And speaking of Abu Mazen (otherwise known as Mahmoud Abbas), IMRA points to an interesting development over the Israel Defense Forces website. It seems they've removed an article that quoted some very recent, rather incendiary statements by Mr. Abbas. Fortunately, the full text of the deleted item is still available at IMRA. And you can find even more of the interview itself here. The money quote, I suppose, is this one:
Abu Mazen: It is our right to resist. The Intifada must continue and it is the right of the Palestinian People to resist and use all possible means in order to defends its presence and existence. I add and say that if the Israelis come to your land in order to erect a settlement then it is your right to defend what is yours.
The story has now been picked up by Ha'aretz. Correspondent Nadav Shragai hypothesizes that the item was removed because it was being used by settlers to demonstrate Mr. Abbas's lack of "moderation," and to chastise the Israeli government for failing to acknowledge this. But there's a quote later on in the article that's more telling, I think.
In recent days, members of the American diplomatic corps have asked Israel to give Abu Mazen room for maneuver, and to ease the pressure on him. It is entirely possible that the decision to remove the material from the IDF website is related to this request.
