Years after second intifada, Palestinians face bleak future
JENIN: Two decades on from the second intifada, Palestinians who grew up in the shadow of the uprising find themselves surrounded by physical and political barriers with little hope for the future.
In the refugee camp here, in the north of the occupied West Bank, the walls are plastered with posters showing young Palestinian men wearing keffiyeh scarfs around their necks and clutching AK-47 assault rifles.
Whether killed by Israeli forces or jailed, their images have faded over the years.
“When I walk through the camp, I try to reconcile my memory with what I see today,” said Nidal Naghnaghyeh Turkeman, 48, who spent 17 years in prison for his role in the uprising.
Nidal fought in the ranks of the main Palestinian faction Fatah in the first intifada (1987 to 1993), which preceded a brief optimistic period when the Oslo peace accords brought hope of a lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
But by the turn of the century, disillusionment had set in and the second intifada broke out after right-wing Israeli opposition leader Ariel Sharon visited the AlAqsa mosque compound in annexed east Jerusalem in 2000.
The move was seen as a provocation by Palestinians and violent clashes between them and Israeli forces followed.
The second intifada lasted five years, during which attacks were carried out in Israel, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
In response, Israel reoccupied much of the West Bank and began building a separation barrier between the two communities that in places cuts deep into occupied territory.
The refugee camp here was caught up in the violence and in 2002 was besieged by Israeli forces for more than a month.
While reminders of the uprising can be seen on the streets here, such as a former fighter selling grapes in a wheelchair, daily life has changed significantly over the past two decades.
Israel built the West Bank security barrier, which Palestinians call an apartheid wall separating them from Jerusalem, saying it was necessary to prevent attacks.
Turkeman’s twin daughters, Yara and Sara, were born just weeks before the siege and saw little of their father growing up.
“At the start, we rejected him. We couldn’t find a place for him in our hearts,” said Sara, an 18 year old studying IT at university.
Despite having no memories of the second intifada, the twins say their father is still viewed as a hero by young Palestinians here.
“Today, we are still in the intifada, there are attacks every day, people wounded and nothing has been solved,” said Sara, her sister nodding her head in agreement.
“There is no future here, the only two options are emigration or fighting.”