Palestinians Say a U.N. Gamble on Statehood Is Worth the Risks.

KALANDIA, West Bank -- It is far from clear what will happen when the Palestinians go to the United Nations next week to seek recognition of statehood. But the initiative is engaging a Palestinian public that had become deeply cynical after 20 years of intermittent Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. Many Palestinians here in this refugee camp between Ramallah and Jerusalem said that they were excited by the prospect of their territory's being declared a state, but that they recognized that it would not immediately improve their lives. Instead, they braced for possible punitive steps by the United States and Israel. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]