The Organization and the Deflection of a Revolution: the First Palestinian Intifada

The article examines the political dynamics of the First Palestinian Intifada, focusing on the role of political organizations in coordinating resistance activities against Israeli occupation. The popular uprising provided an opportunity for the masses, beyond merely opposing Israeli control of the Occupied Territories since 1967, to develop governance structures from below through renewed political engagement. As early as the late 1970s, strikes by Palestinian workers, who were exploited in Israeli industries, alongside the formation of trade unions and activism by Palestinian leftist groups, accelerated the revolutionary incubation process. This period also marked a significant shift in the liberation struggle from the bureaucratic-military leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization ( PLO ) in exile to a mass mobilization from within the Occupied Territories. In this context, the formation of the Unified National Leadership of the Uprising ( UNLU ) and other grassroots organizations contributed to the emergence of new leadership in the Occupied Territories. The objective of this study is to better understand the internal political and organizational dynamics among Palestinians during the First Intifada, demonstrating how their involvement in a revolutionary context could transform a popular revolt into a situation of dual power. This dual power not only posed a challenge to Israeli occupation but also exposed an underlying rift between the organizations within the Palestinian Territories and the leadership in exile, compelling the latter to divert the course of the uprising.