Barak Ravid : Was It a Bombshell or Stink Bomb That Abbas Dropped in His UN Speech?
Was it a bombshell or stink bomb that Abbas dropped in his UN speech? HAARETZ.COM NEW YORK – For a change, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas kept his promise. In his speech to the UN General Assembly Wednesday night, he indeed threw a bombshell when he declared that the Palestinians would no longer uphold the agreements they have signed with Israel over the last 20 years. But the question that remains unanswered is whether this bomb will be detonated instantly and generate serious shock waves, lie there as unexploded ordnance that could go off at any moment, or turn out to be not a real bomb at all, but at best a stink bomb whose stench will quickly dissipate. It’s not by chance that the Prime Minister’s Office declined to respond to the most important part of Abbas’ speech; Israel still doesn’t fully understand its significance. But Jerusalem’s initial analysis of the speech interpreted it as a mere threat. After all, Abba...