Why don’t Palestinians just resist peacefully?

Short: In the late 1980s, Palestinians in Gaza engaged in non-violent protests, strikes, and boycotts. No Israelis were killed as a result of any of these actions. But in response, Israel killed 214 Palestinians and injured thousands. The 2005 non-violent BDS movement was accused of wanting to destroy Israel, with Israel labelling BDS supporters as antisemitic. Then, tens of thousands of unarmed Palestinian civilians marched in 2018 for the right of return, resulting in 223 killed and over 6,000 left with life-changing wounds. Palestinian non-violent resistance consistently meets deadly and disproportionate violence from Israel, even for the most tiny actions like social media engagement. This is authoritarianism. And how should we expect people to fight back against authoritarianism? When even your seemingly harmless actions, such as liking an Instagram post, can result in your imprisonment or death, there is no amount of peaceful resistance possible that will have any meaningful impact on changing the situation happening around you. Violent resistance as a result of occupation is also protected under international law. Any violent resistance from a Palestinian is clearly the justifiable result of being backed into a corner for 75 years.

Long: From late 1987 to 1988, Palestinians in Gaza rose up in a series of non-violent demonstrations, strikes, boycotts and protests. They killed 0 Israelis. They were unarmed. In response, Israel killed 214 Palestinians in Gaza and injured thousands more. In 2005, Palestinians organised a non-violent movement, Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions (BDS) In response, Israel a) said the movement's true goal is to destroy Israel, b) called BDS supporters antisemitic, and c) punished its founder by threatening to expel him from his home. Then, in March 2018 tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians marched to the fence illegally built by Israel, unarmed, demanding the right of return. Israel killed 223 Palestinians, and Israeli snipers left 6,106 Palestinians with life-changing wounds and 30,000 more injured. Not a single Israeli experienced any major physical harm, nor were any killed.

In the vast majority of cases of Palestinian non-violent resistance, Israel has responded and continues to respond with deadly and disproportionate violence. Even when Palestinians are not taking to the streets, Israel punshines, kills, imprisons and sanctions Palestinians for their existence on a daily basis. Palestinians are also treated most violently when they display or engage in even the smallest resistance behaviours, such as following pro-Palestine accounts on social media. This kind of surveillance and political repression is a fixture of daily life for Palestinians. But this is also authoritarianism. And how should we expect people to fight back against authoritarianism? Israeli soldiers are showing up to Palestinian homes and businesses, sometimes in the middle of the night, and arresting those who share posts condemning the bombing of innocent Palestinians in Gaza online. What are they expected to do? Share more posts that will also get them arrested or killed.

When even your seemingly harmless actions, such as liking an Instagram post, can result in your imprisonment or death, there is no amount of peaceful resistance possible that will have any meaningful impact on changing the situation happening around you. Violent resistance as a result of occupation is also protected under international law. Any violent resistance from a Palestinian is clearly the justifiable result of being backed into a corner for 75 years.

Video: Did you know Israel arms its civilians?

Video: It’s better to lose your life than live under occupation

Sources: @_ZachFoster

This answer is taken from the document Palestine: in Conversation Document.

In this tweet, Zachary said:

• From late 1987-1988, Palestinians in Gaza rose up in a series of non-violent demonstrations, strikes, boycotts & protests. They killed 0 Israelis. They were unarmed. In response, Israel killed 142 Palestinians in Gaza. Source: Jean-Pierre Filiu, Gaza: A History (2014), 206.
• In 2005, Palestinians organized a non-violent movement, Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions (BDS). In response, Israel: 1) said the movement's true goal is to destroy Israel. 2) called BDS supporters antisemitic. 3) Punished its founder w/threat of displacement.
• In 2003, unarmed Palestinians in Bil'in organized weekly protests against the separation barrier that was confiscating their land. In 2009, Israel killed Bassem Abu Rahmah w/a shot in the chest; in 2010, it killed Jawaher Abu Rahmah, who died from tear gas inhalation.
• In 2008 & 2009, the residents of Ni'lin, in the West Bank, protested non-violently every week against the expansion of the separation barrier that was confiscating their land. In response, Israel killed Ahmed Moussa on 29 July 2008; Israel killed Yousef Aqel Srour on 5 June 2009.
• Beginning in March 2018, tens of thousands of Gazans marched to the fence, unarmed, demanding the right of return. Israel killed 223 Palestinians & Israeli snipers left 6,106 Palestinians with life-changing wounds. Not a single Israeli experienced any major physical harm.

These incidents represent a tiny fraction of Palestinian non-violent resistance. In the vast majority of cases of Palestinian non-violent resistance, Israel responds w/ lethal & disproportionate violence. And you wonder why a tiny number of Palestinians have turned to violence?