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Intifada 2 years on but few answers
RAMALLAH, West Bank -- CNN correspondent Ben Wedeman visits Ramallah to see the effects on Palestinians of two years of uprising which began with stone-throwing and has escalated to suicide bombing. When the Intifada erupted two years ago, some called it a Palestinian war of independence and others described it as a threat to Israel's survival. But the Palestinians are no closer to independence today than they were two years ago, and Israel's security is as elusive as ever. Neither side seems to know how to get out of a conflict that has cost so much in human life, and yielded nothing but misery and suffering. Two years ago, the Intifada erupted and Palestinians were throwing stone against Israeli troops. September 2002. The soldiers and the stone throwers have moved to the centre of this city battered by war and paralysed by curfews.
Throwing arms are stronger after two years of practice and it almost looks like a game, but it's not. Since the outbreak of the intifada, hundreds have been killed in Ramallah. Fourteen year-old Nizar Eideh was one of the first to die here, on September 30, 2000...hit in the chest by an Israeli bullet while throwing rocks at an Israeli position. Looking back over the past two years, his father Mahmoud fears the conflict has taken on a deadly dynamic no one can stop. "What has happened is that violence begets violence. There are actions and reactions, to the point where people feel the politicians have lost control of the situation." But he has not lost hope. Outside his window, he saw a scene we also witnessed. A rare, and friendly, encounter between Israeli soldiers and a boy who might normally be throwing stones. It was not exactly a dramatic diplomatic breakthrough, but modest proof that with a bit of good will on both sides, barriers can come down. Nizar's mother Halima, says the pain on both sides of the conflict is the same. "When we see the suicide bombings and see their children die, we cry for them," she said. "We are all mothers, them and us." The shared suffering, however, has widened the gap, as each side takes vengeance on the other. Palestinian analyst Ali Jarbawi, said: "Israel, every single day, hits us and kills Palestinians, so it is extremely hard to convince Palestinians not to resist using weapons. "Not only that, (but) these attacks inside Israel should stop. They think you are coming from another world when you tell them that." The Intifada started with stone throwing, but it was not long before the suicide bombings began. For its part Israel started what it calls target killings of suspected Palestinian militants – and the deadly cycle shows no sign of ending. Two years on, the Palestinian Authority is an empty shell, gutted by repeated Israeli attacks that followed suicide bombings and the Palestinian economy is in ruins. Yasser Arafat has become a virtual prisoner in what remains of his Ramallah headquarters. Analyst Ali Jerbawi said: "We have an authority, we have a president, we have a cabinet, we have a parliament. But they don't exist actually, they don't function." Israel now controls most of the West Bank, but it rules over a wasteland with a hostile and restive population.
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