Al-Aqsa Intifada

29 September 2000

Many point to Ariel Sharon's advance-accompanied by over 1,000 armed Israeli police officers-on the Haram al-Sharif, or Noble Sanctuary on 28 September 2000 as the cause of the current uprising. It was a provocative show of authority over the central symbol of Palestinian aspirations for freedom-the holiest Muslim site in East Jerusalem, cunningly planned to precede Muslim Friday prayers. On Friday, 29 September 2000, Israeli police surrounded Muslim worshippers and responded to unarmed Palestinian protests with deadly force, killing five Palestinians and wounding more than 200 others on the compound of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, thus the name Al-Aqsa intifada.

Although the visit was the immediate cause of the uprising, the underlying causes are the key reasons. By late summer 2000, particularly after the failure of peace talks at Camp David, the tensions that had been mounting and the signs of an inevitable confrontation were coming into focus. Palestinians had become frustrated with the lack of progress in the peace process. The quality of daily life had steadily deteriorated and Palestinians-who were to be given their freedom in May 1999-found themselves in September 2000 still living under occupation. In addition, construction and expansion of Israeli colonies on Palestinian land slated for a future state increased dramatically. Palestinian freedom of movement was severely restricted due to the many military checkpoints throughout the West Bank which divided the West Bank into numerous small pockets of inhabitants.

Now, three years later, there are over 200 Israeli checkpoints that separate Palestinian villages and towns from one another. The checkpoints, compounded by closures and curfews, have denied Palestinians access to health care, education, jobs and family. The restrictions on the movement of people and goods has resulted in a unprecedented humanitarian crisis, soaring unemployment and a severe disruption in civil life. In summer 2002, a United States Agency for International Development (USAID) report found that 30 percent of Palestinian children under the age of six suffer from chronic malnutrition. Another 21 percent suffer from sever malnutrition-one of the highest levels in the world. Seventy percent of Palestinian families live under the United Nations designated poverty line of $2 per day.

Since resistance to Israeli military occupation began in September 2000, over 2,500 Palestinian have been killed by Israel and over 20,000 have been injured. Hundreds of homes have been demolished as a means of collective punishment and thousands are being held in Israeli prisons and detention centers many without charges. (For more statistics visit, www.prcs.org and www.betselem.org ).

Other measures taken by Israel-in violation of International law-are: target assassinations, the uprooting of agricultural fields including decades old olive tress, and the destruction of water wells. All forms of Israeli violence is in violation of international law because military occupation is illegal.

The latest action taken by Israel under the guise of security is the separation wall. With the construction of the wall, Israel has unilaterally begun drawing the borders of a future Palestinian state. All published maps clearly show the wall deviating from the Green Line. However, the alarming nature of the wall is that it is designed to separate the people from the land. Observers have stated that the route of the wall follows as close as possible to the houses leaving the land on the Israeli side. The natural conclusion is that Israel plans to take the land and leave the people in isolated, scattered areas making the creation of a contiguous viable Palestinian state impossible.

As a result of the escalating violence, The Sharm El-Sheikh Fact-Finding Committee was established to outline an end to the violence and a return to peace talks. The committee issued a report, the Mitchell Report, that recommends (i) a cessation of violence by both sides, (ii) the implementation of all signed agreements and (iii) a series of confidence-building measures, including a complete freeze by Israel of all settlement activity, including natural growth. Israel did not formally endorse the report and has not abided by its recommendations.

The only way out of the current situation is to understand why the intifada began: Israel's on-going occupation of Palestinian land and the continued denial of Palestinian freedom. Security and stability for all will only be achieved when Palestinians are free in a viable Palestinian state.