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Palestinian internal political violence

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Palestinian internal political violence has existed throughout the course of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, notwithstanding the fact that the vast majority of Palestinian political violence has been directed against Israeli targets. Some analysts have referred to this type of violence as an "'intrafada", a play on "intifada".[1][2][3]

In British Palestine

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Further information: 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine

From 1936 to 1939, the Palestinian Arabs revolted against the British rule of Palestine and against the British-backed Zionist movement.

Amin al-Husseini, head of the Arab Higher Committee, came into conflict with the more moderate Nashishibi family, which supported the partition of Palestine into two states, Jewish and Palestinian Arab. This rift produced significant violence, including the abductions of British-backed local village chiefs and the assassinations of suspected collaborators.[3] Despite shared adherence to the Palestinian cause by both local Muslims and Christians,[4][5][6] there were cases of Muslim radicals coordinating attacks against Christians, as well as against local Druze.[3] Overall, 10% of Palestinian deaths during the revolt were from intra-Palestinian violence.[3]

Lebanese Civil War

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Further information: War of the Camps

As a result of the 1948 Palestine war and the beginning of the Nakba, various Palestinian refugee camps were established in Lebanon,[7] and decades later Palestinian factions played a major role in the Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990).

There were multiple pro-Syrian Palestinian factions in Lebanon during the war, namely the PFLP, PFLP-GC, as-Sa'iqa, the Palestinian Popular Struggle Front, the Talat Yaqub wing of the Palestinian Liberation Front, and Fatah al-Intifada.[8][9] Being Syrian proxies, these factions and others had fought against the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in engagements such as the 1983 Battle of Tripoli, as a result of antagonistic relations between the PLO chairman Yasser Arafat and the Syrian president Hafez al-Assad.[10][11]

In 1985, the pro-Syrian factions formed the Palestinian National Salvation Front (PNSF), based in Mar Elias, a Palestinian Christian refugee camp.[12][13] The PNSF joined the Amal Movement in fighting the PLO in the Palestinian refugee camps of southern Lebanon and west Beirut, in what was called the "War of the Camps" subconflict.

The fighting in west Beirut ended in April 1987 with the arrival of Syrian forces to the area; in the south, the fighting ended in a stalemate.[14] Ultimately, the Lebanese government estimates that some 2500 Palestinians, both combatants and non-combatants, were killed during the War of the Camps, but the real number is likely higher.[15]

First Intifada

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About one-fifth of the 730 attacks during the first four months of the First Intifada were the result of intra-Palestinian political violence. What has been described as a wave of "paranoia" swept the occupied Palestinian territories, leading to the mass killings of suspected collaborators with Israel.[3]

By June 1990, according to Benny Morris, "[T]he Intifada seemed to have lost direction. A symptom of the PLO's frustration was the great increase in the killing of suspected collaborators."[16] Roughly 18,000 Palestinians, compromised by Israeli intelligence, are said to have given information to the other side.[17] Collaborators were threatened with death or ostracism unless they desisted, and if their collaboration with the occupying power continued, were executed by special troops such as the "Black Panthers" and "Red Eagles". An estimated 771 (according to the Associated Press) to 942 (according to the IDF) Palestinians were executed on suspicion of collaboration during the span of the Intifada.[18]

As a result of the Oslo Accords between the PLO and Israel, the Palestinian Authority (PA) was formed in 1994, as a compromise, to exercise limited governance in the Palestinian territories. After the Oslo Accords, and with the failure to establish an actual independent Palestinian state, "strong feelings of betrayal and futility" arose among many Palestinians.[1]

Second Intifada

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The Second Intifada involved direct fighting between the forces of Israel and those of the Palestinian Authority.

A January 2003 Humanist magazine article reported:[19]

For over a decade the PA has violated Palestinian human rights and civil liberties by routinely killing civilians—including collaborators, demonstrators, journalists, and others—without charge or fair trial. Of the total number of Palestinian civilians killed during this period by both Israeli and Palestinian security forces, 16 percent were the victims of Palestinian security forces.

