The recent Israeli attack on Gaza made little strategic difference leaving Hamas still in charge of the strip, diminished militarily but arguably strengthened politically. … The PA, in spite of years of diplomacy, has yet to secure any meaningful concessions from Israel, which is veering to the political right, away from accommodation. Hamas offers only bloody resistance that appeals to the Palestinian and Arab sense of dignity, while also piling up a record of deaths, injuries and destruction. …
Even if the present reality precludes the PA government’s ability to govern Gaza, the PA should not abandon its mandate but pursue its private aid program of reconstruction as it works diligently to lift the siege on Gaza. The new PA government must continue building on the solid foundation laid down by the Fayyad government to erect the infrastructure of the future Palestinian state. … The de facto Hamas government in Gaza … has to bear the consequences of its decisions and actions, knowing that the Palestinian people will vote come January and that elections cannot be avoided or postponed.
Through the policies that it pursues in the occupied West Bank, Israel will have a powerful role in determining who will run its future neighbor, the state of Palestine. It has to decide, and to demonstrate, whether it can work with a Palestinian partner in order to bring the conflict to an end. It can, of course, opt to block the emergence of this Palestinian state and allow those who prefer to continue the conflict indefinitely to prevail. Access the full article>>