First Intifada

First Intifada
Conflict	First Intifada
Partof	the Arab–Israeli conflict and Israeli–Palestinian conflict
Date	9 December 1987 – 13 September 1993
Place	Israeli-occupied territories: West Bank, Gaza Strip, Israel
Result	Oslo Accords; Creation of the Palestinian National Authority
Combatant1	Palestinians, Unified National Leadership of the Uprising, Hamas (from 1988), PLO
Combatant2	Israel, IDF, Israel Police, Shin Bet
Commander1	Yasser Arafat, Khalil al-Wazir, Ahmed Yassin
Commander2	Yitzhak Shamir, Yitzhak Rabin, Moshe Levi
Casualties1	1,162–1,204 Palestinians killed
Casualties2	160 Israelis killed
Notes	1,000+ Palestinians killed by Palestinians

First Intifada. The First Intifada was a sustained series of Palestinian protests, civil disobedience, and violent unrest directed against Israeli rule in the occupied territories. Beginning in December 1987, the uprising was characterized by widespread participation from Palestinian civil society, including youth, labor unions, and women's groups. It fundamentally altered the political landscape of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, shifting international attention and leading directly to major diplomatic negotiations. The uprising concluded with the signing of the Oslo Accords in 1993, which established the Palestinian National Authority.

Background and causes

The roots of the uprising lay in two decades of Israeli military occupation following the Six-Day War in 1967. Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip lived under military administration, facing land confiscation, settlement expansion, and economic dependency. The leadership of the PLO, based in Tunisia, was seen as distant. A profound sense of frustration built over the lack of political progress, exacerbated by the perceived futility of the Lebanese Civil War and the PLO's departure from Lebanon. The immediate trigger is widely attributed to a traffic incident on 8 December 1987 in the Gaza Strip, where an IDF vehicle killed four Palestinian laborers from the Jabalia refugee camp, sparking massive riots.

Outbreak and timeline

The uprising erupted spontaneously on 9 December 1987 following the funerals for the men killed in the Gaza accident. Protests and clashes spread rapidly from Gaza City to East Jerusalem, Nablus, and Hebron. The Unified National Leadership of the Uprising (UNLU), comprising factions of the PLO, soon formed to coordinate activities through clandestine leaflets. A significant turning point was the emergence of the Islamic Resistance Movement, known as Hamas, in early 1988, which issued its own charter. Key events included the Declaration of the State of Palestine by the Palestinian National Council in November 1988 and the Madrid Conference of 1991. The Intifada gradually waned after the Gulf War and formally ended with the mutual recognition between the PLO and Israel and the signing of the Oslo I Accord.

Tactics and forms of resistance

The Intifada was notable for its largely unarmed, grassroots nature, especially in its early phase. Tactics included mass civil disobedience, general strikes, commercial shutdowns, and non-payment of taxes. Youths regularly confronted IDF troops with stones and Molotov cocktails. The UNLU organized alternative education and agricultural projects to achieve "self-reliance." However, the uprising also included violent methods such as stabbings, grenade attacks, and, increasingly over time, incidents involving firearms. Internal "policing" by Palestinians led to attacks on alleged collaborators with Shin Bet.

Israeli response and military measures

The initial Israeli response, under Minister of Defense Yitzhak Rabin, emphasized "force, might, and beatings" to suppress the unrest. The IDF and Israel Police employed widespread use of live ammunition, rubber bullets, tear gas, and mass arrests. Administrative detention without trial was extensively used. The Shin Bet intensified its efforts to infiltrate and dismantle the UNLU networks. Policies such as deportations of activists, house demolitions, and prolonged curfews on refugee camps like Balata and Jabalia became commonplace. The heavy-handed tactics, often captured by international media, drew widespread condemnation.

Political impact and aftermath

The Intifada had a transformative political impact. It placed the Palestinian issue firmly on the international agenda and challenged the Jordanian claim to represent the West Bank. Within Israel, it sparked intense debate and contributed to the success of the Israeli Labor Party in the 1992 election. Internationally, it led to increased dialogue between the United States and the PLO. The most direct outcomes were the secret negotiations in Oslo, Norway, which produced the Oslo Accords. These agreements established the Palestinian National Authority for interim self-governance and initiated a five-year peace process, though they deferred final status issues like Jerusalem, settlements, and refugees.

Casualties and legacy

According to B'Tselem, Israeli forces killed 1,162–1,204 Palestinians during the uprising, approximately one-quarter of whom were children. An additional 1,000+ Palestinians were killed by other Palestinians for alleged collaboration. Israeli casualties included 160 civilians and security personnel killed by Palestinians. The legacy of the First Intifada is profound. It marked the transition of Palestinian resistance to a localized, populist movement and shattered Israeli perceptions of a "quiet" occupation. It empowered Hamas as a major rival to the secular PLO. The failure to achieve full sovereignty from the Oslo Accords sowed disillusionment, setting the stage for the more militarized and deadly Second Intifada in 2000. The period remains a defining chapter in Palestinian national identity.

Category:Arab–Israeli conflict Category:Israeli–Palestinian conflict Category:Rebellions in Asia Category:Wars involving Israel Category:History of Palestine