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TIME: Almanac 1990
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1990 Time Magazine Compact Almanac, The (1991)(Time).iso
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time
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090489
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09048900.029
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1990-09-22
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WORLD, Page 21ISRAELIs the Intifadeh Losing Steam?Palestinians turn their frustration on one another
The first phase was remarkable: using stones and strikes, Arab
youths managed to befuddle the Israeli army and gain some national
pride. But after 20 months of rebellion and bloodshed, Palestinians
in the occupied territories are growing tired as they grimly
realize that their heady sacrifices have yet to budge the Israelis.
Although the intifadeh promises to smolder indefinitely, fewer and
fewer Arabs are actively taking part in the violence. The worst
outbursts of rage are now directed at other Palestinians, while
weary residents are increasingly willing to defy the frequent
strike orders that once commanded near total obedience.
Last week, in a test of strength between Palestinian activists
and the Israeli army, the underground leadership of the intifadeh
banned Gazans from working in Israel for two weeks. The strike was
called to protest the army's latest method for controlling
troublemakers: a computerized ID card listing any previous criminal
charges that all Gaza men aged 16 to 60 must now carry. The army
says about 65,000 of the cards have been issued; Palestinians claim
to have confiscated and destroyed thousands of them.
Nearly 10% of Gaza's laborers dared to flout the strike order.
"Our situation is unbearable," said Mohammed, 51, standing at the
heavily guarded crossing into Israel at 6:30 a.m. "We're trapped
between the Israelis and the intifadeh." A father of 15, he risked
attack by masked strike enforcers to reach the checkpoint. "Either
I sneak out to work or my family starves," he complains.
Defiance like Mohammed's is only one crack in the facade of
Palestinian unity. In the first 17 months of the uprising, nearly
50 Arabs were shot, beaten or hacked to death by fellow Arabs for
collaborating with the Israelis; since May, that number has
doubled. In fact, many are believed to have been gunned down to
settle private accounts and labeled collaborators posthumously.
Nonetheless, many Palestinians are appalled by the brutality,
prompting an appeal in the latest leaflet from the uprising "not
to eliminate collaborators without a decision by the leadership,
and not before he is given a chance to repent."
While the Palestinians despair, the Israelis are learning to
live with and even ignore the "disturbances." As their sense of
urgency wanes, so does the incentive to find a solution. Israel's
grip on the territories may ultimately prove untenable, but in the
short run, it is the Palestinians who are nearing the limits of
endurance. That is precisely what worries Arab extremists, who
contend that leaves but one option: to uncache their weapons and
return to the front pages in the worst possible way.