Portraits of Palestinian Women

The heroism and leadership displayed by Palestinian women in the West Bank conflict--and the price they have paid for their courage--has long gone unrecognized. Jerusalem-born Najjar, a Northern Illinois University journalism teacher, here records the stories of 14 of these women, of all ages and backgrounds, interviewed between 1984 and 1989. Commentaries by the author and some of her subjects on deep-rooted issues involved in the conflict accompany the women's accounts and demonstrate how the Intifada ``touches every sector of society''; issues discussed include resettlement of Israeli immigrants in occupied territory, Palestinian autonomy and land claims. With their husbands and sons likely imprisoned or killed, and their homes razed, Muslim women emerge as quasi-feminists to head women's support groups and medical and legal services while struggling to raise their families, thus playing a major role in the building of an independent Palestine. Photos not seen by PW. (June)