Palestinians must put up a united front

There are certain requirements that need to be met if a Palestinian state is to become a reality. Otherwise, any negotiations between the Palestinians and the Israelis will be fruitless.

Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad recently stated that a Palestinian state is one that includes the Gaza Strip and occupied east Jerusalem. "A Palestinian state cannot be established without occupied east Jerusalem as its capital and just the same way, the future Palestinian state cannot be established without Gaza Strip as a main part of the future Palestinian state. This is the key challenge for the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) in the coming year, where this challenge should be won before all the arrangements, and preparations are made before the Palestinian state is declared," he said.

There are two main fronts which the Palestinians have to address. For one thing, the manner in which Israel has been dealing with the entire peace process gives an idea of its priority. The continuation of the Gaza blockade, the construction of additional colonies, and the displacement of many Palestinian families from occupied Jerusalem, are all indications of Israel's disregard for any attempt to reach a final resolution with regard to the conflict.

As a matter of fact, Israel has been least concerned with achieving any progress on the matter. What makes it worse for the Palestinians is the absolute silence from the international community.

Yet the Palestinians are also facing the challenge of bridging the gap amongst themselves — which poses a greater threat to any future negotiations with Israel. A divided Palestinian front is enabling Israel to proceed with its belligerence and disregard for all agreements, treaties and laws. Hence, if the Palestinians are to truly bring into existence a viable Palestinian state, they have to stand united.