Footnote to the preceding

Despite everything, many nations still look to the US to be a broker of peace in world conflicts - particularly, because of its obvious deep involvement, in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But the message now being sent to the broker is sobering, according to a dispatch from Thursday's Haaretz (Israel).

Arab and European officials have been warning the U.S. that if there was no change in its strategy for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict after the Palestinian elections, Mahmoud Abbas, the new Palestinian president elect, would resign and a deadly civil war would break out in the territories.

According to the messages delivered by moderate Arab states and Europeans, a series of American steps, starting with the appointment of a special presidential envoy to the region, are necessary. ...

The messages also detail a list of other steps to prevent the collapse of the elected Palestinian leadership.

Those steps involve Arab aid to the PA in concert with a total ceasefire which would include a cessation of Israeli offensive actions in the territories, Israeli withdrawal from cites occupied in 2002, and an end to checkpoints between Palestinian cities.

The messages say that there must be linkage between progress on security reforms and progress in the political arena.

Or, more bluntly, no one can expect that violence will end without Palestinians, both militants and the general public, having good cause to believe something will come of it. Which is something else it seems to me I just said.