The Israel-Palestine conflict has lasted for 60 years. Within these years, there are five main wars between the Jews and Arabs, and two Palestinian intifada. The Oslo Accord in 1993 once built up the hope of peace, but ended in failure. Palestinians still live under Israeli occupation, stay abroad as refugees, or live in Israel as second-class citizens. ¡@¡@For Edward Said, the question of Palestine is definitely not a conflict between civilizations, it is one between the colonists and the colonized. Said puts great emphasis on the causality of the building of Israel and the Palestinian dispossession; also, he thinks that the identity is not discovered but established. He tried to break the myth of dualism in the Israel-Palestine conflict situation, opposed the kind of ideology of difference which leads to domination, and find the real problem of this long-lasting conflict.

Thesis advisor: Eve Spangler / This work explores how Israel uses LGBTQ issues as a rhetorical device (pinkwashing) in its self-presentation and examines how American college students perceive the claim that Israel is a ‘gay haven.’ Understanding the Israel/Palestine conflict from a human rights approach, I deconstruct the racial and gendered implications of the pinkwashing campaign by analyzing literature about homonationalism, pinkwashing, and queer activism. Interviews with fifteen student leaders from Zionist, pro-Palestinian, Jewish, Muslim, and LGBTQ organizations reveal how students engage with LGBTQ issues and the Conflict, as well as the institutional, cultural, and interactional factors that influence how organizations program. Interview analysis demonstrates that when pinkwashing occurs, some students use media, protests, and conversations to provide an alternative discourse. In conclusion, the findings demonstrate that pinkwashing does happen on college campuses, and anti-pinkwashing activism occurs most often in the form of queer anti-Occupation organizing. Anti-Occupation activism necessitates an intersectional approach if it is to gain human rights for all Palestinians. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2015. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Departmental Honors. / Discipline: Sociology.

The Israel-Palestine conflict constitutes one of the longest standing conflicts in modern times. Its continuation has often been attributed to the very nature of the conflict: two peoples pursuing an incompatible goal-ownership of the same piece of land. Violence has constituted a characteristic feature of this struggle, widely employed by the two peoples. The analysis of violence, however, has often been limited to acts of direct and physical violence that can be attributed to an individual subject. This thesis investigates violence in the conflict going beyond this traditional conceptualisation of violence. It employs Johan Galtung’s conceptual and theoretical framework, in which he identifies three types of violence: direct, structural and cultural. This thesis argues that all three types of violence are symbiotic in nature. The underlying assumption in this thesis is simple: violence breeds violence. Thus, in order to understand the persistence of the conflict, it is essential to analyse all three types of violence. The thesis proposes the hypothesis that the continuing failure to address all forms of violence, as well as omitting or minimising the importance of any of them, prevents the possibility of resolving the conflict, and thus has contributed to the protraction of the conflict. In order to examine this assumption empirically, the thesis investigates the violence in the conflict, concentrating on the Israeli barrier. The study poses two central research questions. The first asks what led to the construction of the barrier. The second asks why the barrier remains, and the Israeli occupation continues. The answers to the research questions and the account of violence have been the subjects of two contrasting narratives: Israeli and Palestinian. In order to provide both Israeli and Palestinian contributions to these questions, the thesis is divided into two accounts: Palestinian narrative and Israeli narrative. The empirical analysis of violence in the conflict, embedded in the theoretical framework of Galtung's conceptualisation of violence, and divided into the two narratives, reveals a complex cycle of violence in the conflict. It demonstrates the interconnection between the three types of violence and shows the impact of the violence on the intractability of the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Magister Legum - LLM / The Palestinian government made an ad hoc declaration accepting the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court in 2009. Three years later, the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court rejected the declaration. It decided that it is not within the competence of the Office of the Prosecutor, but up to the United Nations Secretary General or the Assembly of States Parties, to determine the Statehood of Palestine. This research paper analyses the 2009 Palestinian ad hoc declaration accepting the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court and the decision of the Office of the Prosecutor. It critically examines the legal basis of the Palestinian ad hoc declaration, the Procedure followed by the Prosecutor and the Statehood issue of Palestine. The study concludes that although there are enough supporting evidences to hold the Palestinian ad hoc declaration acceptable, the approach adopted and the conclusion reached by the Prosecutor are highly questionable in light of the Rome Statute and Conventional law.

