Palestinian People Research Articles

Occupational therapists speaking for justice and human rights: From complicit silencing to collective resistance

We are a Collective of occupational therapists from all areas of practice and roles with longstanding commitments to working for human rights in the context of colonial oppressions, including genocide. We aim to affirm our deep commitment to occupational therapy’s values and principles by naming and acting against the ongoing genocide of Palestinian people. This paper is an act of collective resistance, self-assertion and solidarity for all those in the profession who have been erased, denied, and harmed by the silence of occupational therapy’s national and international governing bodies, as well as the silencing. We write this piece anonymously to add our voices to those healthcare professionals who are speaking out – including those working in healthcare in Gaza. We begin by naming the injustice, citing recent evidence and the rulings of various international bodies considered authoritative and legitimate. Then we address the injustice of silence, as experienced in the occupational therapy profession through the silencing of its members. We continue by reviewing relevant professional obligations and ethical responsibilities of occupational therapists, including the requirement to speak out against occupational injustices. This is followed by an outline and critique of our profession’s governing bodies’ problematic responses and complicity, naming the harms caused from within. We conclude this paper by indicating the only ethical option for action; one that also applies to other healthcare professions whose institutions have been silent, hoping this will incite them to break their silence.

The role of the International Criminal Court in criminalizing Israeli attacks on the Palestinian people

The International Criminal Court, which is governed by the Rome Statute, is the first permanent court established on the basis of a treaty established to hold accountable the perpetrators of the most serious crimes at the global level, such as war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. On July 17, 1998, the work of the Diplomatic Conference on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court concluded with the approval of the adoption of the Statute of the Court. The International Criminal Court is a permanent and independent institution and is not considered one of the sections of the United Nations. The Statute clarifies that the main task of prosecuting and punishing the perpetrators of crimes lies with States parties, and the Court complements those efforts. The Court is considered the focal point for the application of the international criminal justice system, to include national courts, international courts and courts that include national and international elements. The increase in the intensity of international conflicts and wars in many parts of the world has had an impact on the increase in the commission of war crimes against civilians and the high rates of human rights violations, in the absence of an appropriate mechanism adopted by the international community to reduce these violations and punish and prosecute those who are behind them, whether they are individuals, states, organizations or governments.

Conceptualising mass death through Palestinian texts amidst Gaza events 2023/24

ABSTRACT Following the Gaza events of 2023/24, this study examines how Palestinians understand mass death and mass destruction, exploring how can such a humanitarian catastrophe be framed within a coherent narrative. The focus is on the concept of sacrifice, analysed through a theoretical framework that distinguishes between meaningful sacrifices and absurd, meaningless deaths that categorises the victims as homo-sacer. Hence, this study aims to investigate the language and literature of the Palestinian people that regards to the 2023/24 Gaza events, and the way it re-conceptualises the mass death and destruction and its victims, between the concepts of sacrifice and homo-sacer. A sample of 120 literary and creative texts from the cultural magazine ‘Fusha for Palestinian Culture,’, 1 was examined using the methodology of thematic analysis. Four primary themes emerged from the texts: the active documentation, the speed and intensity of death and destruction, the form of death, namely handling of bodies and burial rituals, and lastly the implementation of myths from various traditions, including the duality of mythologising and demythologising Gaza and its inhabitants. I conclude that these four themes were elemental in the rhetoric process of sanctification of the mass and random death and destruction.

Expulsion with no exit: one year of war in Gaza

The first year of war in Gaza has caused the forced displacement of 85% of the population. While it is central to the conflict, little analysis has been conducted from this perspective. The singular nature of this displacement is threefold: the goal of the conflict is expulsion; the purpose of the expulsion is expansion into the territory; and the expulsion is intended to be permanent, with no possibility of return. These three aspects have been a constant in the history of the Palestinian people since the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. Gaza illustrates the calamitous failure of international law, both in the humanitarian field and regarding asylum. What has gone wrong? How do we explain the unjustifiable?

