War in Gaza Will Further Weaken Abbas
Palestinians have lost trust in PA President Mahmoud Abbas, and with foreign leaders leaving him out of diplomatic efforts to achieve a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, most people feel he is powerless and irrelevant
Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas is facing a tough battle at home for what many say is his lackluster diplomatic efforts during the war on Gaza. Anger is mounting toward the 88-year-old leader, who is seen as out of touch and leading an inept diplomatic effort that has yet to yield a cease-fire for Gaza.
People have turned a deaf ear to Abbas’ approach, and they believe he has lost the ability to connect with anyone.
Since Hamas’ attack on October 7, Abbas has met with Jordanian King Abdullah II and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. He also attended a conference in Cairo last Saturday, where he met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. Yet none of these meetings yielded any reduction in violence or a cease-fire in Gaza.
The PA’s foreign minister on Tuesday criticized the UN Security Council’s inaction to stop “massacres” in Gaza by Israel, which has retaliated for Hamas’ massive attack.
“The ongoing massacres being deliberately and systematically and savagely perpetrated by Israel—the occupying power against the Palestinian civilian population under illegal occupation—must be stopped,” PA Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki told a special Security Council session. “It is our collective human duty to stop them,” he said. “Continued failure at this council is inexcusable.”
After a rocket strike on a Gaza hospital last week caused fresh outrage, hundreds of Palestinians took to the streets in a rare demonstration, shouting, “Abbas step down!” before being dispersed by security forces.
Abbas lost everyone, especially the Palestinian people. They don’t trust anything he says, and quite frankly they don’t care about him much anymore.
“Abbas lost everyone, especially the Palestinian people. They don’t trust anything he says, and quite frankly they don’t care about him much anymore,” US-based Middle East expert Hasan Awwad told The Media Line.
Abbas has led the PA for 18 years but has only limited authority over the West Bank and none over Gaza, where the PA was violently ousted by Hamas in 2007.
On the world stage, Abbas has clung to the unrealized promises of the 1993 Oslo Accords.
He has been powerless against the rapid expansion of Israeli settlements and Israeli military control in the West Bank and annexed East Jerusalem, both occupied since 1967, fragmenting what was meant to be a contiguous Palestinian territory.
Violence against Palestinian civilians by Israeli settlers and clashes between the Israeli army and Palestinian armed groups have escalated.
Abbas’ security services are seen as incapable of protecting its own people.
How can you trust him when he repeatedly calls on the international community for protection
“How can you trust him when he repeatedly calls on the international community for protection,” wondered Awwad.
Abbas is not at the forefront of any diplomatic efforts. In fact, everyone else is except for him. Western officials, including the US, have bypassed meeting him while favoring convening with regional leaders like King Abdullah, el-Sisi, and Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
“He lost his place, that’s the simple answer; he doesn’t have anything to offer. The West knows he doesn’t represent his people,” said Awwad.
Even before the latest escalation, Abbas’ popularity had been in decline while support for peaceful negotiations was waning.
Seventy-eight percent of Palestinians wanted Abbas to resign, according to a poll published in September by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research.
About 58% said they supported “armed struggle” to end the Israeli occupation, compared with 20% in favor of a negotiated settlement and 24% for “peaceful resistance.”
“The lack of progress on the political track weakened Abbas,” Ahmad Rafiq Awad, a professor at Al-Quds University in Abu Dis, told The Media Line.
According to Awad, the absence of a political horizon and Hamas’ ability to hit deep inside Israel has “exposed” Abbas.
“They see the other Palestinian factions are more trustworthy and better equipped at dealing with Israel and extracting something from it,” said Awad.
Abbas attempted to deflect blame for not reaching a truce in Gaza and, instead, place it on others. He said that Israel and the countries that encourage the Jewish state bear responsibility for what is happening in the Gaza Strip. He also demanded a cease-fire and the opening of humanitarian corridors to bring aid to its residents.
Abbas’ remarks followed his meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Palestinian presidential headquarters in Ramallah, according to Palestine TV.
“Israel bears responsibility for the events taking place today, and the countries of the world who encourage the Israeli occupation authorities to continue to deepen their aggressive practices share the responsibility,” Abbas said.
Time is up. It’s time for change and allowing new blood to lead. Regardless of what happens in Gaza, Hamas will come out more popular, and Abbas won’t.
“Time is up. It’s time for change and allowing new blood to lead. Regardless of what happens in Gaza, Hamas will come out more popular, and Abbas won’t,” concluded Awwad, the US-based Middle East expert.
