'Jerusalem intifada' hashtag widely being shared among Palestinian activists

In the age of smartphones and social media, Palestinians have at their disposal a range of tools to help spread images of protest and violence.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
Updated: OCTOBER 9, 2015 12:50
A Palestinian stone-thrower looks on as he stands in front of a fire during clashes with IDF troops in the West Bank village of Duma (photo credit: REUTERS)
A Palestinian stone-thrower looks on as he stands in front of a fire during clashes with IDF troops in the West Bank village of Duma
(photo credit: REUTERS)
As violence continues to rock the holyland over the past several days, the hashtag "#Jerusalem intifada" is widely being shared online among Palestinian youth activists, AFP reported Friday.
A Facebook page adorned with masked youth throwing stones, declaring in Arabic "the (uprising) has been launched," has also been setup as clashes and stabbings continue to persist.
In the age of smartphones and social media, Palestinians have at their disposal a range of tools to help spread images of protest and violence that is having a profound impact on this latest round of violence.
This week, footage of a 19-year-old suspect being shot and killed by police after allegedly stabbing and wounding a teenager in West Jerusalem last Sunday garnered over 100,000 views.
24 hours of terror in Israel
"Every day we see a new martyr and the least that we can do to show solidarity is to change our profile pictures and share images," a Palestinian youth told  told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Palestinian psychologist Najah al-Khatib, observing the latest spat in violence, said that social media is helping drive youths in the West Bank to participate in violence and protests.
"They don't have the concept of danger or the sense of caution that an adult has," he said.
Despite calls for calm from leaders on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian divide, many fear that tensions could boil over if the violence persist and crescendo into a third intifada.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for national unity and resilience Wednesday after five consecutive Palestinian terror attacks left six Israelis wounded.
“We are still in the face of a wave of terrorism,” Netanyahu warned as he visited the Israel Police’s Jerusalem District command center to hold security consultations.