Haaretz reported the other day that Palestinian leaders were thinking of declaring a state within the 1967 borders, and that Netanyahu was seeking a promise from Obama to veto such a declaration. Hardworking Marsha Cohen points out that this is an old theme:
Jerusalem Post, June 28, 1996
FOLLOWING Binyamin Netanyahu’s election victory, Yasser Arafat has threatened to declare a Palestinian state "with Jerusalem as its capital" if the new Israeli government does not meet his demands.
al Hayat, November 06, 2001
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat is considering unilaterally declaring Palestinian statehood when he addresses the U.N. General Assembly session over the weekend, the London-based al-Hayat newspaper reports. The newspaper said Arafat has reason to believe he has the support of many countries and that making such a statement would cement the reality of a Palestinian state.
WAFA: March 5, 2007
At the closing 127th session of the League of Arab States held in Cairo, the Ministers affirmed that the State of Palestine is a complete partner in the peace process, rejecting all Israeli unilateral procedures and endeavors to fix its own borders.
Xinhua, Feb. 21, 2008
The Palestinians can declare their statehood unilaterally if talks with Israel fail, a senior aide to President Mahmoud Abbas said Thursday. “We can declare the independence unilaterally if the current negotiations fail to achieve results,” Yasser Abed Rabbo, a member of the Palestinian negotiating team, told Voice of Palestine radio.
Trend News, Aug. 26, 2009
The White House Administration and the European Union will recognize an independent Palestinian state if it is announced by 2011, official representative of the Palestinian Administration in Cairo, Nabil Shaath, said.
Neither Y-Net nor J-Post make any mention of the "Palestinians to Declare State Now" story. In fact, Ali Waked writes in Y-Net today (Nov. 7)
Senior operative says Abbas’ retirement may force Fatah to resort to violent protests, stone-throwing Following Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ announcement that he would not run for another term, a senior Fatah official told Ynet that if serious progress was not made soon in peace talks, the organization would consider reverting to popular warfare…