Media Ownership and Its Role in Shaping News: Analysing Republika's 1999 and 2021 Coverage in Light of the 2024 Gaza Genocide

This study aims to examine the reporting of the Israeli aggression towards in the Indonesian newspaper Republika during the years 1999 and 2021, with a contextual reference to the 2024 Gaza genocide. The reports were selected through purposive sampling, focusing on direct coverage from both 1999 and 2021. Additionally, interviews were conducted with members of Republika's editorial team. Using Entman’s framing theory as well as Shoemaker and Reese’s Hierarchy of Influences model, the research identifies notable differences in news framing between the two periods. In 1999, the coverage in Republika largely emphasised political support from prominent figures, both in Indonesia and internationally, advocating for the defence of Palestine. In contrast, the 2021 coverage highlighted support from civil society, including athletes and celebrities. Differences are also evident across several levels of the Hierarchy of Influences model, with the media routine, organisational, and ideological levels being the most prominent. In 1999, Republika’s reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the international section was relatively independent, focusing primarily on political issues. By 2021, however, the reporting followed a compartmentalised model, where one section complemented and connected with others. Despite the differences in time and ownership, Republika's stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict remained consistent. The newspaper continues to assert that the Palestinian people must be defended, a position shaped by its Muslim readership, who maintain a strong psychological connection with Palestinian Muslims. Keywords: Framing, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, media ownership, the influence of mass media hierarchy, Republika.

An Analysis of US-Israel Relations: Impact on Palestine

This research paper focused on the relationship between Israel and the United States of America. The United States and Israel have a unique relationship, something that might not be found within any bilateral relations. The Israelis and Americans have always supported each other in every field and avenue, from foreign policy to economic policy, etc. How this relation affects the Palestinian people and their cause to achieve a separate homeland needs to be discussed. The economic repercussions that the Palestinians face from the US-Israel relations shall also be discussed. Israel does not wish to see Palestine become an independent state, while on the other hand, the Americans have expressed their desire for a two-state solution, which would ensure stability in the region and less hostility towards Israel. The researchers have also employed different theoretical frameworks to better get an understanding of the conflict.

COMBATING ISLAMOPHOBIA AFTER THE AL-AQSA FLOOD

The present study aims to examine the increasingly widespread phenomenon of Islamophobia linked to the Al-Aqsa Flood in 2023. National practices worldwide convincingly demonstrate that Islamophobia has increased since Israel launched its war on the Gaza Strip, breaking international laws egregiously and depriving Palestinians of their rights. In addition to this, cases of hate crimes directed at Muslims have now hit peak levels. Therefore, the current study aims to discuss the origin, motivation, and consequences of Islamophobia, probing international efforts to stop it and analytically examining the impact of the war in Gaza on the worldwide diffusion process of Islamophobia. In other words, a critical reading of Islamophobia is presented in line with a descriptive-analytical and historical approach, asserting that incidents of attack, hatred, and incitement against Muslims related to Islamophobia have risen abruptly since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza, heating the anti-Muslim sentiment and raising transnational Islamophobia. Ultimately, the study found that effectively combating Islamophobia associated with the recent war in Gaza requires taking all necessary steps to end the war and shielding Palestinian people from Israeli strikes. Accordingly, the study recommends suggestions for effective strategies to deal with, counter, and lessen Islamophobia’s negative consequences in a manner that complies with international law standards.

The European Muslim Crisis and the Post-October 7 Escalation

Israel’s war on Gaza following 7 October 2023 has given birth to several political and social changes in European nations. According to the United Nations Report of the Special Rapporteur, Israel has used this moment to “distort” international humanitarian law principles “in an attempt to legitimize genocidal violence against the Palestinian people.” In the European context, this has led to European Muslims and non-Muslims, including organizations, institutions, as well as individual academics, politicians, and activists mobilizing and voicing their condemnation and demand their governments to do more towards peaceful and equitable solutions. However, this has been met with a strong reaction from European governing bodies. This paper situates this reaction within wider discourses on the European Muslim crisis. It begins with a systematic literature review on the so-called European Muslim crisis, followed by case studies on the United Kingdom and Germany on their respective changes to policies impacting Muslims in the post-October 7 contexa Regarding the literature review, this paper illustrates how this concept has three distinct, yet intersecting meanings: the crisis of European identity; the crisis of foundational ideologies of Europe; and an internal Muslim crisis that often leads to radicalization. Through the British and German case studies, this paper illustrates that October 7 has reinforced and strengthened the shift towards values-based citizenship and integration. This paper argues that through branding pro-Palestine protesters and organizations as extremists in the British context, and adding questions related to antisemitism and Israel in the citizenship tests in the German context, the Israel/Palestine issue has now become yet another yardstick to demarcate the European, civilized “us” vs. the Muslim “other.” In doing so, October 7 has escalated elements already present within the wider discourses of the European Muslim crisis.

