Palestinians continue resisting Israeli terror
1988 1988-02Read it in the scan (PDF at ETOL), page 1 →
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What is the meaning of the recent upsurge? Is a Palestinian 'mini-state' a solution? How should antiwar activists respond?
See Special Supplement, Resistance to the Israeli occupation the West Bank and Gaza continues spread.
Palestinian workers and shopkeepers are pressing forward with their protest strikes, spurred on by organized street committees of militant youth. The work stoppages have taken their toll in the segments of Israel's economy where Palestinian labor predominates-such as construction, agriculture, and sanitation.
The resistance movement is fueled by the sheer brutality of the Israeli occupation troops, whose numbers have swelled to 30,000. Hundreds of people have been dragged from their homes-often in the middle of the night—and beaten.
Over 2000 people of all ages have had bones fractured. At least 59 Palestinians were killed between Dec. 9, 1987, and the end of January.
In the Palestinian refugee camps, the great majority are hungry all the time. But the Israeli soldiers have prevented people from leaving the camps and blocked trucks with food supplies from entering.
One soldier posted in Gaza told the newspaper Hadashot that the beatings that "over time, the number who opposed the beatings grew, but order."
Indeed, orders for the atrocities committed by the occupying forces have come from the highest circles of the Israeli government. Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir has stated that the Palestinian uprising would never have taken place "had the troops used firearms from the very first moment."
30000 Peter Turnley/Newsweek "Our task," Shamir concluded, is to once again put the fear of death into the Arabs of the areas." (New York Times, Jan. 27,1988)
There are, however, growing divisions within Israel. A demonstration in Tel Aviv on Jan. 23 drew 100,000 people. Many of the demonstrators were more radical than the organizers of the event, demanding
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the way forward!
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administered by his unit "caused serious arguments among the soldiers." He said
Revolt in Palestine Pages 7-10.