Misguided Judgement: Shimon Peres on Abbas

Sir, - Shimon Peres deserves to be lauded for his achievements in representing the State of Israel throughout the world. He has won the genuine respect and admiration of world leaders for his impressive intellect, broad knowledge, dignity, and the striking vitality despite advanced age, that he brings to the service of his people.

I, however, feel that there is room for some concern. In the pre-Independence Day interview that he granted The Jerusalem Post of April 25, there appear to be some indications of worrisome memory loss alongside instances of being out of touch with reality. Peres is quoted as praising Abbas and stating that "Israel never faced a better opportunity to reach a peace deal with the Palestinians than it has today under the leadership of PA President Mahmoud Abbas." One is compelled to ask, on what past or recent reality does Peres use as the basis for his optimism?

Are we talking about the Abbas that refuses to sit and negotiate with Israel for the past several months, or he that uses every opportunity to attack Israel in the UN? Or is it Abbas that names plazas in the PA in honor of terrorists and their heroic deeds? Or is it Abbas the Holocaust denier, who now tries to eradicate and deny any traces of Israel's connection with the Land of our forefathers? And so on....

While I have no interest in pointing out the ravages of old age, I feel strongly that the people of  Israel have already paid much too dearly for the Peres-Abbas Oslo misadventure to permit their being misled once again by misguided judgment.

ZEV CHAMUDOT
Petach Tikva

[Image Credit: WEF, retrieved from here]