Can a Palestinian Nonviolent Resistance Help?

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Ahmed A. Khatib and Jody McIntyre



My name is Ahmed A. Khatib, I am 32 years old, and married with four children. I live in the village of Bil'in, where I work on our family's farm.

When Israel started building the wall here in 2005, I was working with the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades military, the armed wing of the Fatah party. But at first, the villagers went to our land not to "resist," but simply to see what the Israeli soldiers were doing. There was no planning, no such things as "demonstrations," and no organization. We were just curious as to why these strangers were stealing our olive groves. So, in effect, our popular struggle was initiated through ordinary people walking to their land.

However, as the Israelis' intentions became evident, the people of the village agreed that the formation of a local popular committee would be the best way forward.

After a couple of initial meetings, it was decided that we would embark on a campaign of nonviolent resistance, drawing inspiration from the struggle in Budrus village, where they had actually succeeded in moving the route of the wall. At first, I thought the suggestion was a joke - I had friends who had been killed, friends locked up in prison. I worked with guns to fight against the occupation, so it was difficult for me to believe that we could ever return to our land through nonviolent means.

But we are farmers from a small village, simple people, fighting against the fourth largest military in the world. If you think about it, Bilin is home to around 1,500 inhabitants; half of those are women, plus a few hundred children, and maybe 50 elderly men. You aren't left with many people to take up an armed struggle against the Israeli army.

At the first demonstration, the army really didn't have a clue how to deal with us! Because we came to them as unarmed citizens, they were left with no pretext to shoot at us. Instead, they started beating us with their weapons. Before, I didn't believe that Israeli and international activists would be able to help, but then I saw them becoming human shields, taking the soldiers' blows for us Palestinians. When we returned to the village, everyone had an injury to show. It was a great feeling to see that kind of solidarity, although I still remained skeptical about the concept of nonviolent resistance.

read on...
IMEU: Believing in the nonviolent struggle

[amalhope]

Thanks for sharing this.

A non-violent resistance wouldn't have worked in the past. Perhaps now it could work in some cases.

Today, Israel enjoys a relatively "good" image in the West. Israel is a state recognized by Western countries, and it is viewed by ill-informed or biased people as a lone democracy in a sea of sharks like Iran, Sudan, etc., when in reality it is a shark swimming amongst other sharks. Who has devoured more little fish today is not the question because they've all devoured exorbitant amounts of little fish throughout their lives. The tyrant regimes are tyrant regimes who oppress their people. Israel, on the other hand, is a tyrant occupation that treats "its" Jews well and oppresses Palestinians.

The Holocaust still haunts the West with feelings of guilt towards Jews and for that reason, coupled with their own self-interests, the Western countries fully support Israel as long as its actions don't get too openly embarrassing for them. What happened in Gaza, as ugly as it was, was blamed on Hamas' extremism and allegedly using civilians as human shields.

The large-scale massacres that Israel committed pre-1948 cannot be committed against un-armed Palestinian civilians again today with minimal ramifications. There would be no pretext for it and the media today is more vigilant than it was in the past. Today's Israel would not want to jeopardize its present image gains for the sake of unilaterally mass-massacring civilian Palestinians, unless they start posing a threat to its existence.

[Zayn]

Palestinians have already tried non-violent resistance. It is always met with violence.

Palestinians resist nonviolently everyday, but the Western media doesn't cover it.

[shreek]

Originally Posted by Zayn

Palestinians have already tried non-violent resistance. It is always met with violence.

Palestinians resist nonviolently everyday, but the Western media doesn't cover it.

stop the propaganda.
Your Arabo-Islamic brothers don't even care one iota for your 'Palestinian cause' and you want the West to care?

[Zayn]

Originally Posted by shreek

stop the propaganda.
Your Arabo-Islamic brothers don't even care one iota for your 'Palestinian cause' and you want the West to care?

What is this language you are speaking? "Arabo-Islamic brothers"? I am an atheist. I do not care about Islam or any other religion. Because the Palestinian movement gets no money from the Gulf states, doesn't mean that there aren't people all over the world helping the Palestinian cause.

Syria and Iran have both provided substantial aid to Hamas, just like they provide money for Hizballah. They're both Islamic countries and one is Arab. The Goldstone report is a show of support for Palestinian suffering that was written by a Jewish man. Where do you get off trying to tell me that the Palestinian movement has been forgotten?

Show me where I post propaganda. Otherwise, all you're doing is looking to aggravate posters.

[shreek]

Originally Posted by Zayn

What is this language you are speaking? "Arabo-Islamic brothers"? I am an atheist. I do not care about Islam or any other religion. Because the Palestinian movement gets no money from the Gulf states, doesn't mean that there aren't people all over the world helping the Palestinian cause.

Zayn, the Palestinians have spent their Palestinian Cause.
Arabo-Islamic brothers ehh shou lakan, not refering to you refering to your 'Palestinian' brothers, both in religion and language, which have forgotten the so-called 'cause'.

Originally Posted by Zayn

Syria and Iran have both provided substantial aid to Hamas, just like they provide money for Hizballah. They're both Islamic countries and one is Arab. The Goldstone report is a show of support for Palestinian suffering that was written by a Jewish man. Where do you get off trying to tell me that the Palestinian movement has been forgotten?

