The Israel-Palestine difference
The
Israel-Palestine difference is one of the longest-running TERRITORIAL DISPUTE
(arguably, the longest). Arguments about the rightful sovereign of Jerusalem
and surrounding areas have been present for generations.
See
for example Genesis 14: 18-20 in which Jerusalem (or Salem) has already
enemies. Since Biblical times the region has been center of disputes in
relation to the rightful settlement of different populations.
Should
these agents go back to Biblical times in order to prove the current legitimate
occupancy of the territory?
As
with the previously reviewed TERRITORIAL DISPUTES, the following posts will
introduce: different academic and non-academic views; the current situation;
the views of the inhabitants (because in any case they are the ones who will
live the consequences of any decision); coverage by the media including all
parties in the dispute; the ideal methodology to solve the difference (what I
call Egalitarian Shared Sovereignty); its application to some controversial
elements; and some conclusive remarks.
The
following paragraphs will introduce the historical background. The
Israel-Palestine difference has been present for generations. The paragraphs
below center the attention only on the more recent history (since World Word I)
because the reader may easily find a wide variety of academic and non-academic
sources about it if he/she is interested in learning more about the dispute and
have an educated opinion.
In
doing this research I have had access to many books, journal articles, newspapers,
and many other sources (academic and non-academic). I will present some of them
in later posts.
In order to present the account today, I decided to use “Truth
against Truth. A Completely Different Look at the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict”
by Uri Avnery. I have to concede it may not be an academic and the references
upon which the publication is written are not always offered by the author.
Yet, the text offers an unusually balanced view about the recent history behind
the dispute and, in any case, a thought provoking one. I am indebted to one of
my Reddit readers for facilitating this source. The link to the complete text
below.
Truth
against Truth. A Completely Different Look at the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Uri
Avnery
“The core of the conflict is the
confrontation between the Israeli-Jewish nation and the Palestinian- Arab nation.
It is essentially a national conflict, even if it has religious, social and
other aspects.”
“The Zionist Movement was, essentially, a
Jewish reaction to the emergence of the national movements in Europe, all of
which were more or less anti-Semitic. Having been rejected by the European
nations, some of the Jews decided to establish themselves as a separate nation
and, following the new European model, to set up a national State of their own,
where they could be masters of their own fate.”
“Traditional and religious motives drew the
Zionist Movement to Palestine (Eretz Israel in Hebrew) and the decision was
made to establish the Jewish State in this land.”
“Palestine was not an empty land - not at the
end of the 19th century nor at any other period. At that time, there were half
a million people living in Palestine, 90% of them Arabs. This population objected,
of course, to the incursion of foreign settlers into their land.”
“The Arab National Movement emerged almost simultaneously
with the Zionist Movement, initially to fight the Ottoman Empire and later the colonial
regimes built on its ruins at the end of World War I. A separate
Arab-Palestinian national movement developed in the country after the British
created a separate State called "Palestine", and in the course of the
struggle against Zionist infiltration.”
“Since the end of World War I, there has been
an ongoing struggle between two national movements, the Jewish - Zionist and
the Palestinian - Arab, both of which aspire to accomplish their goals - which
are entirely incompatible -within the same territory. This situation remains unchanged
to this day.”
To
the reader, following two of our previous posts of this series about
TERRITORIAL DISPUTES:
- What are the issues at stakes in this a territorial dispute?
- Which remedy could be used to solve this particular territorial dispute?
For
reference to these questions see:
POST 9: Territorial disputes: issues at stake
POST 10: Territorial disputes: remedies
NOTE:
This post is based on Jorge Emilio Núñez, “Territorial Disputes and State
Sovereignty: International Law and Politics,” London and New York: Routledge,
Taylor and Francis Group, 2020 (forthcoming)
Previous
published research monograph about territorial disputes and sovereignty by the
author, Jorge Emilio Núñez, “Sovereignty Conflicts and International Law and
Politics: A Distributive Justice Issue,” London and New York: Routledge, Taylor
and Francis Group, 2017.
NEXT
POST: The Israel-Palestine difference and the many views
Monday 02nd December 2019
Dr Jorge Emilio Núñez
Twitter: @London1701
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