Loading ...Martyrs? Desperate? Crazy? Palestinians struggle to define Palestinians who attack Israelis
By William Booth
The Washington Post
The Israelis are clear. They call it “terrorism.” Yet after five months of near-daily attacks against Israelis, Palestinian society struggles with how to describe the wave of knife, gun and vehicular attacks against Israeli soldiers and civilians.
Is it an “uprising” or “upheaval” or “awakening” — or personal “despair”? Are the assailants “martyrs” or “victims” or both? Are the teens wielding kitchen knives “heroes” or “children” — and after they are shot and killed by Israeli soldiers during their attacks, should they be celebrated as “warriors” for the Palestinian cause or pitied as unstable individuals who “snapped”?
If Palestinians on the street are uncertain what to call the ongoing violence, the Palestinian leadership appears paralyzed over word choices.
The aging, unpopular leaders of the Palestine Liberation Organization are careful to neither openly support nor oppose the attacks, adding to the aimless narrative of the current violence. Are the attacks helping the Palestinians get a state — or lose one?
The Palestinian political class is wary of offending the international community, which has universally condemned the attacks. At the same time, the Palestinian officials are afraid of getting in front of their own people, who tell pollsters they support “armed struggle” and are tired of the old leadership, who have failed to win them a nation.
The words Palestinians use to describe the attacks are important. Language reveals meaning and intent, especially in conflict.
Israelis dismiss the Palestinian vagueness as weakness or guile. Israeli officials say, “Look, the Palestinians cannot control their own children” — and they are silent because they either fear their people or hope to gain some tactical advantage from the violence.
Source: www.washingtonpost.com