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Abu Mazen may quit
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| 11 June 2003 |
Two months after his appointment as prime minister of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas - better known by his nom de guerre of Abu Mazen - faces difficulties that seem to him to be insuperable. Foreign Report has been told by a source close to the beleaguered leader that he is seriously considering quitting his job. This would be a major setback to a stumbling Middle East peace process.
Abdelaziz al-Rantisi, a spokesman for Hamas and a recent target of an Israeli assassination bid, said: "Abu Mazen's weakness is because his name is linked to the Oslo agreement [between Israel and the Palestinians] which collapsed." Rantisi added: "Abu Mazen's [conciliatory and moderate] policy is not supported by the man-in-the-street, who opposes it." Rantisi expected that Abu Mazen would not stay in office for long.
Rantisi has publicly rejected calls to cease attacks on Israelis under the terms of the latest peace project, the so-called 'road map'.
Another Hamas leader, Mohammed Nazal, said: "Abu Mazen represents a minority imposed on the Palestinian people by the USA and Israel." Nazal added that Abu Mazen's cabinet was isolated politically because the mainstream Palestinian faction, President Yasser Arafat's Fatah, was opposed to the cabinet's policy.
Amin Maqbul, a Fatah leader in Nablus, told Foreign Report: "Abu Mazen is not a professional politician. He was asked by Fatah to do this job [of prime minister] and would be obliged to step down if he found he could not do it without more help from Fatah and Hamas."
Early this week Abu Mazen informed a group of Fatah leaders in Ramallah about his intention to quit the job.
Abbas Zaki, a Fatah leader from Hebron, said: "The Israelis are not helping Abu Mazen because they do not want a man of peace". On the evidence available, the Palestinian leaders do not want a man of peace either.
If, however, Abu Mazen puts together a united Palestinian front to negotiate with Israel, his bargaining position would be infinitely stronger than it is now. He could hold the Israelis to their commitments under an amended 'road map'. The Palestinians would win back at the negotiating table much of the land that they lost on the battlefield. Is there any chance of this happening? Probably not.
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