'NEW Palestinian strategy'... set to begin 11-11-11

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=435174
Fatah leader reveals 'new Palestinian strategy'

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) – A member of the Fatah central committee says President Mahmoud Abbas has formed a committee to reconsider the strategy and future of relations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

Muhammad Shtayyeh told Ma’an that "the new strategy will be the path after Nov. 11," when the UN Security Council is scheduled to meet to discuss Palestine's application for membership as a state.

Shtayyeh said the Palestinian leadership is set to break the status quo with Israel and reformulate relations.

The new committee, among its members the leaders of the PLO and Fatah, is discussing "where we are going now," Shtayyeh said without revealing the substance of the strategy.

But he said reconciliation with Hamas would formulate a basic part of it and noted Abbas planned to meet Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal after the holiday.

He says the PA and Israel cooperate in some areas, but all of them are strained.

On the political front, negotiations are blocked. Economically, Israel "exports whatever it wants to us, imports whatever it wants from us." Also, "Israel gives us electricity, while it steals our water and sells it to us."

In terms of security, "We are there to maintain the general security in order not to clash with Israel."

According to Shtayyeh, Israel in general is living in a stable security state.

He added that “we want to break the status quo in Israel, but we will take some measures that won’t hurt us but will reform the relationship [with Israel].”

He added that the PA has reached a point where Israel’s stubbornness and the inability of the international community to reign it in has stalled negotiations, so it went to the UN.

Shtayyeh says even if Palestine gets nine votes in the Security Council, the result would be the same because “we know the US will not allow our application to pass in the UN.

"But this is not the end of the world; we will apply again."

He also said that if the application did not pass, this would open the door to the new strategy which the leadership is planning and which will take effect after Nov. 11.