Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' own people often have some unflattering words for him. He has been called a "traitor" and a “quisling,” accused of selling out Palestine in peace negotiations. While Israelis also attack him as a “diplomatic terrorist” and “Arafat in a suit,” one important Israeli sector has been praising him. The Israeli security establishment has nothing but positive words for the embattled Palestinian leader for his consistent support of security cooperation with Israel.
The public support from Israel’s security chief Yoram Cohen directly contradicts the statements of Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and provides Abbas with a strong new political weapon. Speaking in Cairo at the Arab League foreign ministers meeting Nov. 29, Abbas threatened to end security cooperation if plans for a timetable to end the occupation fail at the UN. The Palestinian leader has secured support from the Arab League for a resolution to be submitted to the UN Security Council demanding a short time frame for the end of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian lands occupied after 1967. Palestinian and Arab sources have been quiet about the exact details of the resolution. Previous public statements by Palestinian officials talked about a “firm timetable” of two or three years.