Another contradiction for Israel to deal with: the collapse of the Palestinian Authority. If it disappears, Israel has the responsibility under international law as the occupying power to administer and support the residents of the West Bank and Gaza . Israel, of course, has brought itself to this point through its refusal to deal with Hamas and its subsequent physical destruction of PA offices and other Palestinian infrastructure, arrest of government ministers, and witholding of transfer payments.
Now Hamas leaders are threatening to make official what already exists on the ground: the formal dissolution of the PA. What logically follows from this is the concept of a single binational state which, according to the WSJ report below, is "gaining traction among Palestinians of many shades" - including Hamas militants. As the Journal notes, "the idea of dismantling the PA was once a marginal idea, championed in the 1990s by left-wing intellectuals such as Edward Said, who advocated civil disobedience against Israeli occupation and a campaign for 'one person, one vote'. The model was the antiapartheid protests in South Africa that paved the way for black-majority rule there." The irony is that any time interest in a binational state has manifested itself in the occupied territories, it turns Israel into a fierce champion of an "independent" Palestine because of racially-motivated demographic fears for the Jewish character of the Zionist state. Fatah has exploited these Israeli fears before to encourage it to negotiate around its program for a viable independent Palestinian state. Now Hamas, which is not programatically committed to a two-state solution, but whose trajectory is in that direction, seems to be employing the same tactic to pressure the Israelis into releasing funds to the PA and agreeing to negotiate the terms of its withdrawal. "Any breakdown in government could thwart Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's plan to withdraw unilaterally from large parts of the West Bank", the report observes. There is virtually no chance the Israelis would juridicially absorb the Palestinians into their own state, knowing they would immediately be confronted with an enormous Arab-Jewish anti-apartheid campaign along South African lines. That is why they built a wall to retreat behind, threatening to leave the immiserated Palestinians to fend for themselves in an enclosed unguarded prison until they finally capitulate to Israel's terms for a peace settlement. ========================================= August 11, 2006 Chaos Could Doom Palestinian Authority Leadership Void in Territories Would Put Onus Back on Israel, Thwart Withdrawal Plan By GUY CHAZAN Wall Street Journal August 11, 2006; Page A4 RAMALLAH, West Bank -- Israel's war with Hezbollah has overshadowed a looming crisis in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, where conditions have deteriorated to the point that some in the Palestinian government are exploring the prospect of its self-dissolution. The economic and political breakdown has put new stresses on a population already racked by falling incomes and high unemployment. But the unraveling of the Palestinian Authority, starved of cash and with several of its ministers in Israeli jails, could have disastrous consequences for Israel as well: International law dictates that as an occupying force, it would have to take over full responsibility for the well-being of 3.9 million Palestinians. An aid freeze by donors, initiated when Hamas won January elections in Gaza, has left the PA virtually penniless. More than 150,000 public-sector workers have gone unpaid for the past five months, and some ministries have ceased to function. That has prompted an increasing number of Palestinians to call for the dismantling of the PA and a transfer of its powers back to Israel, which continues to occupy the West Bank and controls Gaza's borders despite last year's military pullout. Even Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh has hinted at the idea. Following Israel's arrest of parliament speaker Abdel Aziz Dweik last weekend, Mr. Haniyeh on Wednesday said, "All political elites, the presidency, the factions and the government are invited to discuss the future of the Palestinian Authority following this...attack. Can [the PA] function under the occupation, kidnappings and assassination?" Established in 1994 under a peace deal with Israel, the PA was conceived of as an interim self-governing body and steppingstone to full statehood. But that prospect has receded since Hamas took control in March after a stunning election victory over rival Fatah, the party of Yasser Arafat that had dominated Palestinian politics up to that point. After Hamas, an Islamist organization with political, social-services and militant wings, won a dominant majority in January elections, international donors led by the U.S. -- which deems Hamas a terrorist organization -- froze aid and demanded that the group recognize Israel, renounce violence and accept existing peace deals with Israel. So far, Hamas has refused. The idea of dismantling the PA was once a marginal idea, championed in the 1990s by left-wing intellectuals such as Edward Said, who advocated civil disobedience against Israeli occupation and a campaign for "one person, one vote." The model was the antiapartheid protests in South Africa that paved the way for black-majority rule there. Self-dissolution was also raised by Fatah supporters in the aftermath of their election defeat. But there also is now some support for the idea among Hamas activists, who in the past few months have become disillusioned by political power and may prefer to return to their armed struggle against Israel. Israel says it isn't its policy -- nor in its interest -- to see the PA go out of business. "Those that should disappear from the political arena are Hamas, not the PA," said government spokesman Avi Pazner. Any breakdown in government could also thwart Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's plan to withdraw unilaterally from large parts of the West Bank. "The existence of a political entity in the West Bank and Gaza is essential for Israel to achieve its objective of ending its control of the Palestinian population," said Gidi Grinstein, head of the Reut Institute, an Israeli think tank. "That's why dismantling the PA could severely compromise Israel's interests." Yet the idea is gaining traction among Palestinians of many shades. One is Hafez Barghouti, the influential editor in chief of the Palestinian newspaper Al-Hayat Al-Jadida. "We should just accept that we are under military rule," he said. "We should turn to civil disobedience, burn our ID cards and struggle until we get our rights." In recent months, there had been hopes of a lifeline to rescue the PA from its international isolation. In late June, Palestinian political factions reached an agreement to create a unity government that implied recognition of Israel by Hamas. The deal could have paved the way for a release of donor aid to the PA. But then the Israel-Hezbollah war broke out, knocking the Palestinian issue off all radar screens. "Lebanon has hijacked Palestine," says Mohammed Shtayye, the PA's former housing minister and the head of Pecdar, a big Ramallah-based aid and investment organization. The fighting in Lebanon has also largely eclipsed the continuing violence in Palestinian areas. Gaza has been reeling from an Israeli ground and air offensive unleashed after militants captured an Israeli soldier in a cross-border raid on June 25. The fighting has left more than 170 Palestinians dead, more than half of them civilians. Even more disruptive was Israel's arrest in late June of 64 Hamas officials, including eight government ministers -- a third of the cabinet -- on charges of "belonging to a terrorist organization." Wasfi Izzat Kabaha, the PA prison-affairs minister and one of two Hamas officials released by the Israelis in the past few days, is trying to get his department back up and running after a monthlong stint behind bars. Every day brings new complications: He waves a letter from Mr. Haniyeh requesting that he take over the Labor portfolio, replacing the present labor minister, who remains in Israeli custody. His ministry used to disburse about $4.5 million in monthly allowances to the roughly 10,300 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails and their families. But for three months, it has had no budget. The ministry's civil servants and lawyers aren't being paid, either. "Will the PA collapse?" he asks. "I don't know. But if they don't recognize our rights and our government, then the situation can only get worse." The European Commission has tried to avert the collapse of essential services, allocating $135 million over three months under a "temporary mechanism" that bypasses the Hamas government. It includes "social allowances" for about 13,000 health workers and will be paid directly into their bank accounts. But considering the PA's basic wage bill is nearly $100 million a month, it hardly solves the problem. Meanwhile, Israel still refuses to transfer the roughly $55 million a month of value-added tax and customs duties it collects on behalf of the PA -- about half of the Palestinians' monthly budget. For Mr. Shtayye, the outlook for the PA is bleak. "The PA is not a supermarket which can just go bust and close down," he says. "But the people are saying if it can't protect the lives of its citizens, deliver services or pay salaries, then what's the point of it?"
