Western diplomats have desperately held out Mahmoud Abbas as a partner for peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but events over the past week have exposed Abbas as an empty suit in Palestinian politics. My new column in the Examiner explains why:

The Fatah leader that the U.S. and the West consider the best partner for peace in the region had to cancel orders to deploy Palestinian security personnel into the northern Gaza region where most of the rocket attacks by Hamas and Islamic Jihad originate. Fatah’s own in-house lunatics, the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, refused to stop attacking Israel, demonstrating the lack of power held by the West’s partner for peace.

The Jerusalem Post reported that Hamas was the only group that had accepted Abbas’s cease-fire. When his own band of militants refused to carry out Abbas’ orders, the deal fell apart.

The lack of influence on Abbas’ part shows a disturbing development in the territories: The lack of mandate for anything short of annihilation of Israel and the lack of authority in the hands of the Palestinian Authority.

What options does this leave for the Israelis and the West? Not many, and none of them pleasant. Most of all, the West needs a strong dose of reality when it comes to the political situation among the Palestinians. Peace has no mandate among them, unless one considers the peace of total annihilation an option. Co-existence is a cause that no Palestinian leader will openly support because of the hostility of the Palestinian people to that solution. Whatever else their faults, Palestinian leaders appear to represent the desires of their constituents.

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Tracked on August 24, 2006 1:51 PM