Missing Link in Palestinian Babys MurderBy Ramzy Baroud-Aug 11 2015 The legacy of Palestinian National Authority PNA! President Mahmoud Abbas is dra"ed in contradictions and utter defeat# $is reign can only be regarded as an astounding failure% during &hich not a single Palestinian national ob'ecti(e &as attained% nor a liberation (ision "ut for&ard# Alas% the )*-year-old leader remains at thehelm of Palestinian leadershi"% day after day regurgitating archaic statements% and doing e(erything in his "o&er to ensure the submissi(eness of his "eo"le under the yoke of +sraels military occu"ation#This state of "rotracted "olitical malaise that has afflicted the Palestinian liberation struggle dates back to the early ,--*s% to the Madrid talks &here Palestinians negotiated &ithout conditions!% follo&ed by the .slo /"eace "rocess fiasco# The latter brought neither ho"e nor e(en a distant "olitically (iable horizon# +nstead% it merely negotiated "erks and "ositions for the Palestinian elite% &ho later ruled alongside the +sraeli occu"ation o(er millions of o""ressed Palestinians in the 0est Bank and 1aza#0hile historians and "olitical analysts often concern themsel(es &ith the logistical failure of .slo% they often neglect the fact that% from the (ie&"oint of those Palestinians&ho benefited from .slo% their concern &as ne(er truly obtaining Palestinian rights% achie(ing inde"endence% or &rangling &ith /solutions to the conflict# That class% of &hich Abbas is a founder and a current ruler% is "rimarily and solely concerned &ith self-"reser(ation#.(er the course of 2* years and counting% Abbas has "erfected the art of "olitical branding# +n fact% the PNA offers many brands of the same "roduct% to the e3tent that this multi"le branding has become the modus o"erandi of the PNAs "olitical strategy% &hich &as on full dis"lay after the murder of the ,)-month-old baby% Ali 4a&absha% and later his father% 5aad# The t&o &ere killed% and t&o members of their family &ere seriously &ounded &hen 6e&ish colonists set their house ablaze in the (illage of 4uma% near Nablus in the 0est Bank% on 6uly 7,#A s"okesman for Rabbis for $uman Rights told Al 6azeera Arabic that this &as the tenth attack on Nablus by colonists in 6uly# A statement issued by the Palestine Liberation .rganisation PL.! "ro(ided an e(en more alarming statistic% "utting the number of 6e&ish colonist attacks% some of them lethal% at an estimated ,,% *** since the end of 2*,8#+t seems that burning Palestinians ali(e is a fa(ourite ne& tactic of 6e&ish terrorists these days% although the story of Mohammad Abu 9hdeir% &ho &as tortured and burnt ali(e by a grou" of 6e&ish e3tremists in 6uly 2*,8% no& ser(es as a hideous benchmark for +sraeli colonist (iolence# This is often conducted under the &atchful eyeof% or as "art of a larger (iolent cam"aign% led by none other than the +sraeli army#+t must also be noted that little Ali is no different from the :*) Palestinians killed in +sraels &ar on 1aza last summer% &hich killed nearly 2%2** Palestinians% mostly ci(ilians# The 4a&absha family home% &hich &as com"letely burnt% &as no different to the 2*%*** 1aza homes &hich% according to the ;N% &ere destroyed during the +sraeli carnage in the 5tri"#But ho& did the PNA react to Alis murder< $ours after the e(il deed &as done% and Alis charred body remo(ed from the burnt house% Abbas used the ultimate em"ty threat of "re"aring an a""eal to the +nternational =riminal =ourt +==!