... According to Freedom House's annual survey of political rights and civil liberties, Freedom in the World 2001–2002, the chaotic nature of the Intifada along with strong Israeli reprisals has resulted in a deterioration of living conditions for Palestinians in Israeli-administered areas. The survey states:

"Civil liberties declined due to: shooting deaths of Palestinian civilians by Palestinian security personnel; the summary trial and executions of alleged collaborators by the Palestinian Authority (PA); extrajudicial killings of suspected collaborators by militias; and the apparent official encouragement of Palestinian youth to confront Israeli soldiers, thus placing them directly in harm's way."

Presidency of Mahmoud Abbas

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Since Mahmoud Abbas came to power as president of the Palestinian Authority in 2005, the PA has been widely considered to have shifted towards a position of authoritarianism and subservience to Israel.[20][21][22]

Fatah–Hamas conflict

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Main articles: Fatah–Hamas conflict and 2009 Hamas political violence in Gaza
See also: Fatah–Hamas reconciliation process

The Fatah–Hamas conflict involves two Palestinian political parties– Fatah, which runs the PA, and Hamas, an Islamist faction. The conflict originated in tensions surrounding the 2006 Palestinian legislative election and culminated in the 2007 Battle of Gaza, which saw Hamas take over the Gaza Strip.[23] Since then, a Hamas administration has controlled the Gaza Strip, while the Palestinian Authority retains control over the Palestinian enclaves in the West Bank.

The Hamas victory in the election on 25 January 2006 was followed by the formation of a new PA government by leader Ismail Haniyeh. This government suffered from political paralysis, due to lack of cooperation from Fatah,[24] and from severe diplomatic isolation due to Hamas' refusal to commit to nonviolence and recognize Israel.[25] Several instances of clashes and assassinations of leaders from both sides exacerbated the tense situation.[23] By October 2006, the United States, Israel, many Arab governments, and most of Abbas's key advisors held the view that Hamas had to be forced out of power if it did not change its positions.[26] Following the Saudi-brokered Fatah–Hamas Mecca agreement, the Hamas government was briefly replaced by a unity government in March 2007 in an effort to end the crippling diplomatic isolation.[27]

Armed clashes between the two sides became increasingly frequent; finally, in June 2007, Hamas wrestled control of the Gaza Strip from Fatah in a 5-day battle and the government split. There were allegations that Fatah was preparing a coup to oust Hamas, and that the Hamas actions were preemptive.[28][29][30] The Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip resulted in Abbas' dissolution of the unity government[31] and the replacement of the PA in the territory with Hamas rule by 15 June.[32][33] Hamas was unable to seize power in the West Bank, however, as the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades– at that time the official Fatah armed wing– stormed the parliamentary building in Ramallah.[34]

In early 2009, there was a wave of political violence perpetuated by the Hamas administration in the Gaza Strip. A series of violent acts, ranging from physical assaults, torture, and executions of Palestinians suspected of collaboration with the Israel Defense Forces, as well as members of the Fatah political party, occurred. According to Human Rights Watch, at least 32 people were killed by these attacks: 18 during the conflict and 14 afterward, and several dozen more were maimed, many by shots to the legs.[35][36]

In May 2009, Hamas militants clashed with PA security forces in Qalqilya, West Bank. In 2014, the Shin Bet revealed an alleged plot by Hamas to depose Fatah in the West Bank. This would be achieved by deploying Hamas cells around the West Bank to incite a third intifada and overwhelm Palestinian Authority forces. More than 90 people were arrested. President Abbas said the plot was "a grave threat to the unity of the Palestinian people and its future."[37]

During the ongoing Israel–Hamas war (2023–present), Hamas accused Fatah of sending security officers into northern Gaza in collaboration with Israel, saying it had arrested six individuals and were "in pursuit" of the others. The Palestinian Authority issued a statement refuting the claims by Hamas.[38]

Palestinian Authority–West Bank militias conflict

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Main article: Palestinian Authority–West Bank militias conflict

In the West Bank, various local Palestinian militias have been engaged in an armed conflict with the PA.