This study is an attempt to comprehend how Palestinians and Israelis perceive the conflict and the peace process. It identifies the channels and dynamics related to the shaping of their perceptions on the individual, community, and political levels. The main objectives of this study are to probe the degree of homogeneity between these levels for both Palestinians and Israelis as well as the degree of discord between them on the same levels and to pinpoint intervening factors that contribute to carving out the ultimate perceptions that individuals hold. Unlike previous work, this study employs a multi-method approach to measure and benchmark of the topic at hand. To bridge further gaps, a developed matrix extends the analyses on temporalspatial dimensions of individuals’ cognitions, affections, and behaviors pertaining to the conflict. This study falls within the descriptive research that seeks probing the effect of macro-level factors (the media, and political parties/leaders) on microlevel ones (the audience cognitive processing), and is involved in describing and identifying its elements and components through the collection and analysis of data. Interpretation of data is based on a combination of content analysis for eight major newspapers, two public opinion surveys and a document analysis affiliated to the main four political parties. The analysis of the Palestinians and Israelis’ perspective of the conflict and the peace process revealed that the actual conflict has three main dimensions: First, the struggle between individuals, which is full of self-contradictions, as each party describes a conflict in a way different than the other. It is a conflict, in which the past and present of the two sides of the conflict are different - the bitter past itself with different narratives, yet the motives are the same but conducive to different results. Whereas each party is blaming the other on these three levels, the conflict is rooted in different forms, but intertwined with one another. Both nations differ entirely in prioritizing the core issues of the conflict. For example, the study reveals that for Palestinians the issue of Jerusalem ranks first, followed by the issue of releasing of prisoners. The issue of the refugees ranks third, and paradoxically recognizing Israel as a Jewish state ranks last according to Palestinians. As for the Israelis, the issue of security and safety ranks first, the recognition of the Jewishness of their state ranks second, followed by the issue of Jerusalem that comes in the third place, whereas and at loggerheads with the Palestinians’ aspirations, the establishing of a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders ranks last on their part. The same applies to the proposed solutions of the conflict. The future is fuzzy, and everyone sees the most appropriate solutions that fit their own interest, as a part of the zero-sum game. Both peoples yearn for peace, and both peoples are tired and bored of the conflict, but the majority in both sides, however, are not willing to make concessions towards this end and consequently are not optimistic in reaching peace in the near future. Furthermore, each party does not view the political leadership of the other party as a partner for peace. Secondly, a media conflict, where the analysis illustrates a similarity in the issues raised in the Palestinian and Israeli newspapers, but there were distinct statistical differences in the extent of coverage and in the display of those issues and their interpretation between the Israeli and Palestinian media, the matter which is clearly reflects on the individuals’ view on the causes of the conflict, its consequences and solutions. Regarding the third level of the conflict i.e. the conflict between political leaders and parties, a strong statistical relationship has been established between political affiliation to a particular party and the perspective of both, the Palestinian and Israeli peoples, on the most significant issues of the conflict. This is reflected in the homogeneity degree of the priorities of the parties and political leaders in the analysis of documents and media, in the analysis of the content with the order of priorities in the Palestinian and Israeli mindset. The statistical results have particularly shown a strong reciprocal correlation between the angles of this triangle. The relationship boosts wrong inherited notions and beliefs, which necessitates their eradication and adoption of new strategies on the part of political stakeholders. In that case, the media will publish them in a positive way that serves the peace process and bring the Palestinian-Israeli conflict to an end. Finally, on the basis of the results and conclusions of this dissertation a model was developed that illustrated how these interactions frame realities into new realities that let the peace process sink even more day by day.

