---
title: "First Intifada: Palestinian Uprising Begins"
year: 1987
country: "Israel"
canonical: "https://recap.at/1987/first-intifada"
slug: "first-intifada"
recapType: "global_event"
startDate: "1987-01-01"
---

# First Intifada: Palestinian Uprising Begins

> Stones, strikes, and a region forever changed.

In December 1987, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and West Bank launched a sustained uprising against Israeli occupation following a traffic accident that killed four workers in Gaza. What started as spontaneous street protests by young Palestinians evolved into years of coordinated resistance involving strikes, boycotts, and armed operations, killing over a thousand Palestinians and reshaping Middle Eastern politics.

## Summary

On December 8, 1987, a traffic accident in Gaza's Jabalya refugee camp killed four Palestinian workers. The incident, initially dismissed by Israeli authorities, became the spark for the First Intifada-a sustained uprising that would define Palestinian resistance for the next several years. What began as spontaneous street protests and stone-throwing by young Palestinians quickly evolved into a coordinated, multi-faceted resistance movement that included strikes, boycotts, and armed operations.

The uprising emerged from decades of frustration under Israeli military rule. Since the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel had occupied the Gaza Strip and West Bank, controlling movement, resources, and governance. Palestinian economic conditions had deteriorated sharply in the mid-1980s, while Israeli settlements expanded into occupied territories. The political landscape on the Palestinian side was fragmented-the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was based in Tunisia, far from the grassroots anger building at home. The Intifada filled that vacuum, giving voice to Palestinians, particularly younger generations who had known nothing but occupation.

The uprising took Israeli planners by surprise. Street youth, known as shabab, became the visible face of resistance, hurling stones at armed Israeli soldiers. Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement, officially emerged during this period as a organized force, competing with secular nationalist groups for leadership. Women organized food networks and education to sustain the movement. Workers staged strikes. The variety and persistence of tactics-some violent, many not-demonstrated that the uprising wasn't a flash of anger but a sustained challenge to the occupation.

The cost was steep. By the time the First Intifada formally ended in 1993 with the Oslo Accords, approximately 1,100 Palestinians and 200 Israelis had died. Thousands more were wounded or imprisoned. Israeli security forces employed tactics including house demolitions, mass arrests, and collective punishment that drew international criticism. Yet the uprising fundamentally shifted Palestinian politics: it demonstrated that Palestinians could sustain independent resistance, elevated local Palestinian leadership over the distant PLO, and proved that nonviolent and violent resistance could coexist as strategies.

The First Intifada's political legacy extended beyond the territories. It accelerated Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations, leading to the Oslo Accords in 1993 and the establishment of the Palestinian Authority. International attention, previously sporadic, became more focused on Palestinian grievances and the mechanics of occupation. The uprising also established patterns-tactics, leadership structures, methods of popular organizing-that would shape Palestinian resistance movements in subsequent decades.

## Key facts

- **Start date**: December 8, 1987
- **Duration**: Approximately 6 years (ended 1993 with Oslo Accords)
- **Palestinian deaths**: Approximately 1,100
- **Israeli deaths**: Approximately 200
- **Geographic scope**: Gaza Strip and West Bank
- **Trigger incident location**: Jabalya refugee camp, Gaza
- **Key organizations**: Hamas officially founded during uprising; PLO based in Tunisia

## Timeline

- **1987-12-08** - Traffic accident triggers uprising
  A collision in Jabalya refugee camp kills four Palestinian workers. The incident sparks spontaneous protests and marks the beginning of the First Intifada.
- **1987-12-14** - Hamas founded
  The Islamic Resistance Movement formally establishes itself as an organized faction during the escalating uprising, offering an alternative to the secular PLO.
- **1988-01-01** - Uprising enters organized phase
  Spontaneous street protests evolve into coordinated resistance including strikes, boycotts, and underground networks across Gaza and the West Bank.
- **1988-11-15** - Palestinian Declaration of Independence
  The PLO's Palestine National Council declares independence in Algiers, galvanized by momentum from the ongoing Intifada and shifting political dynamics.
- **1991-10-30** - Madrid Peace Conference
  Israeli and Palestinian representatives meet for direct negotiations, partly driven by international pressure resulting from Intifada casualties and sustained resistance.
- **1993-09-13** - Oslo Accords signed
  Israel and the PLO sign the Declaration of Principles in Washington, D.C., formally ending the First Intifada and establishing the Palestinian Authority.

## Relationships

- **evolved from**: israeli-independence - The First Intifada emerged directly from Palestinian grievances accumulated since 1948 Israeli independence and 1967 occupation, representing the first mass mobilization of Palestinians born under Israeli rule.
- **responded to**: camp-david-accords-1978 - The 1978 Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt excluded Palestinians from negotiations, leaving occupation unresolved and fueling the Palestinian resentment that erupted in the 1987 Intifada.
- **evolved from**: suez-crisis - The 1956 Suez Crisis crystallized Arab nationalism and anti-colonial sentiment that persisted through decades of occupation; Palestinian uprising in 1987 represented continuation of this broader decolonization struggle.

## Consequences

- **1991 - Madrid Peace Conference**: The First Intifada's intensity forced both Israeli and Palestinian leaderships to engage in direct negotiations for the first time, brokered by the United States and Soviet Union following the Gulf War.
- **1993 - Oslo Accords signed**: Secret talks between Israeli and PLO representatives in Norway produced the Declaration of Principles, formally recognizing Palestinian self-determination and establishing the Palestinian Authority.
- **1994 - Palestinian Authority established**: Yasser Arafat returned to Gaza and took office as chair of the newly created Palestinian Authority, the first Palestinian governing body in the occupied territories.
- **2000 - Camp David Summit**: President Bill Clinton convened Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Arafat for talks aimed at a final-status agreement, with the First Intifada's unresolved grievances still central to negotiations.
- **2000 - Second Intifada begins**: Frustration over stalled peace efforts and continued occupation triggered a second Palestinian uprising, demonstrating that the First Intifada's underlying tensions remained unresolved.

## Then vs now

- **Palestinian population in West Bank and Gaza**: 1987: 2.1 million → 2024: 5.2 million - Population more than doubled; density and resource constraints intensified.
- **Israeli settlements in occupied territories**: 1987: ~100 settlements, 80,000 settlers → 2024: ~290 settlements, 650,000+ settlers - Expansion accelerated despite international opposition and peace negotiations.
- **Death toll (Palestinians and Israelis combined) during uprising**: 1987: ~1,200 during First Intifada (1987–1993) → 2024: ~200,000+ in subsequent conflicts through 2024 - Escalation reflects repeated failure of diplomatic resolutions and renewed violence.

## Impact

On December 8, 1987, a traffic accident in the Gaza Strip sparked the First Intifada-a sustained Palestinian uprising that would reshape the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and last until 1993. What began as localized protests evolved into coordinated resistance across the West Bank and Gaza, introducing stone-throwing youth and grassroots organizing as defining images of Palestinian defiance.

---
Canonical: https://recap.at/1987/first-intifada