Tension and violence between Palestinians and Israelis isn’t anything new.
In fact, there have been a number of mass Palestinian uprisings against Israel in the
past, that have lasted for years.
Hey guys, I’m Judah, this is NowThis World and in this episode we’re going to answer
the question, what were the Palestinian Intifadas?
First let's look at that word itself: Intifada directly translates from arabic to mean “shake”
or “shaking.”
This is why many in the arab world, and beyond, refer to these political uprisings as such.
The first Intifada, which took place throughout the Palestinian territories, including The
Gaza Strip, The West Bank, and East Jerusalem, was a culmination of years of dissatisfaction
over Israel's occupation of these territories.
In the years leading up to the unrest, Palestinians faced economic hardships and the expansion
of, what the UN Security Council called, illegal Israeli settlements in these territories.
They were subjected to repressive measures like raids, arrests, deportations, and more.
But abroad, the Palestinian’s Arab neighbors were shifting their focus away from this conflict
in the Palestinian territories and towards the Iraq-Iran war.
This contributed to a growing sense of Palestinian nationalism.
And tensions continued to culminate until December 1987 when an Israeli military vehicle
crashed into a car in the Jabalya refugee camp in northern Gaza, killing four Palestinians.
Many believed this crash was not an accident, but rather retaliation for the stabbing death
of an Israeli man in Gaza days earlier.
This event is what many attribute as the catalyst of the first uprising.
The protests were largely spontaneous, disorganized, and nonviolent.
Some Palestinians began demonstrating in public using non-violent measures like boycotting
and refusing to work in Israel, while other protesters resorted to things like throwing
rocks and Molotov cocktails on Israelis throughout the demonstrations.
And the Israeli military cracked down on these demonstrations with a heavy hand.
Then Israeli defense minister Yitzhak Rabin even implemented a policy referred to as the
“broken bone” policy which ordered security forces to break the limbs of Palestinians
and other demonstrators who threw stones.
Towards the end of the uprising, some Palestinian militants resorted to extreme violence.
They began carrying out suicide bombings in Israel.
Over the course of the First Intifada the United States would go on to recognize Yasser
Arafat’s PLO as the “sole legitimate representative” of the Palestinian people.
And in 1992 Israel’s Labor Party won elections which gave them the mandate to begin engaging
with the PLO.
The first Intifada ended in 1993 with the signing of the Oslo Accords, which gave both
sides hope that peace could be possible.
One expert even says this uprising was responsible for the birth of the peace process between
Israelis and Palestinians.
Over the course of the first uprising more than one thousand Palestinians were killed
and tens of thousands more were injured by Israeli forces, and approximately 150 Israelis
were killed by Palestinians during this period.
And the hope that the Oslo Accords brought to Israelis and Palestinians, that quickly
waned.
The accord’s reality on the ground, didn’t live up to its expectations, especially for
Palestinians.
After the end of the first Intifada, the Israeli occupation of Gaza and the West Bank deepened.
The socio economic standing and freedom of movement also significantly deteriorated for
Palestinians during this time.
And in July 2000, the Camp David summit in Washington which aimed to negotiate peace
between both sides, collapsed, further escalating tensions in the region.
This ultimately led to a second Intifada, which began in September 2000 after peace
talks broke down.
Some also refer to this as the Al-Aqsa Intifada, due to what many Palestinians say caused this
second uprising.
On September 28, 2000 -- Then Israeli opposition leader Ariel Sharon made a controversial visit
to a site in east Jerusalem known by Jews as The Temple Mount, and by Muslims as Haram
al-Sharif, which houses the Al Aqsa Mosque.
Tensions rose as a fight broke out between worshipers and Sharon’s security guards.
But some Israelis blame the PLO’s Yasser Arafat for launching the Intifada with his
decision to turn to violence.
Regardless of which narrative you believe, there was a clear mistrust between both sides
that escalated really quickly into violence following the end of peace negotiations.
In the first few days of demonstrations, scores of Palestinians were killed by Israeli Security
forces who Amnesty International said used “excessive force.”
A brutal campaign of violence by Palestinian militants followed.
Their tactics this time around included suicide bombings at discos and restaurants, as well
as rocket and sniper attacks.
And the Israelis resorted to deadly measures themselves, even launching a full blown military
campaign in the Gaza Strip called “Operation Defensive Shield” in 2002.
Over the course of the second Intifada, about 1,000 Israelis and 3,200 Palestinians were
killed.
While some debate when this Intifada actually ended, February 8th 2005 is most commonly
referred to as its end date.
That’s when Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas
declared a truce at the Sharm al-Sheikh summit
in Egypt.