# As if that dramatic statement &as not enough to mitigate the silencing of angry Palestinians% his foreign minister re'ected the +sraeli condemnation of the killing of the infant as /insufficient#>et still% if that &as not enough to highlight the su""osedly anti-+sraeli-occu"ation brand of the PNA% Maan Ne&s Agency re"orted that the PNA and 6ordan had agreed to ?submit a draft resolution to the ;nited Nations 5ecurity =ouncil calling for international "rotection for Palestinian ci(ilians#@ No& that all the fiery% albeit em"ty statements ha(e been made% business continues as usual bet&een the PNA and +srael including the infamous /security co-ordination# 0hat is most disconcerting aboutsuch /co-ordination is that it is designed to a""rehend Palestinians &ho dare to "ose athreat A real or imagined A to the +sraeli occu"ation army and illegal colonies# Burthermore% as re"orted by Cuds Press% ?Palestinian National Authority security forces yesterday returned three +sraeli colonists to +srael after they infiltrated the 0est Bank city of 6ericho#@The irony is glaring A /security co-ordination is aimed at ensuring the safety of the (ery colonists like the ones &ho killed Ali and his dad! if they &ere caught attem"ting a (iolent act against Palestinians#This "ro(es that the PNA is 'ust a security agent &orking for the safety and "rotectionof the +sraeli occu"ation forces and their illegal colonists%@ a Palestinian resistance faction re"orted to the Middle Dast Monitor#But &as such "roof e(er necessary< $ardly# True% Alis grisly murder does highlight thebrutality of the 6e&ish colonists% &ho o"erate in tandem &ith the +sraeli military# The killing of a fe& Palestinians and &ounding of many more as they "rotested against Alismurder% further underscores the (iolence u"on &hich the +sraeli military occu"ation is "redicated# But there is more to the story#+sraels im"unity is also encouraged by the Palestinian leadershi" itself% &hich e3ists ina massi(e "olitical and economic bubble in Ramallah% in the 0est Bank#The PNA cannot e3ist &ithout +sraeli su""ort% 'ust as +sraels military occu"ation and illegal colony e3"ansion cannot be sustained &ithout the security arm of the PNA#Naturally% facing little or no resistance% the colonists are gro&ing# The latest "lanned e3"ansion &as recently announced by +sraeli Prime Minister% Ben'amin Netanyahu% &ho intends constructing hundreds of ne& illegal colonist homes on confiscated Palestinian land% in the 6e&ish colonies of Pisget Eee(% Ramot% 1ilo and $arhoma% in occu"ied 6erusalem#+n a statement% PNA /chief negotiator 5aeb Drekat did not forget to link the murder of Ali to the "lanned e3"ansionF ?0e cannot se"arate the barbaric attack that took "lace in 4uma last night from the recent colony a""ro(al by the +sraeli regime#@But he% along &ith his boss% Abbas% intends to do nothing about it# .n the contrary% des"ite his and other PNA officials fiery statements% in reality% the constant message the PNA sends to +srael is that Palestinians are acce"ting of the status Guo% burned babies or not#=onsider thisF the PNA =entral =ouncil (oted in March to halt negotiations and security co-ordination &ith +srael# The decision% meant "articularly for "ublic consum"tion% hardly mattered% as to" PNA officials% including Drekat himself% held recent /secret talks &ith the +sraeli regime officials in Amman% 6ordan#Tayseer 9halid of the 4emocratic Bront for the Liberation of Palestine% s"eaking to Maan% said% ?5adly% the PL. D3ecuti(e =ommittee and Palestinian leaders kno& about such meetings only from the +sraeli media#@5adly indeed% es"ecially since the Amman meeting &as designated as a /trust-building strategy a clue that America had a hand in it!% and &hich included Drekat and+sraeli +nterior Minister% 5il(an 5halom#Drekat is% "erha"s% often the sca"egoat% being the most (isible face of the PNA a""aratus# $o&e(er% numerous others are also im"licated in selling mirages to the Palestinian "eo"le# This% &hile "artaking in "reser(ing the (ery (iolent occu"ation that is destroying Palestinian society and robbing it of land% &ater% and dignity#Thus% Abbass rule continues% although "re"arations must be afoot to arrange the reignof his "redecessor% &ho &ill be &elcomed by +srael and the ;5 as long as he remains committed to the charade% "romoting re(olutions that do not e3ist% and reigning su"reme o(er an o""ressed and occu"ied nation# 4r# Ramzy Baroud has been &riting about the Middle Dast for o(er 2* years# $e is author of se(eral books and the founder of Palestine=hronicle#com# $is latest book is My Bather 0as a Breedom BighterF 1azas ;ntold 5tory Pluto Press% London!#Posted by Thavam