Oh, so that’s what they’re concerned about:
The fierce internal clashes among Palestinian factions have shocked many Palestinians and Arab governments, who fear that the bloodshed is damaging the Palestinian case before the world, Palestinians say. Even as the Bush administration moves to try to press for significant progress toward peace, Palestinians say their own infighting is making it too easy for Israel to argue that nothing needs to be done now to promote a Palestinian state.
We like how that’s phrased: it makes it easier for Israel to argue that they’re not ready for a state. As opposed to, say, providing incontrovertible evidence that any Palestinian state would be deeply corrupt, unstable, and violent. And how should the Palestinians go about fixing this? By doing what the oh-so-moderate Abbas recommended a couple of weeks ago and turning their (US-supplied) weapons on Israel:
“What is happening now is damaging our reputation and our standing with Arab public opinion and with Arab officials,” said Mkhaimar Abusada, a political scientist at Al Azhar University in Gaza. “My feeling is that Arab support for the Palestinians is beginning to evaporate. Arabs are looking at us as fighting ourselves now, not the Israeli occupation, and Arab officials are saying that we’re not very serious about establishing a state.”… During a meeting of Fatah’s revolutionary council on Saturday evening in Ramallah, on the West Bank, a fierce argument broke out over how to deal with Hamas and the fighting in Gaza, participants said… At the meeting, insults were exchanged and shoes were thrown, a severe insult in the Arab world. Mr. Tarawi said, “I have a message from the three Balousheh kids,” referring to three children killed in a December attack on the house of their father, Baha, a prominent Fatah intelligence official in Gaza. Then he threw his shoes at Mr. Rajoub. The attack is thought to have been carried out by Hamas supporters.
Oh yeah, these people are obviously ready for a state.
Although in fairness to them, the world does seem to care more about a couple terrorists targeted by Israel than about dozens of Palestinians killed by Hamas and Fatah:
“Everything the Palestinians fought for in the 1980s and ’90s is being undermined in a second,” said Diana Buttu, a former aide to Mr. Dahlan and Mr. Abbas. “People were shot and killed to ensure universities stayed open. Now we’re blowing up our own universities, and U.N.R.W.A. is threatening to pull out and no one cares.” The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or U.N.R.W.A., cares for and educates Palestinian refugees and their families.
It’s almost like they care more about demonizing Israel than helping the Palestinians.
Previously: UN Peacekeepers Begged Hezbollah to Stop Using Them As Human Shields. UN, LA Times Blame Israel Anyway., Here’s the Thing About the Anti-Israel Media: They Lie – Hezbollah Hides Among Civilians Edition, Suicide Bomber Kills Three In Eilat (Plus: Why Is Fatah Getting Back Into The Suicide Bombing Business?)
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