When Secretary of State John Kerry announced the resumption of U.S.-backed Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, he was explicit that success would rely on both sides not leaking details of the negotiations to journalists and diplomats. Kerry went even further and told reporters that “no one should consider any reports, articles, or other – or even rumors – reliable,” and added that he wouldn’t be providing any of those. The talks were to remain insulated from public scrutiny.
Despite the U.S.’s best efforts, however, there have been consistent leaks about the talks. Details have emerged about Israeli concessions, Palestinian flexibility, and so on. Describing the environment of the talks last week, Xinhua pointedly noted that “the peace talks are held in secrecy without any leaks on part of the Israeli side.”
The Palestinian side, in contrast, has been leaking. Israeli-Arab journalist Khaled Abu Toameh recently unpacked the tactical benefits that the Palestinians see in continued disclosures:
First, the Palestinian statements and threats are aimed at prompting the US Administration to exert pressure on Israel to comply with the Palestinian Authority’s demands…
Second, the Palestinian statements and threats to withdraw from the talks are directed toward the Palestinian public, which has not been quite supportive of the Palestinian Authority leadership’s decision to resume the talks with Israel. The Palestinian remarks are designed to assure the Palestinian public that their negotiators have no intention to make “unacceptable” concessions to Israel.
Third, the Palestinian officials’ comments about Israeli “intransigence” and “arrogance” are aimed at paving the way for holding Israel fully responsible for the failure of the peace talks. The message that the Palestinian officials are trying to send out to their own people and the international community is that the Israeli government, contrary to its public stance, is not interested in peace.
Toameh’s claim about Palestinian public sentiment – that the Palestinian street is quite cool to ongoing peace talks – has been verified by polling. Part of the leaking by Palestinian officials can be accounted for as a domestic damage control strategy.
Per Kerry, however, unverifiable Palestinian leaks describing Israeli intransigence are also a broader danger to the peace process. There is then a kind of double irony when journalists convey those leaks in the name of Palestinian officials: the Palestinian leaks manifestly undermine the peace process, and the coverage directly blame exactly the wrong party for doing the damaging.
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