The aim of this study is to examine how social science teachers teach about controversial issues with an emphasis on the Israel-Palestine conflict. The method applied is qualitative semi-structured interviews. The theoretical framework consists of Diana E. Hess four approaches to teach controversial issues, Denial, Privilege, Avoidance and Balance and Itay Pollaks et al. two approaches to teach controversial issues, Sidestepping and Scholastizing. Previous research indicates that teachers avoid addressing controversial issues due to lack of knowledge and concerns about potential disruptions in the classroom. The teaching of the Israel-Palestine conflict is approached cautiously and even though it is done by cautious methods it leads to challenging classroom discussions which are permeated by prejudices and generalizations. Despite these challenges, previous research underscores the importance of teaching controversial issues as a means to develop essential skills, for students to become democratic citizens. The analysis and results indicate that teachers don’t stick to one fixed idea of controversial issues. The challenges the teachers bring up align with previous research, where teachers feel inadequately informed about the Israel-Palestine conflict and that students form prejudiced conclusions about the conflict. The potential of teaching about the Israel-Palestine conflict lies in students developing skills such as societal awareness, critical thinking and tolerance. The results demonstrated that teachers adopt various approaches but the majority of the teachers used Hess balanced and Pollaks et.al scholastizing approach. A new approach was found in the analysis that was not addressed in the theoretical framework, a relational approach.

Jerusalem - the third holiest city in Islam - is home to some 300,000 Muslims. But due to Israel’s occupation, they live difficult and disrupted lives. What might it mean for Muslims to practice their faith - on the ground, day by day - in such a conflicted place? One way religion becomes a meaningful category in people’s lives is through ritual. Scholars of Muslim religious practice have been attuned to this insight and observed it in various contexts. But their analyses have often been predicated on an implicit and unquestioned assumption - that people who desire to perform rituals have the means to act on their intention in regular and routine ways. Scholars have also shown that when societies are in rapid transition - be they weakened or threatened - their rituals often evolve with them. In this project, therefore, I ask: what happens in Jerusalem when Muslims live under the existential threat of occupation and their ability to routinely perform religious rituals cannot be assumed? I argue that when rituals are disrupted, Muslims are forced to improvise. Religious rituals - like the performances of skilled jazz musicians - are spontaneous and dynamic but also practiced and deliberate. Rituals are spontaneous in that they respond to the occupation’s disruptions, making physical and discursive adjustments. They are practiced in that Muslims draw from an established repertoire of themes that includes Islam and sacred space, nationalism and resistance, local culture and geography. I term the coalescence of these dynamics the “improvisation thesis” and explore three case studies where specific improvisations have different levels of resonance. The Naqshbandi improvise rituals to make peace, but they are discordant with other established themes; Ramadan rituals have resonance that define specific moments; and the improvisations of the Murabitat are deeply resonant, influencing Muslim rituals throughout the city.

