Both the Arab and Israeli press report that Hamas and Israel are on the verge of concluding a prisoner swap deal – which means that not only have Hamas and Likud been negotiating, but they’ve been negotiating successfully. Ironically, the negotiations to free Palestinians political prisoners have caused the illegitimate President of the American-Israeli Palestinian Authority (AIPA) Mahmoud Abbas to accuse Hamas of, well, negotiating with Israel.
Fortunately, one doesn’t have to read very extensively to understand what motivates the AIPA; one of the prisoners that Israel is likely to release in any deal is Marwan Barghouti, the charismatic, dynamic Fatah leader. The weak, ineffectual and unstable AIPA is on the verge of collapse. Evidence of its instability is abundant – this month alone has seen calls for Palestinian elections, then their cancellation; calls for a third Palestinian Intifada, and then a decision to suspend those calls; the threat of a unilateral declaration of statehood, and then a repeal of that threat.
Sixteen-years-old, the AIPA is just hitting puberty. Mr. Barghouti’s release will likely underscore Mr. Abbas’ redundancy and may result in General Keith Dayton’s retirement from Palestinian politics. His release will diminish the role of the AIPA in Palestine – we may hope for its total collapse.
Ahmed Moor is a 25-year-old Palestinian-American from the Rafah refugee camp. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, he now lives in Beirut.
