Salafi Formations in Palestine and the Limits of a De-Palestinised Milieu

A Palestinian version of the contemporary Salafi interpretation of Islam, intimately linked to Saudi Wahhabism, appeared in the Gaza Strip in the early 1970s. Deliberately distancing themselves from Palestinian politics, and from the struggle with Israel, the Palestinian Salafis in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip or inside Israel, remained a marginal power. Yet by the late 1990s and since the early 2000s they have become more visible and part of their formation has started to show signs of militancy. Currently, they are divided between a mainstream apolitical branch and more militant ‘Jihadi Salafi’ bents echoing the global rise of Al-Qaeda. This article attempts to chart the Palestinian Salafi terrain and their changing fortunes in the light of their perception of ‘Palestine and the Palestinian identity’.