Palestinians May Formally Abandon Peace Process

Threat to Dissolve PA Aimed at Pressing US

With PA President Mahmoud Abbas poised to resign, Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) legislators are reportedly set to discuss dissolving the Palestinian Authority entirely, ending the 1993 peace process and the limited self governance enjoyed by the PA in portions of the West Bank.

The move would have enormous ramifications, but with Israel having repeatedly threatened to abandon the peace process and the US having backed off all of its demands regarding Israel’s settlements, it underscores how little hope the PLO has for the diplomatic process.

At the same time, Fatah would seem to gain little from such a move, and the threat is likely more aimed at pressuring the US to return to its summer position, when it was demanding Israel halt all settlement growth.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.