Ya khayi bi sharafak go to Syria and see how your fellow 'Palestinians' are treated, how they are housed, they live in Chalet's in Lebanon compared to Syria. Do you think Syria cares about the 'cause' or rather what they gain in negotiations with Israel at your behest?
As for the Theocratic Dictatorship of Iran, they are duty bound under Islam to destroy Israel, it is a religious war and you are being used.

[Zayn]

Originally Posted by shreek

Zayn, the Palestinians have spent their Palestinian Cause.

Care to explain this? How have the Palestinians "spent" their cause? Why do you repeatedly keep saying things and not justifying them even the slightest bit? Are you bitter about something?

On the contrary, the Palestinian cause is still going strong. So long as there are representatives of the Palestinians who do not hesitate to fight for justice, the cause will not die. So long as the Palestinians protest daily, the cause will not die. Israel pounded Gaza with everything they had and they could not break the will of the Palestinians. Where do you get off telling me that the Palestinian cause is "spent"? Why do you think that because Gulf states do not fund the Palestinian cause like they fund your Hariri friends that the Palestinian cause is "spent"? Please, I want to hear your opinion because it seems as though you are seeing something that the whole world is not?

Arabo-Islamic brothers ehh shou lakan, not refering to you refering to your 'Palestinian' brothers, both in religion and language, which have forgotten the so-called 'cause'.

Can you provide evidence for my fellow Palestinians who have "forgotten" the cause? I went to a mosque last weekend and raised $9000 in a single day for Gazans. Of course this is anecdotal, but it is just an example. Even here in America, we have people donating hundreds of dollars to support the Palestinians.

Viva Palestina - Breaking the Siege of Gaza

Ya khayi bi sharafak go to Syria and see how your fellow 'Palestinians' are treated, how they are housed, they live in Chalet's in Lebanon compared to Syria. Do you think Syria cares about the 'cause' or rather what they gain in negotiations with Israel at your behest?
As for the Theocratic Dictatorship of Iran, they are duty bound under Islam to destroy Israel, it is a religious war and you are being used.

Do not refer to me as your brother. It is an insult for somebody like you to try and show me endearment.

Have you ever been to a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon? I went to Sabra and Shatila and Bourj al-Barajenah several times during my stay in Lebanon in 2008. I have never seen such misery in my life. In Syria, the Palestinians do not have their homes destroyed by the army like they do in Lebanon. There was no Nahr al-Bared incident in Syria.

I notice you are now contradicting yourself. First you said that my "Arabo-Islamic brothers" (it looks like you derived this term from a neocon handbook) don't support Palestinians. Now you are telling me that Iran is "bound under Islam" to destroy Israel. Can you explain how this amounts to the Palestinians being "used"? How would the Palestinians not benefit from the dissolution of a Jewish apartheid state? You are making a turn for the ridiculous in your desperation to try and prove yourself correct.

Nevermind the international support that the Palestinians get in Europe.

[Zayn]

Still waiting for you to show me where I posted propaganda, by the way.

[shreek]

Originally Posted by Zayn

Still waiting for you to show me where I posted propaganda, by the way.

Your Propaganda is in blaming the West for your own inadeqaucies.
It is you and your likes, the Arabs, the Palestinians, who have failed you and your 'Cause' yet you are playing the Islamic Messiah complex, the eternal sufferers, blaming the other rather than your own.

yikhzel3ain 21 Arabo-Islamic Countries and only TWO support you.

Wa sme3 mnee7 ya khayi, do not ever associate me with that hariri.

[Zayn]

Originally Posted by shreek

Your Propaganda is in blaming the West for your own inadeqaucies.
It is you and your likes, the Arabs, the Palestinians, who have failed you and your 'Cause' yet you are playing the Islamic Messiah complex, the eternal sufferers, blaming the other rather than your own.

Where did you see me blaming the West for my supposed "inadequacies"? I live in the West. I am a Westerner. You are not. Do you mean by posting pictures of Palestinian suffering at the hands of Israeli occupation forces, I'm blaming "the West"? I want you to show me specific examples of my posting of propaganda. If you cannot do this, then you are simply looking to incite.

How many times do I need to tell you that I am not a Muslim? Where did you get this "Islamic Messiah complex" from? You are not a Muslim, so where do you get off trying to lecture people on Islam and how Muslims think? Why do you continue to assert that this is a religious struggle when the Palestinian movement has been led by secular forces since its inception?

You keep insisting that the Palestinians have "failed," yet provide no evidence for it. How have the Palestinians failed if the struggle continues with a worldwide effort? On the contrary, Israel is feeling the pinch of international pressure like never before.

As I said before, you are getting ridiculous in your attempts to justify your illogical stances.

under the Forum rules 'Ya khayi' is not an insult so go cry me a river.....
Wa sme3 mnee7 habibo, do not ever associate me with that hariri.

I didn't ask you about forum rules. I said that I am offended that somebody like yourself would try to endear yourself to me.

Why should I not associate you with Hariri? You seem to think that anybody who doesn't get money from the Gulf states is a failure, as you continue to insist with the Palestinians.