The conflict began with a "proliferation" of armed groups in the West Bank from 2021 to 2022 as a result of the weakness and complicity of the PA in the Israeli occupation as well as several other factors including the 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis.[20][39][40][41]

The PA has had a shared interest with Israel in suppressing militants.[42] Cooperation between the PA security forces and the IDF is reflected by the fact that the former have simply remained in their barracks during IDF raids[43][44] and have actively interfered with militants' defenses against those raids.[22][45][46][47]

During the Israel–Hamas war, the rate of clashes has increased. The July 2024 West Bank unrest directed against the Palestinian Authority was a major escalation in the conflict,[48] sparked by the alleged arrest attempt of "Abu Shujaa", the leader of the Tulkarm Brigade, on 26 July. Protestors and militants clashed with security forces in Tulkarm,[49][50][51] Jenin,[52][53][54][55] Bethlehem,[56][57] Tubas,[56] and Nablus.[55] By August, the unrest had been "contained", according to Tulkarm officials.[52]

Since August, the rate of clashes between the militias and security forces has increased again, with notable fighting in the Jenin area throughout September[58][46][59][47] and in the Tubas area throughout October.[60][61][62][63][64]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "The 'Intra'fada or 'the chaos of the weapons'. An Analysis of Internal Palestinian Violence". Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group. April 2004. Archived from the original on 6 June 2004.
  2. ^ "Why No Arab Spring in Palestine?". Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Retrieved 2024-11-18.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Palestinian Uprisings Compared". Middle East Forum. 2002-06-01. Retrieved 2024-11-19.
  4. ^ Kayyali, Abdul-Wahhab Said (1981). Palestine: A Modern History. Croom Helm. ISBN 086199-007-2.
  5. ^ Cohen, Hillel (2008). Army of shadows: Palestinian collaboration with Zionism, 1917 - 1948. Berkeley, Calif.: Univ. of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-25989-8.
  6. ^ Laura Robson, Colonialism and Christianity in Mandate Palestine, University of Texas Press, 2011 p. 159
  7. ^ "Ahmad H. Sadi and Lila Abu-Lughod, editors. Nakba: Palestine, 1948, and the Claims of Memory. :Nakba: Palestine, 1948, and the Claims of Memory. (Cultures of History.)". The American Historical Review. 112 (4): 1296. October 2007. doi:10.1086/ahr.112.4.1296c. ISSN 0002-8762.
  8. ^ Archives, L. A. Times (1985-03-25). "6 Palestinian Units Unite to Oppose Arafat". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2024-11-18.
  9. ^ Rosemary Sayigh (7 May 2015). Too Many Enemies. Lulu.com. p. 260. ISBN 978-82-999320-5-9.
  10. ^ الجرو, هيثم (29 March 2019). "حين طرد الأسد ياسر عرفات من طرابلس". www.aljazeera.net. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  11. ^ Treaster, Joseph B. (4 November 1983). "ARAFAT SAYS SYRIA AND LIBYA HAVE JOINED TRIPOLI BATTLE". The New York Times.
  12. ^ Middle East International No 292, 23 January 1987; Publishers Lord Mayhew, Dennis Walters MP; ‘a correspondent’ pp.12-13; No 289, 5 December 1986; Jim Muir pp.10-11
  13. ^ Parkinson, Sarah E. (2023). "The Face of the Camps". Beyond the Lines: Social Networks and Palestinian Militant Organizations in Wartime Lebanon. Cornell University Press.
  14. ^ Ufheil-Somers, Amanda (1990-01-10). "Primer: Lebanon's 15-Year War, 1975-1990". MERIP. Retrieved 2024-11-18.
