January, 2003

Two Years of the Al-Aqsa Intifada: Lessons and Experiences

Abdel-Qader Yassin

The two-year-old Al-Aqsa Intifada has not made full use of the lessons and experiences of the past uprisings and revolutions of the Palestinian national movement. Despite the human, security and economic losses that this intifada has caused for the Israelis, it still lacks the presence of a united front as well as a common national agenda. This can be mainly attributed to the lack of confidence between various members of the Palestinian national movement, especially those of Fatah and Hamas, which has resulted in numerous political programmes and the lack of a long-term resistance strategy.

The lack of adequate Arab support for the current intifada has not helped matters. Official Arab stands have been characterised by weakness, hesitation and sometimes contradiction. On the popular level, Arab anger and rage, which had grown with increasing Israeli acts of oppression against the Palestinians, soon ebbed in the face of increasing domestic governmental oppression, misrepresentative media and feeble official stances.

The Al-Aqsa Intifada erupted in difficult international conditions, with the United States acting as world ruler since the start of the 1990s and its flagrant bias towards Israel. The role of other powers has been to object or to surrender to US will.

The timing of the intifada was also bad for the Arab world, still suffering the consequences of the Gulf War. For the Palestinians themselves, the intifada began at a time of internal conflict, with society split over the Oslo agreement, some advocating the establishment of an independent Palestinian state in Gaza and the West Bank, with Jerusalem as its capital, and others insisting on the liberation of all Palestinian land. Different groups in Palestinian society also have conflicting views on suicide operations and other issues.

By choosing to ignore past experience, and failing to objectively examine the present, the Palestinians are making a grave error. The Palestinians must now confront a united Zionist government with a clear and definite strategy, the best military arsenal, and the support of the world's biggest power.