The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict #51: Welcome To The Intifada

Recap From Previous Episodes

The fighting period of the First Lebanon War lasted from June 1982 until the end of September, when the IDF forces left Beirut and officially ended Operation Peace of the Galilee. In practice, the IDF stayed in Lebanon to secure the area and restore peace to the residents of the northern border. In September 1983, Israel withdrew from the Shoof mountains and remained on the Awali river line until June 1985, when it withdrew to the security strip. In the first years after the Lebanon war ended, the Security Strip was relatively quiet, but over the years, the Lebanese opposition, led by the Hezbollah organization, to the Israeli presence in the Security Strip increased. Hezbollah made many efforts to cause casualties among IDF soldiers who stayed in the security zone. The ever-increasing bloody price paid by the IDF for staying in the Security Strip led to increasing public pressure to evacuate. It will be 18 years before Israel withdraws to the international border line in 2000, but that will be in the next episodes.

At the same time as the northern fighting against Hezbollah, in December 1987, the first intifada began, during which the Palestinian residents of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip revolted against the Israeli government. The rebellion started in the Jabaliya refugee camp and quickly spread throughout the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and the East Jerusalem area. Palestinian actions ranged from civil uprisings to acts of violence against the Jewish population, in addition to general strikes and confiscation of Israeli products. Palestinian demonstrations also included throwing stones at young people against IDF forces, causing great interest and extensive coverage by the international media.

When You Hear "intifada" in Demonstrations - What Does That Actually Mean?

The literal meaning of the word intifada is a revolt, uprising, civil unrest, and an outburst of rage. Originally, it referred to the movement animals made when they came out of the water: standing and shaking their fur or feathers from side to side, shunning the water.

In the Arab world, the word "intifada" signifies a violent uprising. This ideology holds that violence is the solution to any problem, especially against the Western world, which is perceived as liberal and free; therefore, it is considered a crime.

The first intifada was a violent uprising by the Palestinian residents of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip against the State of Israel. It began on December 9, 1987, and initially involved mass disturbances, including demonstrations, stone-throwing, road blocking, and, in some cases, Molotov cocktails. Later, the intifada evolved, and from 1989, terrorist attacks were carried out by the Islamic organizations "Hamas" and "Islamic Jihad" against civilian and military targets in Israel.

The Background To The Intifada

In the months preceding the outbreak of the Intifada, there was an escalation in the number of incidents in the conflict between the Palestinians and the Israelis.

Here's A Glimpse Of It

• On August 2, 1987, three terrorists from the Islamic Jihad murdered a senior Israeli officer.
• On August 8, 1987, an Israeli reserve officer was killed, and two weeks later, a suicide bombing attempt in Jerusalem was thwarted.
• In one week in September, a soldier was killed, and there were three stabbing attacks in Israel.
• On October 1, 1987, IDF soldiers killed seven terrorists from Gaza who were members of the Islamic Jihad organization.

In addition to these violent incidents, there was a general and significant deterioration in the security situation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, including at least a doubling of almost all types of security incidents.

That's all for today, class. We'll continue tomorrow.

Take care.

• Recommended reading: Follow the links in the text.

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