  15. ^ "The historiography and the memory of the Lebanese civil war | Sciences Po Violence de masse et Résistance - Réseau de recherche". www.sciencespo.fr (in French). Retrieved 2024-11-18.
  16. ^ Morris (1999), p. 612.
  17. ^ Amitabh Pal, "Islam" Means Peace: Understanding the Muslim Principle of Nonviolence Today, ABC-CLIO, 2011 p. 191.
  18. ^ Sergio Catignani, Israeli Counter-Insurgency and the Intifadas: Dilemmas of a Conventional Army, Routledge, 2008 pp. 81-84.
  19. ^ "Violence among the Palestinians" Archived February 11, 2003, at the Wayback Machine. By Erika Waak. Humanist. Jan–Feb 2003.
  20. ^ a b "Who Governs the Palestinians?". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved 2024-07-30.
  21. ^ "What is the Palestinian Authority and what is its relationship with Israel?". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-11-07.
  22. ^ a b الغيط, عبد الرحمن أبو. "آخرها ما حدث بجنين.. لماذا يصر أمن السلطة على ملاحقة المقاومة بالضفة؟". الجزيرة نت (in Arabic). Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  23. ^ a b admin (2007-08-14). "Gaza E.R. ~ Fatah vs. Hamas | Wide Angle | PBS". Wide Angle. Retrieved 2024-11-19.
  24. ^ Tonje Merete Viken (Spring 2008). "Struggles for Power and Unity - Constitutional Designs in the Palestinian Authority" (PDF). palestinianbasiclaw.org. University of Oslo. pp. 4, 78–80. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 4, 2016.
  25. ^ Kifner, John; Myre, Greg (7 April 2006). "Alone and Broke, Hamas Struggles to Rule". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 26 July 2016.
  26. ^ International Crisis Group (5 October 2006). The Arab-Israeli Conflict: To Reach a Lasting Peace (Crisis Group Middle East Report N°58) (PDF) (Report). Brussels, Belgium: International Crisis Group. pp. 3–4.
  27. ^ "Palestinians OK Unity Govt". Arab News. 2007-03-18. Retrieved 2024-11-19.
  28. ^ Hamas coup in Gaza (pdf), International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), Volume 13, Issue 5; June 2007. Also in html.
  29. ^ "MIDEAST: This 'Bombshell' Took a Year Falling". Inter Press Service. 2008-04-02. Retrieved 2024-11-19.
  30. ^ "Blair's counter-insurgency "surge"". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-11-19.
  31. ^ "A pyrrhic victory". The Guardian. London. 16 June 2007.
  32. ^ Black, Ian; Tran, Mark (15 June 2007). "Hamas takes control of Gaza". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  33. ^ Abrahams, Fred; Human Rights Watch (2008). Internal fight: Palestinian abuses in Gaza and the West Bank. Human Rights Watch. pp. 14–15.
  34. ^ "Fatah gunmen storm Hamas-controlled ministry, parliament building". The Hindu. Chennai, India. June 16, 2007. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved April 24, 2011.
  35. ^ Khaled Abu Toameh, Hamas killed 32 Gazans during, after op, Jerusalem Post 20-04-2009
  36. ^ Gaza: Hamas Should End Killings, Torture Archived 2015-04-07 at the Wayback Machine, HRW 20-04-2009
  37. ^ Ginsburg, Mitch (August 18, 2014). "Israel says it foiled Hamas plan for massive attacks on Israel, coup against PA". The Times of Israel. Archived from the original on August 21, 2014. Retrieved August 21, 2014.
  38. ^ al-Mughrabi, Nidal; Sawafta, Ali (31 March 2024). Oatis, Jonathan (ed.). "Hamas accuses Fatah of sending security men to Gaza". Reuters.
  39. ^ Parker, Claire (28 August 2024). "What to know about Palestinian militant groups in the West Bank". The Washington Post.
  40. ^ Hendrix, Steve; Tugnoli, Lorenzo (7 August 2023). "'Tomorrow's martyrs': Inside a Palestinian militant cell in the West Bank". The Washington Post.
