Abbas has a new gambit..and it DOES NOT involve `recognizing' Israel

The big story with the Palestinians yesterday was President Mahmoud Abbas saying that he will call for a `national referendum' on accepting a Palestinian state alongside Israel if Hamas does not agree to the idea within 10 days.

The Western media has made a huge deal of this, saying that if it comes to a vote, Abbas would be asking Palestinians to give de facto and implicit recognition to Israel... and that adopting this proposal would be one way out towards freeing up the all important flow of international welfare to the Palestinians, providing cover for the Hamas to look `moderate' without really doing much on the ground to actually promote peace with Israel or end terrorism.

The thing is Abbas' proposal is anything but `moderate'. And contrary to what the Western media are reporting, it doesn't involve recognition of Israel OR stopping terrorism.

Abbas based his proposal on the platform of a number of Palestinian terorists now incarcerated in Israel, most notably Marwan Barghouti, serving five life sentences for the murder of Israeli civilians. This came out May 11th.

Their charming proposal mostly mirrors the so-called Arab League `peace proposal' put out by the Saudis and amounts to this: Israel is to retreat back to the pre-1967 lines, including redividing Jerusalem. All prisoners are to be released from Israeli custody.The platform does not explicitly recognize Israel's right to exist, but mentions a two-state solution obliquely; it insists on the right of return of all `refugees' and their families to their pre-1948 homes and supports continued "resistance" against Israel in areas occupied in 1967 - in other words, attacks on Israeli civilians, armed or unarmed. As a gimmee for Abbas, the document calls for the Fatah doinated PLO to be named the sole representative of the Palestinians.

In other words, if Israel retreats to indefensible borders, releases murderous terrorists, ethnically cleanses Jews from Judea, Samaria and East Jerusalem like it did in Gaza and allows itself to be flooded by thousands hostile `refugees', Israel gets an implied recognition..at least, for as long as it survives.

Abbas immediately endorsed this, saying: "I adopt the position of those heroes."

Go here for a typical example of the kind of `heroes' Abbas is talking about.

This is obviously one of the results of Israeli PM Olmert's meeting with President Bush, who wants to prop up Abbas and please his Saudi friends. In fact, Abbas has very little to lose either way, since he is essentially powerless in Gaza and not particularly strong in Judea or Samaria (the West Bank).

It's also a way for the Palestinians to forstall Olmert's plan to unilaterally establish Israel's borders and indulge in more fruitless `negotiations' while the Palestinians build up their armed forces.

Hamas has obliged so far by ordering its troops in Gaza to keep a low profile while a sitdown between Abbas and Hamas goes on.

But they've also made it clear that they're not buying it, and consider Abbas' gambit to be exactly what it is..an attempt to forstall their leadership and put Abbas firmly in control of things...especially all that aid money.

Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said that his government would stick to its program.

"We will not recognize the legitimacy of the occupation, we will not renounce resistance and we will not recognize unjust agreements."

Hamas kingpin and legislator Ziad Dia, who's participating in the sitdown, said in a that any document that even implied recognition of "the Zionist entity and ceding an inch of Palestine" would be rejected by Hamas.

This is not about peace - it's about turf, and control over the money.

Either Hamas will take this opportunity to take out Abbas, or they will agree to this transparent fakery to keep the money rolling in.

Stay tuned....