Smith's Lecture

I am glad that we are actually learning about the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Although it has inevitably come up in class discussions and videos (seemingly because it is currently the most popular conflict in the Middle East and is consequently one in which the majority of people are comfortable discussing), this is the first time that we have really learned about specifics. In previous classes in which the Arab-Israeli conflict has come up, the focus has mainly been on how the conflict affects those who currently live in Palestine and Israel, and how their perceptions of the fighting are similar/different.



Now that the history of the struggle is being thoroughly explored, it seems absurd to me that at several points throughout history, the Israelis have tried to completely illegitimize the Palestinians. I think this speaks loads to the cultural hegemony that surrounds the entire conflict. Israel (as a modern state) was a created just a few decades ago, and no one questions their claim to be there. The Palestinians, however, lived in the Palestine region for thousands of years and have just recently been displaced. I never realized until reading the Smith book and watching his lecture that so many Palestinian refugees were forced to relocate themselves to Syria, Jordan, and other countries. By moving out Palestinians and moving in Jews to live in Israel, the Israeli leaders have overwhelmingly inculcated the idea that Palestine no longer exists into the minds of most global citizens.



I honestly have trouble understanding how anyone with a thorough understanding of the conflict can recognize Israel as a legitimate world power. I also have trouble understanding how the Western powers involved in the Zionist movement and the nation building in the late nineteenth century allowed such vague, noncommittal resolutions to pass. Creating a new state is a difficult process that leaves little room for error and abstraction.