Abbas says he has "no desire" for re-run

[Israel Insider]

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announced on Thursday that he has "no desire" to run for re-election. Speaking on TV, Abbas said he had informed Fatah and PLO officials of his decision late on Wednesday night. PA officials said that Abbas's decision was a protest of the US administration's failure to force Israel to stop construction work in the West Bank settlements. They did not rule out the possibility that Abbas would change his mind before the January 24 election. They also said it was too early to discuss who would represent Fatah if Abbas did not.

Abbas insisted that his decision not to seek reelection was not intended as a manipulation or maneuver, and said that the two-state solution was facing "many dangers." addressing the Israeli public, he said: "Peace is more important than any achievement for a political party. Peace is more important than any government coalition. For many years, my opinion and vision have been that peace was still possible and I have sincerely worked to achieve this goal."

Osama Hamdan, a senior Hamas official, suggested that the speech was a show and that "if Abbas lacks desire, he knows where to get Viagra." Abbas's decision is meant to "warn his American and Zionist friends," another Hamas spokesman, Sami Abu Zuhri, said on Thursday. "He wants to let them know he's not happy with them," Zuhri said.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak expressed hope that despite Abbas's announcement, efforts to renew negotiations and achieve a regional peace deal would not be undermined.

The White House praised Abbas. "Whatever he decides, we look forward to continuing to work with him and to continue in that collaboration to make the lives of Palestinians better," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters on Thursday. "We have tremendous respect for President Abbas. He has been an important and historic leader for the Palestinian people and a true partner for the United States," Gibbs said.

[skimble]

The really important question is not whether Mahmoud Abbas wants peace, it is whether the statistically average Palestinian wants peace.

As for Palestinians in Gaza, this question will not have an answer, because Hamas will be answering for them and the answer of Hamas is of course no.

[Michael Shoemaker]

Good riddance.

[Robert Bernier]

Abbas never gave up terror.
Abbas continues to use the media, mosques and schools under the control of his Palestinian Authority to convey the message of Israel's illegitimacy, of Jews having no historical connection to the land but being merely rapacious usurpers, and of the need for Palestinians to dedicate themselves to Israel's destruction. Also, of course, Fatah, which Abbas heads as Arafat's successor, continues to engage in anti-Israel terror. Abbas was an early companion of Arafat, a leader of Fatah as the organization pioneered modern Middle East terror. More about Fatah at : http://israelagainstterror.blogspot.com/2008/06/do-arabs-want-peace.html

[Robert Bernier]

Is the P.A. a “Peace Partner”?
Did the PA end its terrorist ways? Stop state-sanctioned incitement against Israel and the West? Change Fatah’s charter (forget about Hamas) calling for Israel’s destruction?
Alas, no, no and no. We are heaping riches on the PA for other reasons, one of which I discuss below.
Despite a tiny (and decreasing) number of Christians, the PA is a land of Islam – Dar al-Islam. That makes Israel, the object of the PA’s destructive animus, Dar al-Harb, land of war, right?
Right. But not according to the PC script of the “international community.” We never, ever discuss the Islamic context of “Arab-Israeli” conflicts. But how else can we hope to understand them? Jihad ideology inspires the Arab struggle against Israel. It also explains it. As the only non-Muslim country amid Middle Eastern Dar-al Islam, as the only “dhimmi” nation to reclaim its land once conquered by Islam, Israel’s very existence is a religious offense to the “umma,” or Islamic community as explained at :
http://israelagainstterror.blogspot.com/2008/07/check-your-knowledge-about-islam-and.html