Juan Cole: The End of the Oslo Accords: Palestinians pull out of Agreements in face of Netanyahu’s Sudetenland Moment
Palestinian
Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh announced after a cabinet meeting that
his government will move to implement the end of Palestinian cooperation with
Israel and the United States and its withdrawal from all agreements it had
signed with them. The steps were announced Tuesday by President Mahmoud
Abbas.
Abbas had said, “The
Palestine Liberation Organization and the State of Palestine are no longer
committed to all signed agreements and understandings with the Israeli
government and the American government, including the security commitments.” He
added that Israel will now have to “uphold responsibilities before the international community as the occupying
power.” US Secretary of State
Mike Pompeo professed not to understand what in the world Abbas was talking
about.
So Mr. Secretary, since you don’t know much about the Middle East and
what you think you know is wrong, let me explain it to you. No one ever thought
the Israelis had any claim to the West Bank and Gaza. These territories were
occupied during the 1967 War. But the UN Charter forbids the acquisition of
neighbors’ territory by force, so Israel is bound to relinquish them. It
doesn’t intend to. The 1993 Oslo peace
accords between the United States, Israel and the Palestine Liberation
Organization created the Palestine Authority, a sort of limited self-government
for Palestinians, who remained under Israeli military occupation.... read more:
https://www.juancole.com/2020/05/palestinians-agreements-sudetenland.htmlsee also