An unraveling ceasefire in Gaza, an irreperably weak Fatah in the West Bank, and an Israeli public that's increasingly skeptical about the Arab world's willingness to accept a Jewish State - no seriously, incredible progress:

President George W. Bush, poised to finish his presidency without the Middle East peace deal he once said was in reach, declared Friday that Israelis and Palestinians have made great strides toward settling decades of conflict. "No question, this is a hard challenge," Bush said in the Oval Office alongside the Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas. "But nevertheless, people must recognize that we have made a good deal of progress." Abbas concurred: "Some might say that all these efforts perhaps went in vain. I happen to disagree." In what was likely their last face-to-face meeting before Bush leaves office on Jan. 20, the two men sought to praise each other and emphasize what has been gained, not the opportunity lost. Their meeting came just days after the UN Security Council endorsed as irreversible the administration's peace process.

You have to admire the UN's unblinking shamelessness. The positions taken at the 2007 Annapolis peace process: irreversible. The post-mandate Jewish State recognized by the 1948 UN declaration: eh.

File this wherever you're filing Rice's statements from yesterday that "violence... is not going to help the Palestinian cause." You'd like that to be true. Except with the assists they've been getting from a spineless State Department, a sycophantic media, and a venomous international community - it sure seems to be helping their cause.

References:
* Hamas Celebrates Official End Of Ceasefire By Launching Rockets, Taking Pot Shots At Israeli Civilians [MR]
* Abbas: Israeli Political Instability Is Responsible For Utter Refusal Of Palestinians To Ever Accept Jewish State. Or Something. [MR]
* Poll: Most Israelis oppose leaving West Bank for Arab world's recognition [Ha'aretz]
* Bush: Mideast peace talks have yielded progress [Ha'aretz]
* Now get ready for Round 2 [JPost]
* Rice warns Hamas: Violence won't help Palestinian cause [JPost]

Previously:
* Top UN Official: Israel Is An Apartheid State, Must Be Dismantled (Plus: UN Adopts Resolution Outlawing All Criticism Of Islam)
* Obama's Perfect Choice For UN Ambassador
* The UN Says Stuff