PA's Abbas burning candle at both ends

Abbas has several stakeholders in and around him: Israel, Hamas, Fatah, the moderate Arabs, the militant Arabs/Persians, and the United States. The challenge for the duplicitous Abbas is that the stakes of these several holders conflict, and he is summarily falling short on every count. He pleases and crosses every one of them as time goes on. The end result is coming into focus: Abbas isolated and expendable. He'll be the last to know and the one most harshly affected.

So let's draw some of these threads together and see the tapestry that is formed.

There is no love between Fatah and Abbas. So how to appease Fatah? Take down Hamas, and give them the Strip.

Take down Hamas, however, and as you may please Egypt, et al., you antagonize Hezbullah and Iran.

Remove Hamas as a thorn to Israel, and Hezbullah will need to step up the pressure because Iran will tell them to.

If Hezbullah steps up, that draws Lebanon into the vocal moderate Arab camp, and further isolates Syria.

Continue to strip away the bit players, and what emerges is Egypt v. Iran, with Israel playing the waiting game. Waiting for what? For Obama to accept that Israel has the chance to take out Iran's nuke plants without the noise-level folks (Hamas, Hezbullah, and, marginally, Fatah) erupting.

Ah, don't you love Middle Eastern politics? It's as murky as a creek after a rainstorm, and one thing always leads to another. Solve one problem and you'll be lucky not to create any others.

Interesting article though. Very informative.

He pleases and crosses every one of them as time goes on. The end result is coming into focus: Abbas isolated and expendable.

It doesn't make any difference what happens to Abbas -- the PLO has to be entirely obliterated.

May the angels of the Lord encamp all around Israel and protect it, and all of it’s people. G-d has so much power and he is perfectly able to protect all of Israel’s people.
In just one night so long ago, one angel killed off 185,000 men who would harm to God’s people, and he is perfectly able to do that again.

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