Calling for 3rd Palestinian Intifada

Social media site Facebook allows a group that calls for a third Palestinian intifada against Israel. Counter groups urge the site to "Stop the hate." 

Update: CNN is reporting that as of March 29, 2011, Facebook has deleted this page "because it contained direct calls for violence." ("Facebook page supporting Palestinian intifada pulled down," by Kevin Flowers.)

A Facebook page calling for a third intifada against Israel is drawing record numbers of “Likes.” As of March 28, 2011, the total was over 346,000 for the group Third Palestinian Intifada. Objections to this page, coming from Israelis and others around the world who believe it is inciting violence and hatred in contravention of Facebook's rules are growing.

On March 27, 2011, Facebook officials, as reported in the Jerusalem Post "Facebook 'monitoring' page calling for 3rd intifada" by Yakov Lappin, stated that they would monitor the group but that they would not take the page down right now.

In contrast to the other protest movements currently sweeping the Middle East and North Africa challenging corrupt regimes, this call for a third intifada is directed against a multicultural and multiracial parliamentary democracy with established civil liberties—Israel.

 Historically an intifada (the Arabic word means “uprising”) is a violent upheaval. According to the English translation from the original Arabic, this group, on its Facebook page, calls for a "mass march into Israel from countries."Abraham H. Foxman, National Director of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), stresses that it would be naive to believe that this called-for action "does not portend renewed violence" especially in light of the recent upsurge in terrorist attacks, including the brutal slaughter of the Fogel family, in Israel. His comments are quoted in Israel National News "Battle over Facebook's Third Intifada Page" by Chana Ya'ar, March 27, 2011.

Third Palestinian Intifada has also issued a threat to Facebook, warning that if the group is shut down, “All Muslims will boycott Facebook forever.” This warning to the site’s administrators is on the group’s Facebook page and is in English although all the other text on the page is Arabic. Facebook continues to allow this threat to itself to appear on its site.

Opposition Growing: Appeals, New Facebook Counter Group, and Petition 

 

The Facebook campaign for the third intifada is being countered by various efforts.

Israel National News reports that Foxman of the ADL "slammed the site for its willingness to support a page that promotes violence against Jews and its unwillingness to comply with its own terms of service.” Facebook’s policies require a commitment by the user not to post content that is hateful, threatening, or incites violence (Facebook's "Statement of Rights and Responsibilities" Point 3.7 under "Safety," accessed March 28, 2011).

The Israeli government has also directly appealed to have the page removed. According to the Jerusalem Post, “It has been condemned as a violence-promoting page by Diaspora Affairs and Public Diplomacy Minister Yuli Edelstein, who sent a letter last week to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.”

A new Facebook group called "Join the effort to delete the group ‘Third Palestinian Intifada,’” as of March 28, 2011, has garnered over 6300 “Likes.” Also, a Jewish-content website has organized a petition urging Facebook to stop the hate against Israel and the Jewish people. Almost 27,000 people have signed as of March 28, 2011.

Palestinian Society Tired But Foreign Support Likely

 

Analyst David Pollock of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy has assessed the potential of a Palestinian uprising along the lines of Egypt, Libya, etc., but concluded that, due to Hamas’ brutal suppression of the March 15, 2011, protests in Gaza, that would be unlikely. He also doubts there is a likelihood of an intifada against Israel: in “Is a Palestinian Uprising Next?” March 23, 2011, he states, “There are few signs of a potential new uprising against Israel either. Palestinian society is likely still tired of intifadas and war ... Observers could also monitor Palestinian social media for signs of brewing unrest, though many participants in that virtual conversation live far from the territories.”

The Iranian state-run Press TV in “Palestinians call for ‘third Intifada’” March 12, 2011, reported that the Facebook group organizers are planning “a march towards Palestine on May 15, the anniversary of Israel's occupation of their homelands in 1948. The year saw Israel fabricating its existence during full-scale military offensives against the Arab world.”

In 1948 the United Nations sanctioned the founding of the state of Israel, and on the first day of its existence, May 15, four Arab countries — Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq, and Syria — attacked, thereby starting the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.

Incitement to Violence Remains on Facebook Page

 

The possibility of an actual third intifada may be debated, but calls to violence by the group Third Palestinian Intifada on Facebook are real: “The page’s administrators posted a quotation of a Hadith (Islamic tradition) that is popular with radical groups, which reads, 'The hour [of redemption] does not come until the Muslim fight the Jews and even the stones and trees say, ‘O Muslim, a Jew is behind me, so kill him.’ Other posts have made reference to 'paradise,' a term often used in Islamist circles to promote acts of terrorism.” (Jerusalem Post).

Facebook insists that its site is a safe place where users can discuss their views while respecting the rights and feelings of others. Abraham H. Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League considers the Facebook group, Third Palestinian Intifada, "an appalling use of technology to promote terrorist violence."

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http://www.suite101.com/content/facebook-allows-group-calling-for-third-palestinian-intifada-a362479

My Personal Comment

I think the word safety and violence where totally defined to protect countries in power, not to protect justice.. are they that naive to believe that people admire dying and being harmed and losing everything just to promote terrorism ?!!

That's what we call as Muslims, the natural evolution from oppression against Palestinians, and I won't be surprised if the world praised all arabs uprising and stop when it comes to the safety of Israel.

I wonder why didn't they compare once, the number of westerns who stand by Palestinian people  against Israel and the whole western policies, and the number of Muslim Arabs who stand by Israeli people against Palestinian.

Honestly, I'm afraid that this uprising will cause more chaos on the Middle East since we have many unstable countries after the uprising and all Arabian countries are between healing after uprising or getting ready for an uprising or fighting uprising... But this won't prevent us from saying the Truth, That Palestinian people are totally oppressed and they have the right to take their own actions and we will support it.

  قُلْ جَاء الْحَقُّ وَمَا يُبْدِئُ الْبَاطِلُ وَمَا يُعِيدُ - سبأ49

 وَلَن تَرْضَى عَنكَ الْيَهُودُ وَلاَ النَّصَارَى حَتَّى تَتَّبِعَ مِلَّتَهُمْ قُلْ إِنَّ هُدَى اللّهِ هُوَ الْهُدَى وَلَئِنِ اتَّبَعْتَ أَهْوَاءهُم بَعْدَ الَّذِي جَاءكَ مِنَ الْعِلْمِ مَا لَكَ مِنَ اللّهِ مِن وَلِيٍّ وَلاَ نَصِيرٍ - البقرة120