As the pace of the massacres committed by Israel against our brothers in Palestine accelerated, and after the martyrdom of one village after another and one refugee camp after another -- particularly after the fierce battle of Jenin under the leadership of the great martyr in (what came to be known as) the new battle of Karbala, Shaykh Mahmood Tawalbeh, commander for the Jerusalem Battalions in Jenin -- we heard a great deal about the imminent end of the Intifaadhah (resistance movement) in Palestine.
Many people believed that it was a matter of days or even hours before the Intifaadhah breathed its last. Unfortunately, this defeatist vision has become predominant among many sections of the Palestinian elite, making sympathy for the people whose houses were demolished and whose children were butchered in the Palestinian villages and refugee camps the only tangible action of these sections of our respectable elite!
But…
Does this mean that the Intifaadhah was routed?
Has the picture really become that dark? Was the Intifaadhah really routed? Have its mechanisms stopped working effectively after the targeting of its infrastructure in the cities and refugee camps in the West Bank? What can we do to keep it alive and effective? This is the question that we shall try to answer in the following lines.
First, there is no shame in acknowledging the severe and painful losses sustained by the struggling Palestinian people, who represent the greatest incubator of the Intifaadhah and resistance. There is no way to deny that fact. It is important to mention it to realize the magnitude of the horrible crimes that are committed against the noblest phenomena in the Islamic and Arab contemporary reality, namely, the “Palestinian Intifaadhah” and to realize its greatness as we see that resistance continuing in spite of all this terrible pain.
Some manifestations of Palestinian pain:
Palestinian pain and loss in the cities of the West Bank over the past years are represented by the arrest of thousands of activists of the resisting organizations (Hamas, Fatah, Islamic Jihad, and Palestinian Security Forces) in addition to thousands of martyrs and losses that were sustained by the Palestinian resistance and the brave Intifaadhah after destroying the weapons of the Palestinians and the factories that used to manufacture some arms and ammunition at the hands of the Israeli armed forces.
If we add to these losses, the loss of the secure public cover by destroying houses and places of worship (mosques and churches), which used to be a means of shelter, we will realize that the Intifaadhah and resistance have suffered severe losses.
Failure of Zionist campaigns:
In spite of all these painful losses, the most important objective of the Zionist enemy, namely, the spirit of the resistance and its determination, was not affected. The material losses can be easily compensated and recovered and the blood of the martyrs gives birth to a new generation of young people seeking martyrdom not just martyrs. This blessed blood represents the spring that provides the resisting Mujaahids with strength and determination.
This is how the Palestinian people understand martyrdom, and this is the reality of the conflict. As for the prisoners and captives, they will be free someday to continue the journey.
The same meaning is embodied in the culmination of the Zionist slaughter and organized crimes against the Palestinian people. During the invasion and destruction of the Jenin refugee camp, the Mujaahid Shaykh Mahmood Tawalbeh (who was under the age of thirty), who is a member of the Islamic Jihad and leader of the Jerusalem Battalions in Jenin, kept fighting along with his companions for nine successive days. In addition, the Israeli army confirmed that he and his group had set up an ambush in a house where 13 Israeli soldiers were killed.
The greatness of this struggling Mujaahid, who is considered the real leader of the Battle of Jenin, appeared in its best form when he blew himself up, according to some of his companions, amidst a gathering of Israeli soldiers after making them believe that he was going to surrender.
The legend of Mahmood Tawalbeh created what the Israeli observers called the “Palestinian Masada”, or what the well-known Israeli political journalist, Uri Avnery, called the “Palestinian Stalingrad”, or what we call the “New Karbala”. This resistance -- until the last bullet and last breath -- is the bright side of this heroic battle that confirmed that it is impossible to kill Palestinian morale and will.
The companions and disciples of Mahmood Tawalbeh trod on the US aid that was offered to them. In spite of their hunger and homelessness, they honorably and with dignity refused to receive poisonous charity from a killer, instead remaining steadfast as Mahmood Tawalbeh and his companions had taught them.
It is worth noting that the Jenin refugee camp was the same camp that supported ‘Izz Ad-Deen Al-Qassaam in his struggle against the Zionists in 1936 C.E. and Al-Husayni during the forties. The same thing applies to Nablus, Tulkarm, Ramallah, Bethlehem and the other Palestinian cities.
Thus, it is an unbreakable determination and will.