Arafat was just a part of the problem
Reader comment on article: Arafat's Last Threat to Israel?

Submitted by Kenneth S. Besig (Israel), Nov 9, 2004 at 10:10

The last thing that the Palestinian Authority, their associated terrorist groups, and the region's Arabic or Islamic governments, monarchies, family dictatorships, and their associated terrorist groups want or will allow, is a peaceful settlement of the Arab Israeli, or if you will, the Israeli Palestinian conflict. Indeed, while the destruction of Israel is in fact the ultimate goal of these various groups, they would prefer to keep the conflict going as long as possible,=. since it serves their national interests by focusing their people's real and dangerous popular resentment of their despotic and nepotistic governments towards an illusory enemy, the Jews of the State of Israel.

Within the disputed territories, bordering Israel proper, the various terrorist groups, including the PLO and its public arm, the PA, there is only the war to destroy Israel, and to milk the Palestinian problem for all the money they can. And should a popular Palestinian leader arise, one who would indeed demand the end to Palestinian violence against Israel and accept the compromises necessary to achieve a peace treaty with Israel, I doubt very much that he would stay alive very long. The Palestinian war to destroy Israel is far too profitable, financially and politically, for too many Arab and Islamic groups, for them to allow a complete halt to the violence. Arafat , I believe, was totally committed to the violent destruction of Israel, but he was also committed to embezzling as much money as he could, and using those funds to fight against Israel, and to keep himself secure with bribery and corruption, so as not to suffer the fate of most Arab leaders -- that is, sudden death by poisoning, a knife or bullet in the back, or some other form of assassination.

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