The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) is opposing any Israeli and American support for Palestinian Authority (PA) president Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah terrorist group. ( Jerusalem Post, June 17, 2007).
Mahmoud Abbas in his own words:

• On recognizing Israel:” It is not required of Hamas, or of Fatah, or of the Popular Front to recognize Israel” (Al-Arabiya [Dubai] and PA TV, October 3, 2006).
  
• Fighting Israel: “We have a legitimate right to direct our guns against Israeli occupation … Our rifles, all our rifles are aimed at The Occupation” ( Jerusalem Post, January 11, 2007; Independent Media & Review Analysis, January 12, 2007).
  
• On Jews: “The sons of Israel are corrupting humanity on earth” ( World Net Daily, January 11, 2007).
  
  
• On Israel: “the Zionist enemy” (Associated Press, January 4, 2005; CNN.com, January 7, 2005).
  
• On suicide bombers: “Allah loves the martyr” ( Wall Street Journal, January 5, 2005).
  
• On wanted Palestinian terrorists: “heroes fighting for freedom” ( Age [Melbourne], January 3, 2005); ” Israel calls them murderers, we call them strugglers” (Jerusalem Post, December 25, 2004).
  
• On Palestinian terrorist leaders Yasser Arafat, Hamas’ Ahmad Yasin and Abdel Aziz Rantisi and Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s Fathi Shikaki: “martyrs” (Palestinian Media Center , September 9, 2005)
  
• On Hamas: “We must unite the Hamas and Fatah blood in the struggle against Israel as we did at the beginning of the intifada. We want a political partnership with Hamas” ( Jerusalem Post, February 5, 2007).
  
• On Yasser Arafat: “It is our duty to implement the principles of Yasser Arafat” ( Haaretz, January 3, 2005); “We will continue in the path of the late president until we fulfill all his dreams” (Agence France-Presse, November 11, 2005); “The Palestinian leadership won’t stray from Arafat’s path” (Yediot Ahronot, November 11, 2006)
  
• On disarming Palestinian terrorists: a “red line” that must not be crossed (Washington Times, January 3, 2005)
  
• On jailed Palestinian terrorists: “our heroes.” (Israel National News, May 26, 2006).
  
• On the so-called ‘right of return’ of Palestinian refugees and their millions of descendants which, if implemented would end Israel as a Jewish state: “The issue of the refugees is non-negotiable” ( Jerusalem Post, January 11, 2007).
  
• On the Lebanese terrorist group Hizballah: A source of pride and sets an example for the “Arab resistance” (Jerusalem Post, August 6, 2006).
  
• Saddam Hussein: ” Saddam Hussein has entered history as a symbol of Pan-Arab nationalism” (Independent Media Review and Analysis , December 31, 2006).

Mahmoud Abbas’ acts:

• Holocaust denial: He wrote a PhD thesis and published a book denying the Holocaust.
  
• Terrorist group Fatah: He co-founded with arch-terrorist Yasser Arafat the terrorist group Fatah, whose Constitution to this day calls for the destruction of Israel (Article 12) and the use of terrorism against Israelis as an indispensable part of the struggle to achieve that goal (Article 19).
  
• Funding terrorism: as senior PLO official, he funded the Munich massacre of Israeli Olympic athletes in 1972.
  
• Terror & incitement to violence: He has refused to implement the signed Oslo agreements and the 2003 Roadmap peace plan which requires him to fight, arrest, extradite and jail terrorists and confiscate their weaponry and end the incitement to hatred and murder in the PA-controlled media, mosques, schools and youth camps that feeds it.
  
• Terrorists’ plan for more violence: In May 2006, he endorsed the so-called ‘Prisoners’ Plan’, a document produced by jailed Palestinian terrorists, that endorses continued terrorism against Israel, legitimizes the murder of Jews, does not accept Israel’s existence as a Jewish state, abrogates Palestinian obligations under the signed Oslo agreements and the 2003 Roadmap peace plan, and insists on the ‘right of return.’
  
• Money for suicide bombers’ families : In December 2005, he approved legislation mandating financial benefits to be paid to families of killed Palestinian terrorists.
  
• Mecca Agreement: In March 2007, he formed a unity government with Hamas under the Mecca Agreement that called for more violence, not peace and reconciliation with Israel.

