The below timeline gives a brief overview of the series of events precipitated by the Palestinian First Intifada. The timeline serves as a summary of the movement--please conduct further research or contact the author for a more complete understanding of the movement.
Summary of findings
The First Palestinian Intifada was a mostly non-violent movement in the Palestinian Occupied Territories that eventually led to the partial achievement of the removal of the Israeli occupation, the creation of a sovereign state, and international recognition for that state. By employing non-violent techniques, as well as some violent ones, used all over the world since Mahatma Gandhi, the Palestinians were able to garner enough support to finally declare their own state, Palestine. With their own state, the government was able to negotiate at the Madrid Conference and then subsequently the Oslo Accords too. With the progress they made, they partially achieved their goals repealing the Israeli occupation, declaring their own sovereign state, and achieving international recognition for that state.
Despite the progress achieved by this non-violent movement, the state of Palestine still faces difficulties today. Palestine does not have complete sovereignty of its territory; the Gaza Strip is under Palestinian authority but is indirectly controlled by Israel through economic and border measures and the West Bank, due to Oslo II, is divided into three area of decreasing Palestinian control, the largest being under complete Israeli control. While the progress achieved by the First Intifada should be celebrated, the people face more challenges in the future in regards to completing their original goals.
When I first decided to choose the First Palestinian Intifada, I knew that my choice of research project would prove challenging. As a Jew who has recently Israel, I knew that I might be emotionally attached to the issue due to Israel’s involvement and occupation. However, I decided that I wanted to learn more about international relations between Palestine and Israel, a divisive issue, and that I needed to remain impartial and open to information and findings that did not reflect my then-current views of Israel and the conflict.
Despite my personal openness and desire for truth, I overestimated others’ aspirations for unbiased accounts. Although I was sufficiently aware that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is divisive for many, I did not anticipate magnitude of the bias in much of the information I encountered. Many of the sources I faced clearly leaned heavily in favor of Palestine or Israel with no seemingly no effort to remain true to the truth or fairness. Given the circumstances, I decided the best way to approach the issue was to check each source with sources from the other ‘side’ in order to find factual information, despite being sourced from an unreliable spring. This checking confirmed more reliable information, and being combined with a few books and academic sources, I was able to write a mostly unbiased analysis of the First Intifada.
Works Cited
"European Parliament Votes to Recognize Palestine Statehood 'in Principle'" RT. Russia Today, 18 Dec. 2014. Web. 26 Nov. 2016. <https://www.rt.com/news/215227-eu-recognize-palestine-state/>.
"Has the World's Rush to Recognize Palestine Come Too Late?" Informed Comment. N.p., 10 Apr. 2015. Web. 25 Nov. 2016. <http://www.juancole.com/2015/04/worlds-recognize-palestine.html>.
"How Much International Aid Do the Palestinian Territories Receive?" ProCon. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2016. <http://israelipalestinian.procon.org/view.answers.php?questionID=000592>.
"Madrid Conference." JMCC Jerusalem. Jerusalem Media and Communications Centre, n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2016. <http://www.jmcc.org/fastfactspag.aspx?tname=91>.
"Palestinian / Arab Terrorism." Discover the Networks. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2016. <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/viewSubCategory.asp?id=49>.
"S/RES/338 (1973) of 22 October 1973." UN News Center. UN, 22 Oct. 1973. Web. 25 Nov. 2016. <https://unispal.un.org/DPA/DPR/unispal.nsf/0/7FB7C26FCBE80A31852560C50065F878>.
"S/RES/338 (1973) of 22 October 1973." UN News Center. UN, 22 Oct. 1973. Web. 25 Nov. 2016. <https://unispal.un.org/DPA/DPR/unispal.nsf/0/7FB7C26FCBE80A31852560C50065F878>.
"The First Intifada." Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera Media Network, 9 Dec. 2003. Web. 23 Nov. 2016. <http://www.aljazeera.com/archive/2003/12/2008410151246804713.html>.
1995 West Bank ABC. Digital image. ProCon. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Nov. 2016. <http://israelipalestinian.procon.org/files/IsPal%20Images/1995westbankabc.jpg>.
Beitler, Ruth M. "The Path to Mass Rebellion." Google Books. Lexington Books, 2004. Web. 25 Nov. 2016. <https://books.google.com/books?id=FVd5dJGBYMsC&pg=PR11#v=onepage&q&f=false>.
Chenoweth, Erica, and Maria J. Stephan. "Chapter 5 THe First Palestinian Intifada, 1987-1992." Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict. New York: Columbia UP, 2011. 119-20. Print.
Cobban, Helena. "Roots of Resistance: The First Intifada in the Context of Palestinian History." Mondoweiss. N.p., 17 Dec. 2012. Web. 23 Nov. 2016. <http://mondoweiss.net/2012/12/roots-of-resistance-the-first-intifada-in-the-context-of-palestinian-history/>.
Government of Israel, and PLO. "The Israel-Palestinian Interim Agreement (Oslo II)." (n.d.): n. pag. 28 Sept. 1995. Web. 25 Nov. 2016.
Ibrahim, Youssef M. "P.L.O. Proclaims Palestine to Be an Independent State." The New York Times. The New York Times, 15 Nov. 1988. Web. 23 Nov. 2016. <http://www.nytimes.com/1988/11/15/world/plo-proclaims-palestine-to-be-an-independent-state-hints-at-recognizing-israel.html?pagewanted=all>.
King, Mary E. "The End of the First Intifada." A Quiet Revolution: The First Palestinian Intifada and Nonviolent Resistance. New York: Nation, 2007. 273. Print.
Laub, Zachary. "Hamas." Council on Foreign Relations. Council on Foreign Relations, 1 Aug. 2014. Web. 23 Nov. 2016. <http://www.cfr.org/israel/hamas/p8968>.
PLO, and Government of Israel. "Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (Oslo I)." (n.d.): n. pag. 13 Sept. 1993. Web. 25 Nov. 2016.
Sixty-seventh General Assembly. "General Assembly Votes Overwhelmingly to Accord Palestine 'Non-Member Observer State' Status in United Nations | Meetings Coverage and Press Releases." UN News Center. United Nations, 29 Nov. 2012. Web. 25 Nov. 2016. <http://www.un.org/press/en/2012/ga11317.doc.htm>.
Snyder, Michael. "136 Nations Recognize A Palestinian State." Freedom Outpost. N.p., 16 May 2015. Web. 26 Nov. 2016. <http://freedomoutpost.com/136-nations-recognize-a-palestinian-state-only-obama-stands-in-the-way-of-full-global-recognition/>.
Tharoor, Ishaan. "Map: The Spread of Israeli Settlements in the West Bank." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 22 Dec. 2014. Web. 26 Nov. 2016. <https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2014/12/22/map-the-spread-of-israeli-settlements-in-the-west-bank/>.
Young, Elizabeth. "Palestinian Economic Dependence on Israel." Palestinian Economic Dependence on Israel. The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 23 Mar. 2006. Web. 26 Nov. 2016. <http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/palestinian-economic-dependence-on-israel>.