Ever tried to make a decision for a group where half the group opposed you? It’s like a coach telling his team to play conservatively when all they want to do is take chances. It’s a recipe for conflict and disaster. And it’s happening among the Palestinians now.
According to the Ma’an News Agency, 53 percent of Palestinians polled do not support the renewal of peace talks with Israel, and more than 70 percent think they’ll fail. Looks like the Palestinian leadership is sorely lacking the popular support they’ll need to make any major compromises for peace.
That means that the “peace talks” – which over the years have led to more violence than peace – are in deep trouble. And while a resurgence of Palestinian terrorism is already a concern, it’s even more so if the talks completely fail.
Roughly 38 percent of those polled by the Center for Opinion Polls and Survey Studies at An-Najah National University said they support armed resistance if the talks collapse. That’s code for “terror attacks.” Israel would come under fire, once more.
Then again, if that many Palestinians still support violence, is peace even possible now?
(By Joshua Spurlock, www.themideastupdate.com, November 6, 2013)