Despite this record, Israel and the U.S. are describing Abbas as a moderate and a peacemaker they intend to support. Prime Minister Olmert, en route to the U.S. to meet with President Bush, said that he saw “an opportunity that has not existed for a long time” now that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had dissolved his unity government with Hamas. The U.S. has indicated that it intends to continue funding, arming and training the forces of Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah. The State Department spokesman, Sean McCormack said that the role of American Lt.-Gen. Keith Dayton, who was in charge of American training and bolstering of the Fatah forces that were overrun by Hamas in Gaza, will be reevaluated in the coming weeks. “In the days and weeks ahead we’re going to take a look at that to see how to proceed with the security assistance program, how Keith Dayton is going to continue working with the Palestinians … I believe that he has every intention and that we have every intention of his continuing his work with the Palestinians.” A U.S. diplomat said that he expected the 15-month-old foreign aid embargo on the PA to be lifted once Abbas appointed an emergency government without Hamas ( Jerusalem Post, June 17, 2007). The Middle East Quartet (United States, European Union, United Nations and Russia) has also issued a statement of support for Abbas and his decision over the weekend to dissolve the PA unity government ( State Department, June 16).

ZOA National President Morton A. Klein said, “It is incomprehensible that President Bush and Prime Minister Olmert would even consider referring to Abbas as a peacemaker and working towards supporting, funding and arming him when he has done precisely nothing to fulfill Palestinian Arab commitments under the signed Oslo agreements and the 2003 Roadmap peace plan. He has not jailed terrorists, confiscated illegal weapons, or closed the bomb factories. He has not ended the incitement to hatred and murder in the PA-controlled media, mosques, schools and youth camps that feed terrorism. This should not be surprising, since his own Fatah, especially the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, are just as much involved in suicide bombing and other acts of terrorism as Hamas, the Popular Front, the Popular Resistance Committees and other Palestinian Arab terrorism groups. Both Fatah and Hamas have each murdered nearly 500 Israelis in nearly 7 years of suicide bombing and terrorism.

“Despite this, the Bush Administration and the Olmert government act as though Abbas and Fatah were moderates who should be strengthened and with whom peace negotiations are desirable. The impression is given that Abbas’ dissolving of the PA unity government with Hamas is somehow an opportunity for peace-making. This is a terrible mistake. It is vital that the United States and Israel cease the policy of funding, arming and diplomatically supporting Abbas and Fatah, which has ensured that the PA remains an unreformed terrorist regime. It is after Abbas and Fatah who retain control over the content of Palestinian textbooks and the media, both of which promote hatred of Jews, Israel, Christians and America. The U.S. and Israel are making the same mistake they made when they falsely stated that Yasser Arafat was a moderate peacemaker, and on that false premise made concessions to his Fatah regime which resulted in a surge of terrorism and placed Israel in greater danger.

“Also exposed again is, Mahmoud Abbas’ real attitude towards terrorism against Israeli civilians. It has been reported that Abbas has rejected an offer by the Arab League Secretary-General, Amr Moussa, to negotiate with Hamas’ Khaled Meshaal. A spokesman for Abbas has actually called Hamas ‘murderers’ and Abbas aide Yasser Abed Rabbo was also quoted as describing Hamas as ‘killers’ ( Jerusalem Post, June 19, 2007). Yet, whenever Hamas murdered Israelis, he never referred to them as killers. Until now, Abbas did not lift a finger to stop terrorism against Israelis. On the contrary, he previously praised terrorists wanted by Israel as ‘heroes fighting for freedom,’ stated that ‘Israel calls them murderers, we call them strugglers.’ Abbas also described Hamas terrorist chieftain Sheikh Ahmad Yasin as a ‘martyr.’ So much for Abbas condemning terrorism and working to end it.

“Now, however, when he himself is under attack from Hamas, Abbas can suddenly reject dealing with Hamas, authorize Fatah to fight Hamas with full force and describe them as ‘murderers.’ The conclusion is obvious: Palestinian Arabs who murder Jews are not terrorists so far as Mahmoud Abbas is concerned. It seems that when Hamas kills Jews, that’s acceptable. It only when Hamas kills Arabs that it becomes a problem.

“Mahmoud Abbas got himself into this situation of empowering Hamas and legitimizing it by forming a unity government with it. It is not the responsibility of Israel, the United States or anyone else to save him and his forces now that Hamas has decided to take over Gaza. Abbas has done nothing to merit our support. It is vital that we do not decide at this moment to continue faster in the same wrong direction of trying further to empower Abbas. Until and unless Abbas take steps to fulfill all Palestinian obligations under the Oslo Agreements, there should be neither diplomatic, financial or military support nor other rewards and concessions for Abbas and the PA.”