Netanyahu fails to derail Palestinian unity government
The Palestinian unity government has been recognized by international capitals, including Washington, proving another setback for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
![Netanyahu listens to Elkin during a meeting at parliament in Jerusalem Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) listens to Foreign Affairs and Defence committee chair Zeev Elkin during a committee meeting at parliament in Jerusalem June 2, 2014. Netanyahu warned on Sunday against any international rush to recognise a Palestinian government due to be announced under a unity pact between the Fatah and Hamas Islamist groups.REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3RRU6](/sites/default/files/styles/article_hero_medium/public/almpics/2014/06/RTR3RRU6.jpg/RTR3RRU6.jpg?h=c2c5b897&itok=cA8MGvea)
In the end, it was quite easy. The new Palestinian unity government won international recognition and validation despite Israel’s attempts to put a spoke in the wheel. Its failure to derail the unity government exposed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who suddenly has had his bluff called off. Even the powerful American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) lobby issued a weak statement calling on Congress simply to “ensure that US law is followed.”
The Israeli leader, who lived in the United States for some time and regularly boasts to friends that he knows the country as well as any Israeli, appears to have overreached. Instead of isolating the new Palestinian government headed by Rami Hamdallah, he has himself been isolated.