  41. ^ "The New Generation of Palestinian Armed Groups: A Paper Tiger?". International Crisis Group. 17 April 2023.
  42. ^ "The PA's Revolving Door: A Key Policy in Security Coordination". Al-Shabaka. 2023-08-27. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  43. ^ Erlanger, Steven; Ponomarev, Sergey (2024-07-01). "Palestinian Fighters in West Bank Seek to Emulate Hamas in Gaza". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-08-28.
  44. ^ Michaelson, Ruth; Taha, Sufian (2024-05-02). "'They hide when Israelis come': Palestinians despair of leadership after killing of colonel's son". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-09-24.
  45. ^ Pacchiani, Gianluca (15 August 2024). "Hamas blasts PA after its forces allegedly detonated explosive device before it could blow up IDF troops in Jenin". The Times of Israel.
  46. ^ a b "العلاقة بين السلطة الفلسطينية والفصائل على صفيح "يغلي".. اشتباك مسلح في جنين". مونت كارلو الدولية / MCD (in Arabic). 2024-09-10. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  47. ^ a b "أجهزة السلطة تعتدي على سكان كفر دان المنددين بتفكيك عبوات المقاومة" (in Arabic). 2024-09-17. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  48. ^ "اشتباكات بين مسلحين وأجهزة أمن السلطة الفلسطينية في الضفة الغربية .. بذور حرب أهلية؟". مونت كارلو الدولية / MCD (in Arabic). 2024-07-27. Retrieved 2024-07-28.
  49. ^ "Palestinian crowd stops PA security forces' arrest of Tulkarm Battalion commander". Middle East Monitor. 27 July 2024.
  50. ^ "شبكة قدس الإخبارية | كتيبة طولكرم تمهل السلطة الفلسطينية للإفراج عن أحد مقاوميها". موقع نبض. Retrieved 2024-07-29.
  51. ^ "إلقاء قنابل محلية الصنع تجاه مقر المقاطعة في طولكرم؛ بعد انتهاء مهلة كتيبة مخيم طولكرم للسلطة الفلسطينية بالإفراج عن المطارد طارق البليدي عقب اعتقاله والاستيلاء على سلاحه". Mourasel News. 29 July 2024.
  52. ^ a b Adler, Jonathan (2024-08-14). "In Jenin and Tulkarem, Israel's war on Palestinian armed resistance is failing". +972 Magazine. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
  53. ^ "بعد محاصرته من الأجهزة الأمنية.. أهالي طولكرم يحررون القيادي أبو شجاع". Al Araby. 26 July 2024.
  54. ^ Khoury, Jack (26 July 2024). "Palestinian Authority Fails to Arrest Top Islamic Jihad Official in West Bank". Haaretz.
  55. ^ a b "ثورة الضفة تعلن موت السلطة" (in Arabic). 2024-07-31. Retrieved 2024-07-31.
  56. ^ a b "آخرهم أبو شجاع.. قصص السلطة مع مقاومين تطاردهم إسرائيل". الجزيرة نت (in Arabic). Retrieved 2024-07-28.
  57. ^ "اشتباكات عنيفة بين فتح بيت لحم وأمن السلطة والإقليم يهدد بالاستقالة" (in Arabic). 2024-07-30. Retrieved 2024-07-30.
  58. ^ "PA agrees security deal with occupation regime amid Gaza genocide". Middle East Monitor. 11 September 2024.
  59. ^ ""خيانة لا تتوقف".. أجهزة السلطة تعتقل المطارد ثائر لحلوح من جنين" (in Arabic). 2024-09-17. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  60. ^ "عبد الحكيم شاهين.. طاردته السلطة وقتله الاحتلال". الجزيرة نت (in Arabic). Retrieved 2024-10-01.
  61. ^ "فيديو | أمن السلطة يلاحق مقاومين في طوباس ونابلس.. ماذا جرى مع عبد الحكيم شاهين؟". Ultra Palestine. 1 October 2024.
  62. ^ "اشتباكات وإغلاق شوارع.. الأجهزة الأمنية تعتقل أحد قادة كتيبة طوباس". شبكة قدس الإخبارية (in Arabic). 2024-10-08. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
  63. ^ "اشتباكات بين المقاومة وأمن السلطة: سرايا القدس توجه النداء الاخير.. وكتيبة طوباس تدعو للنفير العام". JO24. 11 October 2024.
  64. ^ "الأمن الفلسطيني يعتقل مقاومين مطلوبين للاحتلال في طوباس". Al Araby. 19 October 2024.
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