The Intifada and the Palestinians of Israel: Resurrecting theGreenLine

The Palestinian uprising in the occupied territories and the ensuing PLO political program have direct bearing on the political future of the Palestinians in Israel. Thus far, neither the Israelis nor the Palestinians at large have attempted to define their relationships to Israel's Arab community, which both have tended to view as a marginal segment of their respective societies. But for the Palestinians of Israel themselves, the nature of these relationships, both to Israel and to their fellow Palestinians, touches on the very essence of their political future and collective identity. The new circumstances produced by the uprising have brought these relationships into focus in an unprecedented manner. This paper examines the impact of the uprising on the beliefs and thinking of the Palestinians in Israel, and argues that the forms and extent of their support for the uprising and their political response to it are defined by the patterns of their involvement in the Israeli system. It also examines how this involvement will be influenced by the new political realities resulting from the uprising.