I’m Hoping To Get To Five Rejected Peace Proposals Before I’m Done

by Mahmoud Abbas, President, Palestinian Authority, and Chairman, Palestine Liberation Organization

Credit: Gobierno de Chile via Wikimedia Commons

Ramallah, December 9 – President Donald Trump and his advisers have tries to generate excitement over their impending Deal of the Century to resolve the conflict between us and Israel once and for all, but they appear not to realize I have a different aim in mind: rejecting at least five statehood and end-the-conflict offers before I either step down or die. Mr. Trump’s deal would only qualify as number three.

My predecessor, the iconic Yasser Arafat, rejected only one statehood offer. I command far less stature in Palestinian society – let alone the Arab world – than he does even in death. The only way to cement my legacy in any way close to his among the pantheon of our people’s greats is to demonstrate steadfast rejection of any proposal that even implies we consent to a sovereign Jewish presence near us. But I’ve already reached my eighties, and no one knows how much longer I have in this position. If I manage to reject five peace proposals, then perhaps I can earn my place next to the legendary Raïs.

When I rejected Ehud Olmert’s unprecedented offer in 2008, which went farther even than what Arafat rejected in 2000 – and then launched the deadly Second Intifada – I assumed, in error, that I had cemented my position in that pantheon. But developments proceeded differently from what I had foreseen, and my stature did not improve in any lasting way.

Fortunately, in 2013 President Obama and Secretary Kerry took Binyamin Netanyahu’s provisional acceptance of an American proposal and tweaked it, presenting something even more generous to us – and beyond what Netanyahu had actually agreed – as an offer on the table, giving me another opportunity to reject something – and reject it I did. That refusal somehow never catapulted me into the ranks of the legends either, forcing me to reconsider my assumption that a single dramatic No could achieve the lasting effect I desired.

Now that the Deal of the Century’s unveiling approaches, despite several delays owing to Israeli political instability – they’ve had more elections in a year than I have in fourteen – I have another chance to build my legacy. This time, however, I know that rejecting this proposal will not, on its own, designate me an epic hero. I concede that I might always remain in Arafat’s shadow. But some measure of our version of sainthood can be mine, in my estimation, if I can reach five rejected peace proposals. We will simply have to hope our enemies remain stupid enough to keep making offers, then blaming Israel when we refuse.

Please support our work through Patreon.