Military Intelligence told the political echelon at the beginning of the week that the new Palestinian government headed by Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) has no intention of uprooting the terrorist infrastructure. “According to what we know now, Abu Mazen plans to speak with the Hamas and Islamic Jihad leaders, and not clash with them,” a senior military source told Haaretz yesterday. In recent weeks much has been written about the different approaches being taken by the army and Shin Bet with regard to what to expect from the Palestinian Authority. While even before Abu Mazen’s appointment, army heads were relatively optimistic and spoke of the rare opportunity created as a result of the new prime minister in the PA and the American victory in Iraq, the Shin Bet was providing more pessimistic views. Now the gap between the two bodies appears to have been totally erased. Military Intelligence shares the Shin Bet’s view that at least for now, Abu Mazen is not planning a comprehensive change. Full Story
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