SINCE the founding of the state of Israel, efforts have been made by Zionist settlers to erase all vestiges of Palestine’s Arab identity. The latest in this long series of injustices is the recent passage of a law by the Knesset that defines Israel as the “national home of the Jewish people”. While that in itself may sound like an innocent affirmation of national identity, a closer reading of the law reveals that it is an exclusionary, sinister piece of legislation. For example, the law states that the right to exercise national self-determination in Israel “is unique to the Jewish people”. The status of Jerusalem as the “complete and united” capital of Israel is affirmed, flying in the face of international opinion while Jewish settlement is viewed as “a national value”. Moreover, the status of Arabic has been downgraded compared to Hebrew. It is, therefore, clear why this law has been derided by Arabs living in Israel, Palestinians, as well as right-thinking Israelis. Arab members of the Knesset protested against the passage of the law, while senior PLO leader Saeb Erekat called it a “dangerous and racist law” that “legalises apartheid”. But, such a move was not unexpected from Israel’s right-wing government, which appears bent upon subsuming Palestine’s Arab character.

Looking at the passage of the law from a historical perspective, it is part of a series of steps the Zionists have taken to deny Palestinians their land, dignity, and even their right to life. The violence many Zionist settlers unleashed on native Palestinians is a matter of historical record; there are credible accounts of massacres of Palestinians carried out by gangs such as Irgun during the Nakba. From thereon, violence and dislocation have been the unfortunate fate of Palestine’s Arabs. But Israel has not been content with this; far from staying within its original borders, Tel Aviv has rapaciously gobbled up Arab land, including the flashpoint holy city of Jerusalem, while illegal settlements continue to mushroom. Therefore, the ‘nation state law’ is only the reaffirmation of hard-line Zionist plans: to one day wipe out all existence of Palestinians from Palestine. This law also puts paid to any hopes optimists may have had in the two-state solution. The right wing that rules Israel is clear: there will be no two-state solution, and any arrangement that attempts to give the Palestinians their rights and their land will be resisted.

Published in Dawn, July 21st, 2018