04. 2014 EDITORIAL Dear Ladies and Gentlemen, dear friends of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, as the nine-month negotiations period between Israel and Palestinians draws to a close, JMCC conducted its latest poll on Palestinian public opinion. The negotiati­ons hit a stalemate over the Israeli refusal to release the last batch of pre-Oslo priso­ners. The Palestinians did not feel bound to the deal anymore that required them to restrain from pursuing the internatio­nal track: Signing international conventi­ons and treaties that would pave the way for further internationalizing the conflict. As a consequence, President Abbas signed the Geneva conventions and other docu­ments. Israelis are further irritated by a sudden move by Abbas that seeks to end the intra-Palestinian split between Hamas and Fatah, Gaza and the Westbank. Last week, an agreement was signed between the PLO and the Hamas leadership in Gaza to implement the previous commitments to restore national unity through elections. Abbas stated publicly that he is still willing to extend negotiations, if Israelis commit to a settlement freeze and release the re­maining batch of pre-Oslo prisoners. The negotiations are lead by the PLO, the in­ternationally recognized representative of the Palestinian people living in the Palesti­nian Territories and in the diaspora. There­fore, from his point of view, national unity should not be seen as an obstruction to negotiations. The results of the public opinion poll show that President Abbas receives much back up from the Palestinian public for these moves. The majority of the public(62%) in the Westbank, Gaza and East Jerusalem is in favor of extending the negotiations, if the fourth group of pre-Oslo prisoners is being released. Without a release, howe­ver, 52% of the public is against extending negotiations. The two-state solution is still the most favored model for ending the Is­raeli-Palestinian conflict. With regards to the question of which strategies the Pa­lestinians should pursue to achieve their aims, a clear commitment to non-violence and negotiations is shown: 64.4% support peaceful negotiations or non-violent resi­stance. The approach of“Going to the UN” receives support of 68% of the Palestinian public. However, pessimism prevails that the conflict will be solved any time soon. The performance of US Secretary of State John Kerry as a mediator of the negotia­tions was judged as very poor: 74% were discontent with his role. Concerning the perspectives of upcoming parliamentary and presidential national elections Abbas and the Fatah movement have little to fear: The poll indicates that 43% trust Fatah the most, whereas Ha­mas receives trust from only 17% of the public. In case of presidential elections, the majority thinks that Marwan Barghouti would be the best figure to run for such a position. To release Barghouti as part of a deal in order to extend negotiations beyond the nine-month period has been discussed more seriously lately. It is, of course, up to Israel to decide whether they want to give Barghouti a chance to return to the political scene. If not, Hamas leader Ismael Haniyeh ranks second in the poll as a figure to run for the presidency. Below you will find the complete study. We hope you find it interesting reading! With kind regards from Jerusalem, Your FES East-Jerusalem team Design: ery foto Seite 1