Daniel Pipes: Making Sense of Palestinian Logic
Palestinians do weird things. A few days ago, the Palestinian Authority (PA), which rules most of the West Bank, refused to accept the tax revenues it is owed by the Israeli government. Today, Hamas, which rules all of Gaza, launched more than 200 rockets into Israel.
Both of these are, on the surface, self-defeating steps that make no sense. Not taking the money means the PA could collapse; firing rockets means Hamas is getting battered militarily by the far superior Israeli forces.
So, why do the leaders of these quasi-governmental entities take such apparently self-defeating steps? Because they bring results. Follow the logic:
- Israelis thriving in nearly every domain, from demographics to economics, from democracy to cultural creativity.
- The Palestinians feel isolated and weak because the Arab states have basically come to terms with Israel’s existence, leaving the struggle to secondary players such as Iran, Turkey, and the global Left.
- No matter their weakness, the leaders of the PA and Hamas remain committed to the elimination of the Jewish state, meaning that they cannot live in peace next to Israel.
- Contrarily, the Israeli public cherishes normality and, especially since the 1993 Oslo accords, has been ready to pay a price for it.
Therefore, the Palestinians play a game of chicken, disturbing the quiet in return for an Israeli pay-off. The Palestinian Authority says, “Give us the money you’re holding back that we use to fund attacks on Israelis or our whole structure will come crashing down and you’ll have a much bigger mess on your hands.” Hamas says, “Give us access to the money Qatar is sending us or we will make life miserable for you, with rockets raining down during your Memorial Day, your Independence Day, and the semi-finals of the Eurovision Song Contest.”
Pierre Rehov: Corruption: A major cause of Palestinian suffering - documentary
Much has been said about the sums that the Palestinian Authority spends on salaries of terrorists imprisoned in Israel and the families of “martyrs” – in other words, suicide-terrorists and those killed during their murderous operation. But when you talk to Palestinians about the misappropriation of funds allocated by the international community, the first term they use is “corruption.”Pierre Rehov: Terror Racket and Corruption
Indeed, a study by AMAN – a chapter of Transparency International co-founded by Jordan – shows that, according to several surveys of the Palestinian population, the corruption of their leaders is the second most popular cause of their misery. According to the same surveys, the first cause would be the inability of these same leaders to create a strong economy. The Israeli occupation comes in third place.
The equation between PA President Mahmoud Abbas and his entourage on the one hand, and Hamas leaders on the other, is easy to understand. For decades, to divert the attention of the media, the international community and their people, all they had to do was accuse Israel of all their ills.
This is an exercise that has also been carried out by many Arab-Muslim countries. Whatever the excesses of the dictatorships in place, it has long been enough to accuse Israel – and sometimes the West – to keep their populations calm, while diverting and reaping billions of dollars that could have improved their living conditions or infrastructure.
But times are changing, global information is now easily accessible and people are no longer fooled.
Nikki Haley | The Ben Shapiro Show Sunday Special Ep. 49