This study is an attempt to comprehend how Palestinians and Israelis perceive the conflict and the peace process. It identifies the channels and dynamics related to the shaping of their perceptions on the individual, community, and political levels. The main objectives of this study are to probe the degree of homogeneity between these levels for both Palestinians and Israelis as well as the degree of discord between them on the same levels and to pinpoint intervening factors that contribute to carving out the ultimate perceptions that individuals hold. Unlike previous work, this study employs a multi-method approach to measure and benchmark of the topic at hand. To bridge further gaps, a developed matrix extends the analyses on temporalspatial dimensions of individuals’ cognitions, affections, and behaviors pertaining to the conflict. This study falls within the descriptive research that seeks probing the effect of macro-level factors (the media, and political parties/leaders) on microlevel ones (the audience cognitive processing), and is involved in describing and identifying its elements and components through the collection and analysis of data. Interpretation of data is based on a combination of content analysis for eight major newspapers, two public opinion surveys and a document analysis affiliated to the main four political parties. The analysis of the Palestinians and Israelis’ perspective of the conflict and the peace process revealed that the actual conflict has three main dimensions: First, the struggle between individuals, which is full of self-contradictions, as each party describes a conflict in a way different than the other. It is a conflict, in which the past and present of the two sides of the conflict are different - the bitter past itself with different narratives, yet the motives are the same but conducive to different results. Whereas each party is blaming the other on these three levels, the conflict is rooted in different forms, but intertwined with one another. Both nations differ entirely in prioritizing the core issues of the conflict. For example, the study reveals that for Palestinians the issue of Jerusalem ranks first, followed by the issue of releasing of prisoners. The issue of the refugees ranks third, and paradoxically recognizing Israel as a Jewish state ranks last according to Palestinians. As for the Israelis, the issue of security and safety ranks first, the recognition of the Jewishness of their state ranks second, followed by the issue of Jerusalem that comes in the third place, whereas and at loggerheads with the Palestinians’ aspirations, the establishing of a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders ranks last on their part. The same applies to the proposed solutions of the conflict. The future is fuzzy, and everyone sees the most appropriate solutions that fit their own interest, as a part of the zero-sum game. Both peoples yearn for peace, and both peoples are tired and bored of the conflict, but the majority in both sides, however, are not willing to make concessions towards this end and consequently are not optimistic in reaching peace in the near future. Furthermore, each party does not view the political leadership of the other party as a partner for peace. Secondly, a media conflict, where the analysis illustrates a similarity in the issues raised in the Palestinian and Israeli newspapers, but there were distinct statistical differences in the extent of coverage and in the display of those issues and their interpretation between the Israeli and Palestinian media, the matter which is clearly reflects on the individuals’ view on the causes of the conflict, its consequences and solutions. Regarding the third level of the conflict i.e. the conflict between political leaders and parties, a strong statistical relationship has been established between political affiliation to a particular party and the perspective of both, the Palestinian and Israeli peoples, on the most significant issues of the conflict. This is reflected in the homogeneity degree of the priorities of the parties and political leaders in the analysis of documents and media, in the analysis of the content with the order of priorities in the Palestinian and Israeli mindset. The statistical results have particularly shown a strong reciprocal correlation between the angles of this triangle. The relationship boosts wrong inherited notions and beliefs, which necessitates their eradication and adoption of new strategies on the part of political stakeholders. In that case, the media will publish them in a positive way that serves the peace process and bring the Palestinian-Israeli conflict to an end. Finally, on the basis of the results and conclusions of this dissertation a model was developed that illustrated how these interactions frame realities into new realities that let the peace process sink even more day by day.

Autoscopy is a poetry collection that constellates together the speaker's ancestral experience of Jewish diaspora and genocide, the ongoing oppression and genocide of Palestinians, and the anti-Black racism that led to the police-murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. In all, the speaker is at once close and far from what they witness, both personally impacted and implicated by their witnessing. In documentary, translation, prayer, elegiac, confessional, and experimental modes, these poems locate the possibility and need for a reimagined mode of kinship, using diasporic and queer desire as a means of reparation. / Master of Fine Arts / Autoscopy is a poetry collection.

The European Union together with other international organizations have a significant role in creating world order, promoting international cooperation, and strengthening international security. For this reason, the EU has been interested in finding a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict which is one of the EU's top foreign policy issues. EU's failure to implement a two- state solution for Israel-Palestine puts the EU in a challenging position and questions its role as an international peacemaker. The starting point of the research problem is covered by the following question: How can the EU's failure to implement a two-state solution for the Israel-Palestine conflict be explained by realism and liberalism? The research problem is studied with the help of realism and liberalism, which are central schools in the political discipline; international relations. The chosen method for this research is a qualitative case study. The results shows that partly internal gaps within the EU, the US role in the conflict, monopolies of violence, disagreements among the Palestinian movements and the absence of binding international law are behind the EU's failure to implement a two-state solution. Despite this, the EU maintains stability in the region by being the main donor to the Palestinians and Israel's primary trading partners.