The Rise and Fall of Arab Jerusalem Palestinian Politics and the City Since 1967
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The Rise and Fall of Arab Jerusalem Palestinian politics and the city since 1967 ROUTLEDGE STUDIES ON THE ARAB-ISRAELI CONFLICT THE RISE AND FALL OF ARAB JERUSALEM This book examines Palestinian politics in Jerusalem since 1967, and in particular since the outbreak of the second Intifada in September 2000, focusing on the city's decline as an Arab city and the identity crisis among the Jerusalemite Palestinians. Principally concerned with Palestinian politics and how they have evolved over time from the grass roots upwards, it covers issues such as the separation wall, military activity and terror, planning regulations, the joint Jewish-Arab struggle against the occupation, and efforts to remove Palestinians from the city. Drawing upon conversations with hundreds of Palestinians - Islamists, nationalists, collaborationists, and apolitical people - as well as upon military court files and Palestinian writings, Hillel Cohen tells the story of the failure of the Palestinian struggle in Jerusalem in both its political and military dimensions. He points at the lack of leadership and the identity crisis among Palestinian Jerusalemites which were created by Israeli policies (the separation wall, the closure of Palestinian institutions) and Palestinian faults (the exclusion of Jerusalem from the Palestinian Authority in Oslo Agreements, or the suicide attacks in the second Intifada). Providing a broad overview of the contemporary situation and political relations both inside the Palestinian community and with the Israeli authorities, the book gives a unique insight into Palestinians' views, political behavior, and daily life in Israel's capital. As such, it is an important addition to the literature on Palestinian politics, Jewish and Israeli studies, and Middle Eastern politics. Hillel Cohen is a research fellow at the Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies and teaches at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He has published widely on the Palestinian refugees in Israel, on the Nakba, and on Israeli-Palestinian relations in general. ROUTLEDGE STUDIES ON THE ARAB-ISRAELI CONFLICT Series Editor: Mick Dumper, University of Exeter The Arab—Israeli conflict continues to be the center of academic and popular attention. This series brings together the best of the cutting edge work now being undertaken by predominantly new and young scholars. Although largely falling within the field of political science the series also includes interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary contributions. 1. International Assistance to 6. Zionist Israel and Apartheid the Palestinians after Oslo South Africa Political guilt, wasted money Civil society and peace building in Anne Le More ethnic-national states Amneh Daoud Badran 2. Palestinian Political Prisoners Identity and community 7. The Political Right in Israel Esmail Nashif Different faces ofJewish populism Dani File 3. Understanding the Middle East Peace Process 8. Reparations to Palestinian Israeli academia and the struggle for Refugees identity A comparative perspective Asima A. Ghazi-Bouillon Shahira Samy 4. Palestinian Civil Society 9. Palestinian Refugees Foreign donors and the power to Identity, space and place in the Levant promote and exclude Edited by Are Knudsen and Benoit Challand Sari Hanafi 5. The Jewish-Arab City 10. The Rise and Fall of Arab Spatio-politics in a mixed community Jerusalem Haim Yacobi Palestinian politics and the city since 1961 Hillel Cohen THE RISE AND FALL OF ARAB JERUSALEM Palestinian politics and the city since 1967 Hillel Cohen Photographs: Rati Kotz Routledge Taylor & Francis Group Jerusalem institute LONDON AND NEW YORK for Israel Studl« First published 2011 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 270 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business ©2011 Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies Typeset in Bembo by Keystroke, Station Road, Codsall, Wolverhampton Printed and bound in Great Britain by TJ International, Padstow, Cornwall All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Cohen, Hillel. The rise and fall of Arab Jerusalem : politics and the city since 1967 / Hillel Cohen. p. cm. - (Routledge studies on the Arab-Israeli conflict; 10) Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Jerusalem—Politics and government—20th century. 2. Jerusalem—Politics and government-21st century. 3. Palestinian Arabs—Jerusalem—Politics and government.-20th century. 4. Palestinian Arabs-Jerusalem-Politics and government-21st century. 