Tarek Fatah: "Netanyahu Wrong on Hamas-Fatah Deal"

The Toronto Sun columnist writes:

While Israel has a lot to answer for, the pain endured by the Palestinians is often self-inflicted by a corrupt leadership, incapable of forming a broad-based national movement with realistic goals. 

This is why Netanyahu’s decision to curtail more talks with the Palestinians is so problematic. It weakens those who seek peace and strengthens the people he rightfully scorns as Jew-hating terrorists.

It is? It does? I beg to differ, and did so via this letter to the editor:

I'm confused by Tarek Fatah's line of reasoning. First he says that Palestinian leadership is both "corrupt" and "incapable of forming a broad-based national movement with realistic goals." In the very next sentence, though, he says that for that reason it is incumbent on Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to seek "more talks with the Palestinians."

 

Er, which Palestinians would those be exactly, Mr. Fatah?

 

The ones "who seek peace"--whoever they are--have no power, and in any case are afraid to come forward lest they be murdered for failing to toe the Abbas-Hamas line. The others are, well, Abbas and Hamas.

 

As Mr. Netanyahu well knows--but Mr. Fatah, apparently, does not--there's no one to talk to at the moment. It is therefore both pointless and counter-productive to pursue "more talks" at this time.