Israel-Palestine: Settlers' Conflict with Palestinians Escalating?

Tension in the West Bank between Israeli settlers and Palestinians in the West Bank appears to be rising. On Friday, settlers vandalized and set fire to a mosque in a Palestinian village in the village of Yasuf, south of Nablus. The attackers left messages such as "Price tag - greetings from Effi" and "We will burn the lot of you" before escaping.

Palestinian villagers and Israeli security forces clashed after the incident, and the Palestinian Authority criticised the Israeli Government even though Israeli officials condemned the mosque assault.

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Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said, "This is an extremist act geared toward harming the government's efforts to advance the political process for the sake of Israel's future." Mahmoud Abbas, the leader of the PA, responded, "The torching of the mosque in Yasuf is a despicable crime, and the settlers are behaving with brutality. The settlers' unruly behavior must be stopped."

The U.S. State Department said: "We condemn this attack in the strongest terms and call for the perpetrators to be brought to justice."

Palestine: Mahmoud Abbas's Proposal to Hamas "Elections Can Be Deferred"

Following his bluff that he would resign before January elections, Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas has now signalled that he can step back regarding the date of the battle.

On Monday, Abbas said that he is "keen" for a reconciliation with Hamas in order to hold new elections by June 2010.

Now that Abbas had drawn in his horns and covered his bluff, it is now a question of his credibility in the eyes of Palestinians and seriousness of his political will in the eyes of Hamas.