New actors, New visions, New action Israel, the rise of a Palestinian counter-state, and the 1 st Intifada

What happened in 1967 that changed the nature of the conflict? How and why did the Arab-Israeli conflict become a Palestinian-Israeli conflict?

Why is this an Arab-Israeli Conflict? Palestinians politically divided West Bank Palestinians under Jordanian rule Jordan grants Pal’s Jordanian citizenship, annexes territory (1950) Incorporation of Pal. notables into Jordanian govt. Gaza Pal’s under Egyptian rule No citizenship, refugee status Refugees in Lebanon, elsewhere Arab-Israeli wars 1956, 1967, 1973, 1982 invasion of Lebanon Intent: secure borders, eradicate Arab military threat, expand boundaries, destroy PLO bases (after ‘56) Arab-Israeli peace settlements Camp David (Egypt) 1978/1979 Jordan (1994) The Suez Canal, object of British, French, and Israeli invasion in 1956.

Changing Hands: Palestinian-Israeli Conflict New resistance organizations Fatah, 1959 Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), 1964 Umbrella org - factionalized Fatah dominant after ‘69 New ethos Palestinians in charge (not Arab states) Liberation of Palestine prioritized (not Arab unity) Evolving plans for Palestine/Israel Revolutionary struggle attacks on infrastructure and civilians (raids on Israel from Jordan, Lebanon)  PFLP vs Fatah Diplomatic (1974 UN recognition) Fatah leader Yasir Arafat, elected chairman of the PLO In 1969.

Rise of a Palestinian counter-state.. New images and identities: from refugees to resistance Spread of Palestinian resistance to to all classes, genders New politics- PLO as quasi-governmental org. Jordan, Lebanon Arab state sponsorship/tension Poster announcing the annual conference of the General Union of Palestinian Students (GUPS) that took place in Algeria in The text on the left reads: “Despite the scourge of violent repression and terror, Palestinian students advance the revolution and are the strong voice of the Palestinian people everywhere.” Poster and information: m/ppp/Introduction.html

New boundaries: Six-Day War Causes Syrian-Israeli tensions; Fatah attacks & shelling of Israel Arab propaganda war; threats against Israel The false Soviet message Egypt blocks Straits of Tiran (shipping lane to Israel), cutting off Israel’s supply lines. Destroyed Israeli tank and jeep on the road to Old Jerusalem. Photo:Israeli Press Office Photo Archives.

Six-Day War: What happened 5 June 1967 Israeli pre- emptive strike - Egyptian air force destroyed on ground. Israel seizes East Jerusalem and West Bank. War finished June 10: Israel takes Golan Heights from Syria, West Bank & East Jerusalem from Jordan, Gaza Strip and Sinai from Egypt. Moshe Dayan, Israeli Defense Minister in 1967

Six-Day War: Results 1 million new Palestinians under Israeli military rule (No citizenship) New borders and new sense of Israeli security Israelis announce they won’t withdraw unless they receive full peace agreements negotiated directly with Arab states Nasser resigns, brought back into office by popular support. General expectation that Israel will return the territories 1981 Israel “annexes” Jerusalem and most of Golan Heights (most of orig. inhabitants fled)

Palestinians skirt a burned-out truck in Jerusalem. Photo unattributed. ’67 War: Other effects New opportunities for Fatah leadership Quieted Pan-Arabism “Reunited” many Palestinians under common Israeli occupation

Why did the first Palestinian intifada occur in 1987? (Also, why not before?)

Backdrop to Intifada: Israeli policies towards the territories Physical but not social integration Suppression of Palestinian nationalism Citizenship NOT extended to Palestinians in Occupied Territories Attempts to control as much land as possible economic integration of West Bank and Gaza with Israel proper

Israeli Policies : Two Main Phases “Carrot and Stick Phase” ( ) Military rule of the territories Late 1960s and early ‘70s, relatively “liberal” Expansion of universities, permission to engage in limited political activities large degree of self government to municipalities Open bridge policy between Jordan and West Bank (initially) Repression & deportations Economic integration with Israel Palestinian economic boom A memorial at Bir Zeit University in the West Bank, which expanded in the 1970s and became a center of Palestinian nationalism. Photo: Randa Shaath

“Iron Fist Phase” (1977 onward) administrative detention Pal’s could be held for 6 months without trial (62 such cases in ; 131 in last five months of 1985); torture dismissal of Palestinian mayors; interrogation, deportation freezing of Palestinian building permits, new limitations on freedom of expression, editors arrested, etc Settlements, government land seizures, Israeli military control most intense period of settlement: ’77-’85: 119 new Israeli settlements By 1985 Israeli authorities have control over 52% of West Bank land and at least 40% of the Gaza Strip.

Causes of the 1 st intifada Political Grievances (and loss of patience) Sociological Factors Employment and unemployment Education, urbanization, class changes Growth of Palestinian civil society networks Arab peace settlements

1 st Intifada, : Who & What Leadership Unified National Leadership (LOCAL!!) PLO, Hamas (after 1988) Primary Goals Israeli withdrawal from the territories Creation of Palestinian state Who was involved? Grassroots, ordinary people, working and middle classes, women and men, children, youths, adults Hanan Ashrawi, Palestinian activist and a local leader of the 1 st intifada

1 st Intifada: how Strategies Humanize Palestinian suffering Reduce Palestinian dependence on Israel Make territories ungovernable Tactics Violent Rock throwing, knifings, attacks on busses, “collaborators” Nonviolent Severing economic ties with Israel, civil disobedience, boycotts & strikes, building solidarity

Israeli responses in the Territories Intifada as “terrorism” Collective punishment, curfews Raids on homes and gardens Closure of schools & universities Deportations- 69 Intifada leaders exiled, December 1992: 415 deportations Arrests By 12/1989, 35,000-40,000 Palestinians arrested; 75,000 arrested by 12/1990 Source: B’TSELEM, Kimmerling & Migdal (2003)

Responses: Casualties : 626 Pal’s; 43 Israelis killed. 37,439 Pal’s wounded Total casualties in the Occupied Territories and Israel from December 9, 1987 to September 30, 2000: Palestinian civilians killed by Israeli forces - 1,407 Palestinian civilians killed by Israeli civilians Israeli civilians killed by Palestinian civilians Members of the Israeli forces killed by Palestinian civilians % Pal. deaths below the age of 18 (usually 14-18) Hundreds of Palestinians killed by other Palestinians as collaborators Assassinations of PLO officials associated with the Intifada 1988 Abu Jihad, news editor and high-level PLO official Hamas members show a journalist a hatchet they claim they used to attack Palestinian informants. Photo by Judah Passow; available at launch.asp?b=hi Source: B’TSELEM

Why did the first Intifada end? (circa 1991) Exhaustion & suppression Palestinian economic problems PLO centralization & Israeli eradication of leadership Gulf War 1991 Madrid conference/negotiations

1 st Intifada: Effects Challenged Israeli belief in sustainability of occupation. New recognition of Palestinians in Israel and idea that partition was necessary. New & more pragmatic Palestinian goals Local leadership pushed PLO towards a two-state solution and acceptance of Israel. New Palestinian self-image, and self- sufficiency Helped bring new rounds of negotiations

What factors undermined the efficacy of the first Intifada? Difficult to sustain: Israeli use of increased repression and encirclement of refugee camps. Isolation of communities Palestinian economic problems: 30-40% unemployment. Families lost as much as three-quarters of their income Loss of Palestinian leadership Use of violence Palestinian internal divisions Palestinian lack of leverage Palestinian lack of influential external allies