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Palestinian Women in Terrorism: Protectors or Protected
13 The participation of women in demonstrations in the Palestinian territories has been for
several decades the major way of expressing their resistance (see Tsoref, 2006).
14 Some argue that Palestinian women suffer from triple oppression: “through the Israeli
occupation, through patriarchal structures of society, and through Islamic attempts to
discipline women” (Brunner, 2005, p. 37)
15 There are about 120 Palestinian women incarcerated in Israeli prisons for perpetrating
security offenses. Our sample of 16 women thus comprises about 14% of the population.
Some of the results pertaining to those who attempted suicide bombing are reported in
Berko and Erez (2008) and more detailed descriptions of 14 out of the 16 women
involved in terrorism are reported in Berko and Erez (2007).
16 In each prison, the women were housed in two different wings. One wing included
women who were perceived as non-religious, and who often had some affiliation/
identification with the Fattah Tanzim organization. The other wing housed women who
were perceived as religious and were often connected with the Hamas or Islamic Jihad
movements. The interviews took place in their respective wings. It should be noted that
the “affiliations” the women acquired in the prison had more often been linked with liking
a particular group’s leader rather than any ideological beliefs and conviction Outside
prison, when women became affiliated with a group, it was usually just prior to the
operation in which they participated.
17 The interviews of most women had to be rescheduled often times because the specific
interviewee was tired, did not feel like talking, preferred watch a movie on the wing
common TV, or wished to listen to a radio program which broadcasted their relatives
sending them regards.
18 The interviews were conducted by the second author.
19 Some of the participants were initially suspicious about being interviewed, wanting to
ascertain that it was not an attempt by the Israeli authorities to interrogate them or acquire
additional information on their mission or contacts. Once they felt confident that the
interview involved academic research, and as they realized that the questions focused on
their private lives, social experiences and personal views, their hesitation to talk
dissipated and they opened up. Their stories provided insights into their world –their life
experiences, beliefs, views and dreams, and the circumstances that ended them in prison.
20 As of May 2007, 20% of the population of Israel within the Green Line is Arab (The
Green Line is the area of Israel prior to the Six Day War in 1967). In 1967 Israel took
over the Gaza and West Bank territories. As a result of the Oslo Accord of 1993 and of
the August 2005 Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, these areas are under the jurisdiction of
the Palestinian Authority.
21 Palestinian parents as a rule do not want their own children to become suicide bombers;
nor do Palestinian mothers rejoice the death of their children who were suicide bombers
or otherwise perished as martyrs. Often mothers are drugged or prohibited from showing
signs of mourning, or are ordered to express joy (see Shalhoub-Kevorkian, 2003).
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