Abbas try seeing beyond that tiny tip of your nose. Activities in the settlements have very little if any bearing on the borders of the future Palestinian state. Replay one thought a hundred times or more if convincing is needed. Settlements are illegal.

abass will be in bibi's trap

But if you want to have a meaningful peace, BOTH sides need to make meaningful gestures. Israel imposed a 10 month settlement freeze in Judea/Samaria. What have the Palestinians done? Absolutely nothing except engage in "peace" talks. The PA won't even accept the notion of "two states for two people." And Hamas won't even recognize Israel. The Palestinians are delusional if they think that they can have peace without making a few concessions.

Hopefully Abbas will not proudly try to fill Arafat's sandals as if there was any legacy left there to be proud of. Poor Amireh is weary and feeling faint and throwing the issues of settlements and a PA State to the world to solve as if they have no more problems of their own and they have lots of spare time on their hands. Wait till he tries and saddles them with the most important and weighty issue of them all, the status of Jerusalem talks!

Overwhelming consensus to be more accurate. So Abbas try seeing beyond that tiny tip of your nose. Activities in the settlements have very little if any bearing on the borders of the future Palestinian state. Replay one thought a hundred times or more if convincing is needed. Settlements are illegal.

Why did the pals wait for the end of the 10mnth freeze before coming to the negotiating table. Because THEY wanted the talks to fail.

now after one month and a few days worth of talks Israel is supposed to just extend it. Just talk and if it is agreed to give back some additional land then so be it.

The Palestinians have set up a situation where they waited until the clock ran down to the last minute and now they hope international pressure will force Israel to back down and win them the upper hand in the negotiations. It's a fairly obvious ploy, and so far Bibi isn't buying it. If he sticks to his position, as I expect he will, then the Palestinians will be at a disadvantage if they continue the talks. Abbas has set up a winner-take-all confrontation at the very beginning of the talks.

I am against settlements however i am also against preconditions. Abbas should negotiate without conditions. Settlement issue should be resolved during the negotiation not before.

The consensus is that the entire world is in favor of a Palestinian state. but not all the Pals, and not the ISraeli Arabs. Not Jordan either nor any of the other Arab countries, except maybe Syria.

Israel won't and Palestine can't.

Abbas and his gang are looking for a quick permanent "exit". Israel should be ready to dismantle the PA, if they violate the Oslo accord. The tacit assumption of Oslo was "direct negotiations".

Israel has Arabs. Palestine can have Jews. It's the same thing. End of issue.

the positions had been staked long before the 'Talks' started: netanyahu announced that the 'Freeze' will not continue, and Abbas responded that the talks will falter once the settlement rebuilding restarts. That's why the cynics predicted the failure of the talks. Obama should not have expected anything different. The US President must acknowledge that there is no parity between Occupier and Occupied. The onus cannot be on the Palestinians.

Listen Obama. After you assumed office, you pressed Israel on stopping settlement construction. This had nothing to do with Abbas or the Palestinians. You did it because you thought it was the right thing to do. Abbas has said all along that he would walk away from peace talks if construction was resumed. Are you now trying to pressure Abbas into giving up on the topic of settlement growth just as you did. Is Israel really so strong that you cannot even get an extension? Do our billions a year buy us no cooperation from Israel? Do you still think that Israel should stop settlement construction? These are questions we need answered in order to help us make election decisions. Please get back to me.

Yup, that is why it is on Haaretz....

...than a complete halt to settlements in the WB. Allowing selective settlement building amounts to a de facto concession on borders before negotiations even get started!

His condition couldn't be fairer. Twist Netanyahu's arm, Obama & Ashton, and do it for the entire world. Later on, you'll have to do the same with the Palestinians, when they grow stronger and instead of trying to reconcile with a terrorist organization, they will need all the help in the world to uproot and defeat Hamas in Gaza.

and Abbas,dont let the door hit you in the ass on your way out..The nerve of them to make demands.They have given nothing but taken land through the years.They dont want peace,they want NO ISRAEL....

"Netanyahu has said extending the construction curb could fracture his pro-settlement governing coalition," ...... It is entirely fractured already, becoming totally ridiculous. This "government" is finished....unless we will permit it to destroy our country.

Who's willing is stronger, the Settlers have a great thing going so why give it up, unless US/EU makes it too costly for the rest of Israel to continue to back them.

The message sent by Netanyahu is quite clear. No peace, no way.

So, if he wants a Palestinian state, he should get on with the talks and work toward setting borders. No amount of building will make any difference once that is accomplished. Otherwise, he can just go home, let Hamas claim victory not only over the Israelis, but over Abbas and the PA as well.

you will windup like Arafat and the ones that suffer are the people. Abbas has no choice but to negotiate, building or no building.

What is there to talk about if Israel keeps taking land? Palestinians should unilaterally declare a state.

maybe he can keep his murderers from killing people too, more than fair

abbas is golem

Long before the talks began, Abbas swore he would walk if construction resumed. Both Obama and Netanyahu pushed him into talks saying everything would be OK. Now construction has resumed and Abbas says he will walk. No surprise, right? Obama learned last year that he cannot push Israel. Perish the thought! To make up for this, he assumed that he could push the pliable Abbas twice as hard. The problem for Obama is that when he allowed himself to be bi***slapped by Israel, he lost all credibility in the world as well as his cajones. Not even the pliable Abbas will be bossed around by such a person.

Israel's "easy" history: Holocaust, barely obtaining UN resolution, embargo for paid weapons by Europe, simultaneous attack by Arab states. Yes, some guys really have it all...

This is about assuring a governable Palestine. Anything less is vulnerable to Israeli intrusion and fragmentation. Abbas is not a fool to be lured into a trap that will enhance the illegal claims of Israel's settlements. The vast majority of Western support Abbas. The UN supports the Palestinians. It is time for Israel to awaken from its fantasy. Unfortunately the irrational zealots will not let it.