Third Intifada as unlikely as peace

A repeat of the Palestinian Intifada, or uprising, that erupted in 2000 when U.S. President Bill Clinton's peace diplomacy failed, is ruled out in the near-term by many Palestinians, including those who fought in the last one.

As a new round of U.S.-sponsored peace talks gets underway, confrontations between Jewish settlers and villagers, or Palestinian protesters and Israeli troops, are likely to stay in the headlines.

But, weak and divided, the Palestinians appear neither willing nor able to wage another sustained, organized uprising against Israeli occupation in the foreseeable future.

Over 500 Israeli civilians died in 140 Palestinian suicide bomb attacks from 2000 to 2007. More than 4,500 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces in the same period.

Many Palestinians question what the bloodshed achieved. The most critical say the tactics used in the uprising set back their cause in the court of world public opinion.

The Western-backed Palestinian government in the West Bank — which would be the main theater in any future Intifada — is categorically opposed to any repeat.

Their retrained security forces have taken action against those who act or think differently.

That has been reflected in a West Bank security situation which Jewish settlers say has never been better. Half a million of them live in the West Bank and Israeli-occupied land around Jerusalem — land the Palestinians seek for a state.

Reflecting on the stability, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said in a recent meeting with journalists that Israeli officers in civilian dress had visited West Bank towns.

Gaza Too

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