Word: galileans
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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Abbas doesn't have the deep roots in the West Bank and Gaza Strip that count for so much in Palestinian politics, where loyalties are often based on clan. Arafat, 73, brags of his descent from a Jerusalem family, whereas Abbas, 68, was born in the ancient Galilean town of Safed, now part of Israel. In 1948 his family fled to Damascus to escape the fighting of the first Arab-Israeli war. Abbas' best connections are in the Persian Gulf, where he was long the P.L.O.'s main man. In peace talks before and after the 1993 agreement, Abbas gained...