Introduction

Throughout the twenty years of Israeli military occupation beginning in June 1967, Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip initiated countless attempts at resistance. Most of these attempts lasted no more than a week and motivated insignificant commitment and participation by the Palestinian population. We are now aware that by 1987, and for approximately the next six years, the Palestinians within the West Bank and Gaza Strip (hereinafter: the occupied territories) succeeded in mounting a widely popular and intensive revolt, demonstrating a well-established and coordinated organizational infrastructure, unprecedented commitment, and calculated use of collective action repertoires. Despite their clear resource inferiority, the Palestinians in the occupied territories ultimately compelled Israel to recognize their genuine collective needs and national aspirations.