It took international intervention for West Bank/Gaza Arabs to choose a new cabinet subject to approval of the Palestinian parliament. Must Hosni Mubarak enter the stage every time Palestinian leaders clash over policy or appointments? The dispute over establishing a cabinet to govern the territories does not inspire confidence that any independent Palestinian state can ever succeed ? unless there are dramatic changes in certain ways in Arab culture. This is not a knock on all Arabs or even, necessarily, most of them. It is a knock on the segment of the Arab population that is too rigid and controlling to allow real progress almost anywhere in the Arab world.
If a Palestinian state is established in the near future, there is credible reason to fear two associated actions. As many supporters of Israel fervently believe, it would be no surprise if terrorists use a Palestinian state as a staging ground for continued attacks against Israel. I am more fearful that the Palestinians will be caught in a violent power struggle, perhaps an all-out civil war. The dispute between Yassir Arafat and Mahmoud Abbas, the new Palestinian prime minister, is but a miniscule sign of the habitual failure of Arabs to reach consensus. Actually, they did agree on naming the security chief, but only after foreign leaders or their designees pressured them.
Not even Palestinian leaders interpreted the outcome in a positive light, as reported in The New York Times. After appearing for the announcement of their agreement, Abbas scolded reporters, ?You lost your chance for me to talk,? and he abruptly left. He later released this statement: ?I am very pleased that my cabinet has received the support of President Arafat. The agreement on the cabinet marks a victory for the Palestinian people as it demonstrates our commitment to democracy, even as we live under Israeli occupation.? Legislator Quadoura Fares views it differently: ?What happened was a stumble and not an achievement. We built hopes on Abu Mazen (Abbas) of creating serious change. The change was not substantial, not what we were looking for.?
The most ominous sign of a bleak future is attributed to Mahoud Zahar of Hamas: ?The appointment of the prime minister was based on foreign interference. The forming of this new government is also based on foreign interference? The Palestinian street is shocked.? We all know Hamas. They have been openly responsible for most of the suicide bombings and other terrorist acts.
For the last 31 months, Arafat has either been behind the violence or could not control it, though the truth is probably somewhere in between. If Abbas is serious about stopping terrorism among his people, can he make some genuine inroads? The Palestinians have been committing acts of violence on and off throughout Israel?s brief history, killing collaborators and terrorizing moderate Palestinians who would be willing to live in peace with Israel. If moderate Palestinians attempt to solve their problems politically, will they be strong enough to avert serious resistance from extremists? Is there much popular support for the new government?
Look around at other Arab countries. The best-intentioned rulers are all unelected ? particularly Mubarak of Egypt and King Abdullah of Jordan. Saddam Hussein kept order by torturing and murdering his subjects, particularly dissident Kurds and Shiite Muslims. Syria murdered 20,000 to 40,000 residents of Hama to keep dissidents in line. Not to mention the long civil war that has plagued Lebanon.
So, if a Palestinian state is formed, what have we got? The prospect of an ongoing power struggle between Arafat and Abbas; skepticism of other Palestinian lawmakers; possibly insufficient support from the public; and a clear threat of violence from Hamas.
All seeds for a civil war.
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Bruce Ticker is a freelance writer and former journalist living in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He can be reached at brucetic@aol.com.
If a Palestinian state is established in the near future, there is credible reason to fear two associated actions. As many supporters of Israel fervently believe, it would be no surprise if terrorists use a Palestinian state as a staging ground for continued attacks against Israel. I am more fearful that the Palestinians will be caught in a violent power struggle, perhaps an all-out civil war. The dispute between Yassir Arafat and Mahmoud Abbas, the new Palestinian prime minister, is but a miniscule sign of the habitual failure of Arabs to reach consensus. Actually, they did agree on naming the security chief, but only after foreign leaders or their designees pressured them.
Not even Palestinian leaders interpreted the outcome in a positive light, as reported in The New York Times. After appearing for the announcement of their agreement, Abbas scolded reporters, ?You lost your chance for me to talk,? and he abruptly left. He later released this statement: ?I am very pleased that my cabinet has received the support of President Arafat. The agreement on the cabinet marks a victory for the Palestinian people as it demonstrates our commitment to democracy, even as we live under Israeli occupation.? Legislator Quadoura Fares views it differently: ?What happened was a stumble and not an achievement. We built hopes on Abu Mazen (Abbas) of creating serious change. The change was not substantial, not what we were looking for.?
The most ominous sign of a bleak future is attributed to Mahoud Zahar of Hamas: ?The appointment of the prime minister was based on foreign interference. The forming of this new government is also based on foreign interference? The Palestinian street is shocked.? We all know Hamas. They have been openly responsible for most of the suicide bombings and other terrorist acts.
For the last 31 months, Arafat has either been behind the violence or could not control it, though the truth is probably somewhere in between. If Abbas is serious about stopping terrorism among his people, can he make some genuine inroads? The Palestinians have been committing acts of violence on and off throughout Israel?s brief history, killing collaborators and terrorizing moderate Palestinians who would be willing to live in peace with Israel. If moderate Palestinians attempt to solve their problems politically, will they be strong enough to avert serious resistance from extremists? Is there much popular support for the new government?
Look around at other Arab countries. The best-intentioned rulers are all unelected ? particularly Mubarak of Egypt and King Abdullah of Jordan. Saddam Hussein kept order by torturing and murdering his subjects, particularly dissident Kurds and Shiite Muslims. Syria murdered 20,000 to 40,000 residents of Hama to keep dissidents in line. Not to mention the long civil war that has plagued Lebanon.
So, if a Palestinian state is formed, what have we got? The prospect of an ongoing power struggle between Arafat and Abbas; skepticism of other Palestinian lawmakers; possibly insufficient support from the public; and a clear threat of violence from Hamas.
All seeds for a civil war.
-------------------------------------------------
Bruce Ticker is a freelance writer and former journalist living in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He can be reached at brucetic@aol.com.