ABSTRACT
The major consequence of the uprising has been the shattering of Israel’s political consensus. The fact that the uprising has continued for such a lengthy period despite all the IDF’s efforts, and the growing realization that it cannot be stopped by military force alone, have generated a new political situation. Public opinion surveys show a toughening of attitudes regarding policy toward the Palestinians in the Territories during the uprising. A cardinal interim objective of the uprising is to set in motion, from a position of strength, a political process that can fulfill Palestinian aspirations. The uprising strengthened the Palestinians’ bargaining cards, but at the same time both compelled and enabled them, in order to exploit the political opportunity, to moderate their positions in order to render themselves acceptable to the US, and even to Israel, as possible negotiating partners.