The Black Lives Matter Movement, Jewish Allies, and the Long Legacy of Black Anti-Zionism

Abstract: From the emergence of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, massive numbers of Jews, committed to resuming the Black-Jewish coalition of the civil rights era, became its avid allies. They failed to recognize that this alliance, which foundered and was sundered by the late 1970s, had increasingly been replaced by Blacks' identification with "their Brown Palestinian siblings," which rendered the conflict with Israel in stark racial terms. After the Six Day War, Black militants promoted a narrative that replaced Jews as a fellow oppressed group with Jews as iniquitous Zionists, who had established an illegitimate settler-colonial state that ethnically cleansed and victimized indigenous people of color—a narrative upon which their successors in the BLM movement drew heavily. With the rise of the BLM movement, the Black-Palestinian alliance was solidified—their wide divide on issues of race, gender, and homosexuality overridden by their shared anti-Zionism. In 2016, when the Movement for Black Lives (M4BL), a constituent partner of the BLM umbrella organization, issued a policy platform identifying Israel as "an apartheid state," committing "genocide against the Palestinian people," leading Jewish organizations appeared confounded and dismissed these views as a minority position. Spokespersons of secular and religious Jewish associations condemned what they labeled BLM's "anti-Israel rhetoric," which they insisted was "totally unrelated" to the movement's "social justice work." They appeared to be unaware that far from mere "rhetoric," the denigration and delegitimization of the Jewish state had long been at or near the core of the anti-racist ideology propounded by the Black militants revered by BLM leaders and activists. Thus, in 2020, organizations allegedly "representing over half of Jewish people in America" published a statement that endorsed the BLM movement "unequivocally," while several of the signatories released additional statements condemning those Jews who had rejected the movement once it posted the policy platform. The Jewish community fractured over the issue of Black antisemitism, but unlike in earlier periods, far more Jews, identifying as "progressives," continued to support a movement whose leaders and activists espoused or tolerated antisemitism, albeit lightly cloaked in anti-Zionist garb.

Prevailing Organizational Culture from the Perspective of the Quran and the Sunnah

The reality of the occupation and the repeated offensives the Palestinian people lived through every day across Palestine doubled the number of orphans. The resulting political and institutional need for the effective management of institutions that care for orphans in various governorates increased. This study aimed to identify the most important features of organizational behavior derived from the Holy Qur’an and the Sunnah of the Prophet, according to which work is carried out in the Dora Islamic Society for Orphan Care. The research problem was chosen to identify the main challenges facing this charity in managing its operations and to explore the strategies it uses to overcome these challenges. The study used the descriptive approach to study the descriptive case, which is the charity. The study used the interview tool, so the questions and topics that were discussed were developed, and answers to their questions were obtained with the charity’s team through interviews. The work of the charity stems strongly from the legal foundation of the disposal of (clean) money for the benefit of orphan care. The charity has become a reference for hundreds of needy families and a point of trust for them. The results indicated that the prevailing organizational behavior in the charity is linked to the Sharia rulings, and each procedure is tried according to its legislative principles. The team was genuine and reflective of strong trust internally, as well as a strong relationship between the servant leader style of the CEO and the rest of the team members.

Management of the Da'wah of the National Committee for the Palestinian People in the Palestine Concern Action in Medan City

Management of the Da'wah of the National Committee for the Palestinian People in the Palestine Concern Action in Medan City

