"Arafat allowed the Barak government to slide into obscurity, and tossed away his chance at a state without so much as shedding a crocodile tear. They only want conflict."
Well, it's also a matter of Arafat's weakness. Think about the usual nationalist movement script:
1. Fight the occupiers, using some combination of a) demonstrations, b) guerilla war, c) political alliances, d) terrorism
2. Force the occupier to the negotiating table
3. Take the best deal you can get
4. Go home where your own radicals will accuse you of selling out
5. Fight a civil war (for full implementation, cf. Michael Collins and the Irish Free State)
Now ask yourself, could Arafat have survived steps 4 and 5? A: No way, esp. since all the neighbors (read: Egypt) would side with the radicals. |
