Will Israeli-Palestinian conflict escalate in December?
Both Israel and the Palestinians are using the period of international deadlock at the end of 2016 to consolidate their support bases instead of advancing dialogue initiatives.
While rumors are floating in the media about a possible Abbas-Netanyahu summit in Moscow or Cairo, in reality, Israeli and Palestinian parties are preparing to consolidate their domestic hard-line positions in order to prepare for a period of deadlock and a possible wider outbreak of violence toward the end of 2016.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is interested in headlines on such a summit with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to protect himself from American and European pressure to advance the two-state solution and to stop settlement expansion. Under the cover of this upcoming summit, the Israeli government continues to build in the West Bank, undisturbed by the international community.
