RAMALLAH, West Bank — As Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas prepares to embark down a well-trod path of peace talks — a road he has spent a career helping to pave — the pragmatic leader is risking his political future in what some predict could be his last trip to the negotiating table.
It is little wonder Abbas has responded with ambivalence to the U.S.-sponsored direct talks, set to begin Thursday in Washington, D.C.
After months of hesitation, Abbas agreed to participate only after heavy U.S. pressure and despite deep pessimism among his own people and supporters. Fewer than 25 percent of Palestinians think the talks will yield results, a recent poll found.
With Palestinian frustration high after a string of failed negotiations over the past decade, Abbas’ political future might hang in the balance, dependent on whether he can deliver Palestinian statehood and vindicate his pursuit of peace talks, rather than violent resistance, as the only viable path.
“He’s really putting himself out on a limb,” said former Abbas adviser and Palestinian analyst Diana Buttu. “His decision to enter talks is incredibly unpopular with Palestinians. Unless he can somehow pull a rabbit out of his hat, his credibility will be lost. The stakes for him are very high.”
Leaders in the rival Hamas movement, which controls the Gaza Strip, have branded Abbas a sellout and called for his resignation after five years in office.
Even some of Abbas’ supporters in the more moderate Fatah party are questioning his decision to soften his demand for Israel to halt housing construction in the occupied West Bank as a precondition to joining the talks.
Abbas and his supporters concede chances for success are slim, but they predict Israel, not Abbas, will shoulder the blame if talks fail. A key test will come Sept. 26, when Israel’s 10-month moratorium on most new housing construction in the West Bank ends.
