Structural Violence in Israel-Palestine

Violence in Israel-Palestine:Show more

The world only seems to pay attention to Palestine when there an escalation in direct violence like now, especially if there is a loss of Israeli lives.

Governments, institutions and politicians view frequent rounds of shootings, bombing and military raids as”cycles of violence” that need to end to restore peace and calm.

Describing violence in palestine as a cycle is misleading.

It reinforces the myth that Palestinians and Israels are equally harmed. It also assumes that the problem is the direct violence when Israeli soldiers storm refugee camps or when resistance fighters threaten military checkpoints.

It obscures the more critical and dangerous type: structural violence.

Structural violence: is a form of systematic control over people backed by the threat and use of direct violence. It’s a way of exerting power over, and inflecting pain onto, one group to the benefit of another.

Direct physical violence is easy to see and identify. This is why it gets media attention. Structural violence is harder to see.

This is because it consists of structures embedded in the political,economic and social organisation of a society.

Israel can’t exist without structural violence to preserve it’s jewish demographic majority, Israel needs the constant threat of violence against refugees who dream to return home
From 1948-1960, Israeli soldiers killed 3000-5000 Palestinian refugees who tried to return, sometimes shooting before they ever crossed the border.

Historically, natives always resist their colonizers. All forms of resistance to oppression are understood as a natural reaction to the daily violence committed against Palestinians.
It has always been a response to structural violence.

When the call to end violence is limited to direct violence, it implies accepting structural violence.

When Palestinians spotlight Israeli brutality, they are demanding the end of their oppression; when Israelis point to Palestinian violence, it is usually to justify that oppression.

True peace requires decolonizing Palestine.

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