Re-Legitimizing Peace
Mahmoud Abbas’ call to an end to the use of arms is cautiously worded, but a positive impulse towards peace. It remains to be seen whether he can carry the Palestinian Authority into being the political body the citizenry need, or whether Hamas and the other terrorist organizations will continue their hold on the hearts and minds. The PA never spent the time and money under Arafat on the social welfare programs that would have legitimized them, while Hamas et al. were setting up soup kitchens and re-homing the dispossessed concurrently with their recruitment drives and arming of beleaguered, disaffected people. If Abbas can turn this situation around, he’ll prove himself the Palestinian who deserved a Nobel Prize, as his predecessor never did.