Christ under the rubble

In a brief comment from prison Dietrich Bonhoeffer asks how anyone can be happy in a time of war. In response he writes about founding aesthetic existence anew in the church. This essay examines what he meant by this in our own “time of war”. First, by considering Kierkegaard’s rejection of aestheticism, his affirmation of “living poetically” and the “passion of possibility.” Secondly, by recounting Bonhoeffer’s own journey from his early humanist formation and travels abroad to his involvement in the Resistance and imprisonment. Thirdly, by examining what Bonhoeffer meant by the church as a “sphere of freedom”. Fourthly, I discuss the examples Bonhoeffer suggests for nurturing aesthetic existence in the church (art, formation, friendship, and play).I wonder whether … it is only from the concept of the church that we can regain the understanding of the sphere of freedom (art, education, friendship, play). This means that aesthetic existence (Kierkegaard) is not to be banished from the church’s sphere; rather, it is precisely within the church that it would be founded anew. I actually believe this, and from here we could recover our connection with the Middle Ages! Who in our time could, for example, light-heartedly make music, nurture friendship, play, and be happy? Certainly not the “ethical” person, but only the Christian (Dietrich Bonhoeffer).The startling nativity scene of “Christ under the Rubble”, displayed in the Lutheran Church in Bethlehem during Advent 2023 was an icon of solidarity with the Palestinian people during the war on Gaza. Irrespective of how we evaluate it as a “work of art”, it is testimony to God’s incarnational solidarity with the suffering people of the world and an example of the prophetic role of art. How to understand that role within church and society and its theological significance led me to write Christianity, Art and Transformation twenty years ago. In doing so, I became more aware of the remarkable role that art in its various forms played in the struggle against apartheid, much of it outside the church. While it was important to recall and reflect on the role of art in the anti-apartheid struggle, my focus in writing Christianity, Art and Transformation was on the potential role of art in the creation of a more just world global society. In doing so I discussed Bonhoeffer’s passing comment on aesthetic existence, quoted above, in a letter from prison to Eberhard and Renate Bethge, his close friend and niece. That discussion was developed further by Adrian Coates in his dissertation published as The Aesthetics of Discipleship, and in a later essay on Bonhoeffer’s understanding of “mature aesthetics.” In what follows I take that discussion further with specific reference to ecclesiology within an unjust global context defined by war, most notably but not only in the Sudan, Ukraine and Palestine.

Gaza’s Broken Lullaby: Genocidal Unchilding and the Impossibility of Mothering

ABSTRACT This article describes the devastating impact of the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the strategies used to dismantle the social and familial structures of Palestinian people, particularly targeting women and children. It sheds light on the severe conditions and the complex layers of violence that affect these mothers, who struggle to provide a semblance of normalcy and safety for their children amidst such adversity. The focus on women and children is a deliberate tactic by the settler colonial project to ensure there is no future for the Palestinian nation. By disrupting the ability to mother and nurture, the settler colonial forces aim to erase the continuity and resilience of the Palestinian identity, culture, and community, essentially targeting the very reproduction of the nation itself.

BINGKAI BERITA PENGGALANGAN BANTUAN KEMANUSIAAN UNTUK RAKYAT PALESTINA DI MEDIA ONLINE REPUBLIKA.CO.ID DAN KOMPAS.COM

The 'heating' conflict in the Gaza Strip which triggered a war between Palestine and Israeli Zionists from October 2023 until now continues to raise concern worldwide, including Indonesia. This concern was realized by sending various aid to Palestine. This humanitarian action was widely reported by various mass media, including online media republika.co.id and kompas.com. The news selection was chosen from 13 October – 4 November 2023 with certain considerations. This research uses a qualitative descriptive approach with a constructivist paradigm. Researchers framed news about raising humanitarian aid for the Palestinian people on republika.co.id and kompas.com using Robert N Entman's framing analysis approach. In the period 13 October – 4 November 2023, Republika.co.id broadcast 13 news stories while Kompas.com released 10 news stories. The results of this research show that there are similarities between the two news portals, namely that they both raise the issue of raising humanitarian aid to help the Palestinian people as part of the overall media coverage. The difference is that Republika.co.id emphasizes the movement of elements of society in mobilizing humanitarian action as "central actors" while kompas.com emphasizes President Jokowi as the "central actor" in this news which is the implementation of the government's strategic communication in helping the struggle of the Palestinian people by sending various aids.

Politeness in Language and Speech Events in War Situations: Analysis of Abu Ubaidah's Speech

Through an analytical study of Abu Ubaidah's speech in a war situation between Hamas-Israel, this qualitative descriptive research explores the elements of Geoffrey Leech's politeness maxims and Dell Hymes' speech events in a war situation. Speech analysis consists of looking for aspects of politeness in the form of maxims of wisdom, maxims of generosity, maxims of praise, maxims of humility, maxims of agreement, and maxims of sympathy. This research found three maxims used in Abu Ubaidah's speech, namely the maxims of praise, humility, and sympathy. This can be seen from Abu Ubaidah's speech by showing the application of these three maxims, such as showing respect, recognition, and sympathy for Allah, the fighters, and the Palestinian people. Analysis was also carried out to look for speech events in settings and scenes, participants, and ends in Abu Ubaidah's speech. The theory of Abu Ubaidah's speech events in the Hamas-Israel conflict includes three main factors: setting and scene involve the location and time of the speech amid intensive attacks in Gaza. Participants include Abu Ubaidah, the al-Qassam Brigades, the Palestinian community, the enemy, and the international community. And ends, which include several main objectives depending on the context of the intended speech partner.

