What did the Palestinians accomplish with the 2nd Intifada 1 ?
I see many answers here based on no understanding of the prelude or the events that led to the second intifada, other answers are based on pure fiction and propaganda. What I find interesting is not a single answer is written by a Palestinian.
As a Palestinian, I will take my time to answer this thoroughly.
The stalemate in the negotiations, and the escalating settlement activities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip combined together to create a climate of heightened tension. This tension would erupt into a conflagration at the end of September 2000. Triggered by the visit of Ariel Sharon to the Aqsa mosque and the Noble Sanctuary, the second Intifada, also known as the Aqsa Intifada, would demolish much of what the Palestinian Authority had built over the last few years.
Ariel Sharon, known as the butcher of Sabra and Shatilla to Palestinians, visited al-Aqsa mosque escorted by hundreds of armed troops to make a statement that no matter what agreement would emerge, the Noble Sanctuary would forever remain under Israeli sovereignty and control. Being the third holiest site in Islam, and holding a very special importance for all Palestinians, this visit was deliberately designed to provoke a response from the Palestinians. It was thought that decisively crushing this response would give the Israelis a better position in the negotiations, and lower the political demands of the Palestinian Authority.
The next day after Friday prayers protests erupted across the Old City of Jerusalem; seven Palestinians were killed and some 300 more injured. In the following days mass demonstrations took place in the West Bank and Gaza, prompting a violent response from Israeli occupying forces. Amos Malka, then director of military intelligence, estimated that in the first few days of the demonstrations the Israeli army fired approximately 1.3 million bullets. A report by Amnesty International found that the majority of Palestinian casualties during this time were civilian bystanders and that 80 percent of those killed in the first month were not endangering the lives of Israeli officials.
On Saturday 30 September the murder of 12-year-old Muhammad Al-Durrah by Israeli forces as he took shelter with his father was captured on camera and sent shockwaves across the world. The video showed father and son crouching behind a concrete pillar as they try to escape Israeli forces who had opened fire. Al-Durrah's father could be seen signalling to try and get the soldiers to stop firing, only for a burst of Israeli gunfire to put a premature end to Muhammad's life. The footage became iconic, representing the oppression endured by the Palestinians, and the indifference of Israel.
The months that followed witnessed more violent crackdowns, leaving hundreds dead and thousands injured. Amnesty International's report on the first year also found that the:
"overwhelming majority of cases of unlawful killings and injuries in Israel and the Occupied Territories have been committed by the IDF using excessive force. In particular, the IDF have used US-supplied helicopters in punitive rocket attacks where there was no imminent danger to life".
It should be noted that similar to the first Intifada, Palestinians mobilized massive protests, civil disobedience actions, boycotts and other forms of resistance. However, unlike the first Intifada which took Israel by surprise, the repression was much more harsh and violent. Israel ruthlessly shot to kill, using live ammunition and savagely cracked down on Palestinians. What had initially erupted as a popular, mostly peaceful movement, was soon pushed by the harsh response to gradually become militarized. While popular resistance would continue, this time it would be accompanied by guerilla warfare, suicide bombings and other tactics.
Upon Sharon's election to the position of Prime Minister in early 2001 he refused to meet with Arafat and all bids at diplomacy came to a standstill. In 2002, Palestinian leaders repeated their efforts to stem the violence and arrive at a peace deal by endorsing the Arab Peace Initiative outlined by Saudi Arabia. Israel largely ignored the proposal. In 2003, following the appointment of Mahmoud Abbas as PA Prime Minister, negotiations were again attempted following a peace plan prescribed by the UN, EU, Russia and the US, but the efforts fell through.
The next year witnessed more violence, including the targeted assassination of senior Hamas officials by Israel and a nine-day incursion into Rafah refugee camp, which left over 40 Palestinians dead. As Israeli officials were forced to withdraw Jewish settlers from the Gaza Strip to freeze the peace process, justify expansion of future illegal settlements in the WB, and prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state, they also started the construction of a segregation barrier encircling the West Bank, a move the International Court of Justice ruled was illegal.
Arafat's death at the end of 2004 marked the beginning of the end of the conflict. As Abbas, now also chairman of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO), called for peace, Israel responded by sealing off the Gaza Strip, prompting resistance from groups within the coastal enclave. However by February the attacks had largely been suspended. Israeli forces withdrew armed combat units from some West Bank towns and released dozens of Palestinian prisoners.
Whilst Palestinians made some material gains as a result of the intifada, Israeli aggression intensified and human rights violations increased. The peace process was stalled for many years as Israel vehemently opposed a two-state solution, perceiving the intifada as a reaction to the generous deal they had allegedly offered the Palestinians at Camp David. This was a view shared by the Israeli public as much as politicians, who have elected the right wing Likud party consistently since 2002. The settler community have also been emboldened, with greater construction and government support for illegal settlement activity.
By the end of the second Intifada and due to its militarized nature, nearly 5000 Palestinians and 1000 Israelis would be killed. It shifted the status quo in Palestine, and undid much of the work accomplished by the Palestinian Authority in the years prior. This along with the death of Palestinian Authority and PLO leader Yasser Arafat would trigger changes in the Palestinian Authority and Palestinian leadership in general. The Palestinian Authority would be restructured into an even more docile and obedient entity, Israeli colonization efforts would accelerate, and a new phase in the Palestinian question would begin.
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