The US would not negotiate with any member of the Taliban or Ba`th regimes. A prerequisite for the emergence of a moderate Palestinian regime is the elimination of the rogue Palestinian regime. A precondition for the holding of free Palestinian election, and for the attainment of a durable Israeli-Palestinian accord, is the uprooting of the regime, which has ruthlessly dominated the Palestinian scene since 1964. The old Palestinian regime has been the role model of international terrorism, inter-Arab treachery, serial non-compliance with agreements, hate education, corruption and suppression of Palestinian human rights.

Just like Taliban and Ba`th terrorism, Palestinian terrorism has not been a personalized problem (Arafat), but rather a regime problem (PLO/PA/Hamas). Japan and Germany were transformed into peaceful nations, upon the drastic dismantling of their rogue regimes. None of the old guard top officials was allowed to participate in the new regimes. The entire old guard was disenfranchised, in order to pave the road for moderate leaders, minimize intimidation and facilitate free election.

Abu Mazen has been the de facto #2 in the PLO since 1989, while he and Abu Ala` have been Arafat’s top confidants at the helm of the Fatah, PLO and PA regimes since the late 1950’s. They starred in the Palestinian cell of the Muslim Brotherhood - the mentor of Hamas terrorism – and were forced to flee Egypt for terrorism. In 1959, they joined Arafat in establishing the Fatah organization, and were accorded a safe haven in Damascus. However, in 1966 Fatah executed Syrian intelligence officers, and was chased out of Syria. During 1968-70, the late King Hussein provided the Fatah-led PLO with logistic and operational platforms to terrorize Israel. But, in 1970 the PLO attempted to topple the Hashemite regime through terrorism, triggering a bloody strife and PLO’s expulsion from Jordan to Lebanon. Abu Mazen and Abu Ala` were there, consulting Arafat. During 1970-82, the PLO perpetrated a series of civil wars in Lebanon, with Abu Mazen’s and Abu Ala`’s active participation. PLO’s subversive operations caused hundreds of thousands of casualties, leading to Syrian occupation of Lebanon and to the demise of its Christian population. The latest chapter of PLO’s inter-Arab treachery occurred in 1990, when the organization spearheaded Iraq’s plunder of Kuwait – a country which hosted the Fatah since 1959, absorbed 400,000 Palestinians, enabled them to rise to top business and civic positions, and imposed a surcharge tax for the PLO. Subsequently, Kuwait has severed all contacts with the PLO/PA leadership, expelling most of its 400,000 Palestinians.

In 1972, Abu Mazen handled the financial aspects of the 1972 Munich Olympic Games Massacre of 11 Israeli athletes. He steered pre-1989 PLO ties with ruthless East European regimes and the USSR, wrote a thesis on Holocaust Denial at Moscow University, co-managed PLO hijacking of Western planes during the early 1970’s and the murder of US ambassadors in 1972.

A few days following the signing of the 1993 Oslo Accord, Abu Mazen, Abu Ala` Dahlan and Rajoub engineered a series of PA-Hamas understandings. In fact, Dahlan and Rajoub head PA security units, which have exceeded Hamas terrorism. According to the understandings, PA/Hamas joint strategy (Israel’s elimination) would be advanced by tactical accords with Israel, by diplomacy and by terrorism. In addition, they stipulated that Palestinian unity would supersede any agreement with Israel, calling for an end to PLO-Hamas fighting, while urging escalation of anti-Israel resistance.

Palestinians nickname Abu Mazen, Abu Ala`, Dahlan and Rajoub Mr. 20% for the kickback, which they extort for doing business in the PA. The four senior PLO leaders led - under Arafat – the PA propaganda machine, which hailed the 9/11 terrorism, praising Saddam’s and Bin Laden’s anti-US operations. They have introduced, along with Arafat, the anti-US and anti-Jewish hate-education to PA schools (k-12), mosques and media, which has constituted the engine of homicide bombing. They have assisted Arafat in masterminding unprecedented hate-education, terrorism, deception, systematic and violent abrogation of commitments, repression of Palestinians and corruption.

The Palestinian Authority is not the solution; it is the problem. Legitimizing top leaders of the PA, such as Abu Mazen, Abu Ala`, Dahlan and Rajoub - in defiance of their horrific track record – constitutes a victory to wishful thinking over moral clarity. The suggestion that the four are moderate compared with Arafat, is to suggest that the Boston Strangler was moderate compared with Jack the Ripper. It sends a devastating message to terrorists: Not only can you get away with murder, but you shall be rewarded! It energizes global terrorism, deters moderation, precludes free Palestinian elections and undermines the cause of peace. In 1993, wishful thinking smothered Israeli and Western policy makers. It provided Arafat with unprecedented legitimacy, triggering unprecedented terrorism. How many innocent lives will be sacrificed on the alter of Abu Mazen and Abu Ala`-driven wishful thinking?