Mr Abbas, for his part, used a joint press conference to reiterate his intention to call new general elections in the hope of ending months of deadlock between his own Fatah organisation and the more radical Hamas group, which won the last election, in January.
This is not something that has pleased every Palestinian blogger - the Palestinian Free Voice makes its feelings known with the headline: "Abbas starts his coup d'etat to overthrow Hamas government."
Another blog, Raising Yousuf, Unplugged: diary of a Palestinian mother, is equally sceptical, saying:
"The interesting thing, Abbas focused his energy on attacking and tearing apart Hamas and its government, blaming them for everything from the state of siege and hunger we are in, to the death of hundreds of Palestinians in Israeli attacks this summer, to the closure of the Rafah Crossing. He ignored completely the fact that Gaza's imprisonment and isolation began LONG before Hamas was elected into power."
One reader posting comments on the site shared a similar view:
"While his call for early elections will be criticised in many places, I find it depressing to think how this will be welcomed in the West. After suffocating the only democratic government in the Arab world, the West will no doubt support Abbas in calling elections again and again, until they get the result they want."
Slightly further away in Egypt - one of the nations already visited by Mr Blair on his current Middle East tour - Rantings of a Sandmonkey saw it slightly differently:
"I don't see why Hamas is so opposed to this. If they truly have the support of the people, they should easily win, no? Unless, of course, they know they won't win this time. Hmm..."
Meanwhile, From Gaza, with Love, the blog of a Palestinian woman doctor, concentrated on the recent surge of violence between Fatah and Hamas forces, the worst for a decade:
"I am sad, angry and not proud of what is going on in Gaza's streets at the moment. Palestinians and Palestinians fight and the Israeli occupation is watching us with the famous old policy of occupation, divide and rule. What a waste of energy and effort toward acheiving our national goals, towards a free and independent Palestine, towards achievement of peace that is based on justice. I could not go to my work, I was confined to my home. I live too close to the president's home and office... it was not safe for me to have a quick at look the shooting."
Amid all this, no local word yet on Mr Blair's latest peace mission, and whether or not is is likely to make a difference.
04:21pm
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