When the NY Times says Abbas is no partner, something fundamental is shifting

Raphael Ahren, timesofisrael.com; original article contains links

Image from article, with caption: Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (L) is welcomed by EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini prior to attending a EU foreign affairs council at the European Council in Brussels, January 22, 2018.

Excerpt:

The global chorus condemning Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas for his incendiary speech on Monday, during which he blamed the Jews for their own mass murder in the Holocaust and denied any Jewish connection to the Holy Land, is largely helpful for Israeli government public diplomacy [JB emphasis], but it does come with a caveat. ...

When The New York Times editorializes that Abbas, by “feeding reprehensible anti-Semitic myths and conspiracy theories” has now “shed all credibility as a trustworthy partner,” something fundamental has patently begun to shift.

So why the caveat? Why does the fallout also have a partial downside for pro-Israel advocacy, for hasbara?

Because defenders of Israel’s good name can no longer easily claim that the international community is hopelessly biased in favor of the Palestinians. The automatic Arab majority in UNESCO will still be there after this Abbas controversy fades from the headlines. The UN’s anti-Israel numerical bias won’t quickly be remade. But it will nevertheless be more difficult to argue that “everyone is instinctively against us” or that the Europeans have it in relentlessly for Jews and Israel. ...