Abbas returns to relevance

The ongoing wave of Palestinian terrorist attacks has brought Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas back to life. He is suddenly relevant again. Some are praising Abbas for his attempts to limit the scope of the violence, while others are criticizing him for his contributions to incitement on the Palestinian street. And, of course, there are those who are calling for a renewal of peace talks with him. The main thing is that people are finally paying attention to Abbas again.

Until a few weeks ago, Abbas was a forgotten man. Even his closest associates were beginning to undermine him. With the goal of staying in the picture, Abbas used his U.N. address to announce that the Palestinians would no longer be bound by past agreements with Israel. Yet even this threat did not get much attention.

But now, Abbas is happily using the wave of terrorist attacks to ensure his political survival. The empty threat Abbas issued at the U.N. did not hide the fact that he needs Israel just as much as Israel needs him. Power, and all the goodies that come with it, would slip from Abbas' hands were it not for Israel.

Abbas is not a man of terrorism, and he certainly learned the lesson of his predecessor Yasser Arafat, who ended up being burned by the flames of the Second Intifada which he ignited. Yet low-level flames do serve Abbas' purposes right now, as they make him relevant to Israel, the international community and his own people. Moreover, Abbas abides to the Palestinian narrative in which terrorist attacks are not condemned, as they are part of the "popular struggle" against the "occupation."

Just a few weeks ago, Abbas was a man of the past. But the wave of terrorist attacks has given him purpose and meaning, as he now once again has a role to fill. Let us hope that he will try to quell the rising violence. And more importantly, let us hope he still has the power to do so.

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