The Palestinian People’s Righteous Struggle in Light of the War of Aggression against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip

The Palestinian People’s Righteous Struggle in Light of the War of Aggression against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip

The American Position towards the Establishment of the Palestinian State: From the Oslo Accord to the Deal of the Century (1993 – 2019)

The end of the Cold War period in the early 1990s crowned the United States of America (US) as the sole superpower in the world, allowing it to engage more actively in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Yet, there were initiatives by the US administrations that addressed the conflict since the 1970s. The consecutive US administrations of President Clinton, President Bush and President Obama made efforts in addressing the conflict but all failed to reach a settlement where negotiations were stuck during addressing the final status issues including the fate of the Israeli settlements and the status of Jerusalem. The Trump administration took a different radical approach and imposed a unilateral peace proposal that sided the Israeli narrative known as “deal of the century”. Under these US efforts, and under the claim that the Palestinians rejected most of these initiatives or were the side that failed these US peace initiatives, the question that arises in mind is that to what extent did the American position address the minimum aspiration of the Palestinian people in establishing their own independent state? Basically, the article suggests that the US was not a fair broker, it didn’t practice any form of pressure on the Israeli side but instead blamed the Palestinians – who are under the Israeli occupation -, the US didn’t accept the comments or the reservations of the Palestinians over its peace initiatives but accepted and adopted the Israeli comments, according to the US officials’ statements. The article writing methods generally follow the descriptive analytical approach and the historical approach along with highlighting the official statements and documents related to the topic.

The Role of Religiosity, Consumer Animosity, and Ethnocentrism in Explaining the Boycott Motivation

The protracted conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas group, culminating with an Israeli offensive in October 2023, has caused significant suffering to the Palestinian people. The response to the attack, including international support and a fatwa from the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), has prompted Indonesians to boycott products linked to Israel. This study aims to investigate the effect of religiosity, animosity and ethnocentrism on the motivation for boycotting Unilever Indonesia products related to the company's commitment to Israel, focusing on these factors. This type of research is quantitative descriptive with the SEM-PLS approach. The application used is SmartPLS version 4.0.0 with sample data used by 162 respondents through the distribution of questionnaires. The results show that the variables religiosity, consumer animosity and ethnocentrism have a positive and significant influence on the motivation to boycott Unilever Indonesia products. These findings highlight the importance of paying attention to psychological and social factors in the analysis of consumer behavior and their impact on companies and society at large. It also suggests that companies must take into account the social and political implications of their policies, as well as understand the values and beliefs underlying consumers' motivations for boycotting.

الأدب الفلسطيني وسيلة لاسترداد حرية القدس Palestinian Literature as a Mean of Recapturing the Freedom of al-Quds

This study aims to highlight the position and the role of the Palestinian literature in emphasizing the spirit of resistance and defiance for the sake of liberation of Jerusalem. The study relies on the analytical descriptive approach, which it analyses the content of several Palestinian poems which call to defend the land of Jerusalem. This study found that literature is a reflection of societies where it portrays the social realities of specific societies. And as Palestinian people witness a major political and social conflicts for more than fifty years up until now, hence some of them choose to express their experiences through literary writings. Therefore, this study concludes that Palestinian literature plays a very important role in proliferating the Palestinian issues to the people all around the world, encourages people to defend the land of Jerusalem and later on liberate it from the Israeli occupiers by any appropriate and suitable means.

Fenomena Globalize the Intifada di Tengah Genosida Warga Palestina

In the recesses of the Palestine-Israel conflict which continues to metamorphose, the Intifada movement has become a symbol of resistance to occupation and oppression which curbs the aspirations of the Palestinian people. However, in this era of increasingly connected globalization, the dynamics of this movement are experiencing a significant transformation, which challenges traditional paradigms and brings new challenges that affect both parties. With major challenges such as perceived injustice and political instability, resolving this conflict has the potential to reduce extremism and increase stability in the Middle East, so this study will explore how the Palestinian Intifada influenced conflict resolution efforts with the aim of understanding the essence of the Intifada movement which is often seen as a form of extremism and radicalization, and this study will also explore the transformation of the Palestinian Intifada into a global phenomenon, considering its impact on conflict dynamics and practical approaches to achieving sustainable and stable peace in the region.