5. Al-Aqsa Intifada, 2000—2006. Jerusalem-Ethnic relations I. Tide. DS109.94.C5913 2010 956.9442054-dc22 2010025201׳ ISBN 978-0-415-59853-8 (hbk) ISBN 978-0-415-59854-5 (pbk) ISBN 978-0-203-83489-3 (ebk) CONTENTS List of figures vii Preface and Acknowledgements ix Prologue xv 1 Jerusalem: capital of Palestine and focus of identity, 1917—93 1 Creation of a capital 1917-48 1 Capital-in-waiting 1948—67 3 Capital in the making 1967—93 6 Capital under fire: Jerusalem during the first Intifada 13 2 Capital in decline: the political process and the downward slide of Al-Quds (Jerusalem) 1993-2000 19 The Oslo years: the security dimension 20 Confused society under dual sovereignty 26 The Israeli policies — a Palestinian perspective 36 3 Collapse of the capital: al-Aqsa Intifada and the armed struggle 41 Jerusaiemites and the suicide attacks 44 "Traditional" terror 54 4 Political action in the shadow of the al-Aqsa Intifada 65 Al-Haram al-Sharif as a political center 70 The Islamic Movement in Israel — and al-Aqsa 76 NGOs in Jerusalem 80 Education and identity 86 Palestinian—Israeli joint struggle 91 vl Contents House demolitions and urban planning 101 Al-Quds University: academia in the midst of controversy 104 5 Palestinian elections in Jerusalem: the local and the national 108 Preparing for elections 108 Results of 2006 elections: an analysis 121 Jerusalem 2010: conclusion and a look to the future 127 Notes 137 Sources and bibliography 149 Index 153 LIST OF FIGURES Map of Jerusalem, 2010 xiii 1.1 War games 9 1.2 The Press in the service of the nation 11 1.3a Faisal Husseini with Michael Warschawski 14 1.3b Faisal Husseini with Teddy Kollek 14 2.1 Ariel Sharon in the Old City 22 2.2 Suicide attacks in downtown Jerusalem 23 2.3 Ahmad al-Batsh and the 1996 elections 33 2.4 Ma'ale Adumim and 'its' Bedouins 38 2.5 Daily life in tense times 40 3.1 Israeli security forces patrol in East Jerusalem 61 4.1 Sheikh Sa'ed: between the fences 69 4.2 Al-Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount 71 4.3 The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate: between settlers and Arabs 79 4.4 Commercial life in the Old City 80 4.5 The education system: Isawiyye girls' school 89 4.6 Teddy Kollek 96 4.7 Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood: Israelis and Palestinians 98 5.1 Palestinian activists at the 2006 elections 112 5.2 The activity outside the ballots at the 2006 elections 117 5.3 2006 elections: inside the ballots 123 PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDG EM ENTS This book deals with the Palestinians who live in East Jerusalem and the processes that this unique population has undergone since the Oslo Agreements and especially since the outbreak of the al-Aqsa Intifada. It examines the political and military activities of the Palestinians in the city, their dynamic identities, and their rela tionships with both the Palestinian national movement, on the one hand, and the Israeli experience, on the other hand. Our subject is not only political movements and their functioning, but also the individuals who are subordinated to Israeli rule and are demanded to respect it, and at the same time are expected by their fellow Palestinians to participate in the struggle for national liberation. We examine the character of the political and social institutions in the city, the population's involvement in the armed struggle, terrorism and non-violent resistance, the impact of the separation wall on life in Jerusalem, joint Israeli-Palestinian activity in the city and voting patterns among Palestinians in both the Israeli municipal elections and elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council. Even the most superficial glance at events in Jerusalem reveals that despite the fact that Jerusalem is among the areas that were occupied by Israel in 1967 and is considered by the Palestinians as their religious and political capital, there is a substantial difference between the conduct of Palestinians in the city and those who live elsewhere in the Territories. Israelis feel this difference easily, especially since the year 2000: while a Jew would not usually dare walk through the markets of the Palestinian cities of Hebron, Qalqilya or Khan Yunis, the markets in the Old City of Jerusalem are crowded with Jewish visitors. While Hamas and Fateh cells battle Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers in Samaria and Qassam missiles are fired at Sderot, merchants in East Jerusalem welcome Jewish customers with a smile. The contrast is rooted not only in the different ways that Israel has acted in the various territories it conquered in 1967 but also in the political conventions that have developed among the Palestinian residents of the city. This is not to say that they x Preface and Acknowledgements do not participate in either the political or the armed struggle; they do. During the last years, as in previous years, there were several "individual" attacks on Jews initiated by Palestinians from East Jerusalem.1 However, the character of their parti cipation is different, as is their political identity - and this is the focus of this study.