Hamas' Political Transformation and Engagement, 2003-‐‑2013

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Hamas' Political Transformation and Engagement, 2003-‐‑2013 Hamas’ political transformation and engagement, 2003-2013 Submitted by Bao Hsiu-Ping to the University of Exeter, as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Palestine Studies September 2016 This thesis is available for Library use on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. I certify that all material in this thesis which is not my own work has been identified and that no material has previously been submitted and approved for the award of a degree by this or any other University. Signature: ………………………………………………………….. Abstract This thesis aims to explore the process of Hamas’ political transformation and engagement between 2003 and 2013 as well as the implications of the transition. In general, conventional scholarship research on Hamas and its transition in politics focuses either on the discussion of its tendency to violence or on its orientation towards moderation. However, both analyses fail to capture the essence of Hamas’ political transition over the ten years under discussion. This thesis argues that Hamas’ transition is interrelated with its perception of resistance. That is to say, Hamas’ transition aimed to keep its resistance work intact. Hamas believed that because of its Zionist ideology, Israel would continue to occupy and colonize at Palestinians’ expense. Furthermore, past negotiations between the Palestinian Authority and Israel had not helped Palestinians but on the contrary, had intensified the Israeli occupation. Therefore, nothing but resistance would restore Palestinians’ rights and defend them against Israel’s aggression. Ever since its inception in 1987, resistance has been Hamas’ only strategy and its means to end the Israeli occupation. It is worth noting that Hamas sophisticated the concept of resistance into a ‘resistance project’ from 2003 onwards, and then enforced it after taking over Gaza in June 2007; and for Hamas, the elements of resistance are comprehensive. In order to end Israeli occupation, armed struggle is its major tactic but this includes: the necessity of the national unity of Palestinians, the need for substantial support from the Arab and Muslim states and the understanding of the West. This thesis argues that as long as the Israeli occupation is in place, it is inevitable that Hamas’ engagement in politics will be irreversible and its work on resistance will continue, irrespective of the circumstances. However, it might appear in a different form. 1 Table of Contents Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 3 1. Research Background and Motivation ........................................................................................... 3 2. Research Questions ................................................................................................................................. 9 3. Sources and Methodology .................................................................................................................... 9 4. The Scope and significance of the Study ..................................................................................... 18 5. Thesis Outline: A brief description of each chapter ............................................................... 20 Part I Approaching the transition of the Islamists and the Study of Hamas’ transition ........................................................................................................................... 23 Chapter One: The Conceptual Framework: The transition of Islamists 24 1. Introduction: The transition of Islamists ................................................................................... 24 2. The Essentialist approach to the transition of Islamists ..................................................... 27 3. The Pluralist approaches to the transition of Islamists ....................................................... 31 4. Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................ 48 Chapter Two: Hamas’ transition and its concept of resistance from the Palestinian historical perspective ............................................................................ 49 1. Before the 1987 Intifada .................................................................................................................... 49 2. From the first Intifada to the Oslo Peace Process (1987-2000) ...................................... 61 3. Conclusion: The transitions of Islamists in Palestine and the concept of resistance from the historical perspective ...................................................................................................... 76 Part II The political transformation and engagement ....................................... 80 Chapter Three: Analysis of Hamas’ political transformation (2003-2006) 81 1. The socio-economic context in the al-Aqsa Intifada .............................................................. 82 2. The content of the resistance project and its relation to the Islamic reference ........ 88 3. From the ceasefire to a call for Political reform ................................................................... 100 4. The path to political integration .................................................................................................. 114 5. Conclusion: The implication of Hamas’ political transformation during 2003 to 2006 ........................................................................................................................................................ 134 Chapter Four: Evaluation of Hamas’ political engagement (2006-2013) .. 139 1. The tenth Palestinian government and the unity government ...................................... 139 2. Governing Gaza ................................................................................................................................... 159 3. The repercussions of the Arab Spring ...................................................................................... 188 4. Conclusion: The Overall evaluation of Hamas’ political engagement ......................... 209 Part III Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 217 1. Summary and Findings: .................................................................................................................. 217 2. Challenges and Limitations ........................................................................................................... 221 3. Prospects for Future Research ..................................................................................................... 222 List of Glossary .............................................................................................................. 224 Bibliography ................................................................................................................... 225 2 Introduction 1. Research Background and Motivation This research aims to explore the process of Hamas' transition in politics between 2003 and 2013 and to attempt to interpret the implications of the transition. Over the decade, Hamas experienced a remarkable change in its practices and rhetoric. Prior to 2003, in the eyes of Western countries, Hamas was considered to be a spoiler, undermining the peace process and aiming to destroy of Israel. Its suicide bombings and rocket attacks were regarded as a form of terrorism and its hardline stance against Israel seemed to be clear indications of this. However, after its acceptance of the ceasefire in June 2003, Hamas gradually reduced the numbers of military attacks and considered the possibility of a political transformation. This turn towards a more political orientation was discernible. In addition, its military tactic did not appeal after its victory in the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) election in January 2006. After that, Hamas gradually became an important non-state actor in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and played an essential role across the Middle East particularly during the period between Hamas’ take-over of Gaza after June 2007 and the Arab Spring (2011-2013). Hamas’ leaders demonstrated their willingness to coexist with Israel based on a long-term truce1 in order to erase the ‘terrorist’ stigma, to distance itself from the international militant Islamists and to be better accepted within the international community.2 On the other hand, Hamas’ leaders started to articulate their views on why at this moment they rejected the disarmament and refused to recognize Israel, which was one of the demands of the Quartet. 1 The long-term truce was based on the condition that Israel withdrew from the West Bank, East Jerusalem, the ease of Gaza and the right of return for Palestinian regugees, which corresponds to international law and the resolution of the United Nations. Please refer to Khaled Hroub, Hamas: Political Thought and Practice (Washington, DC: Institute for Palestine Studies, 2002), pp.73-78. Khaled Hroub, Hamas: A Beginner’s Guide (London: Pluto Press, 2006), pp.55-57. 2 Hamas leaders often cite the United Nations Resolution 194 in the General Assembly as a principle of the right of return for refugees. Please refer to Khalid Amayreh, ‘Hamas debates the future: Palestine’s Islamic Resistance Movement attempts to Reconcile ideological purity and political
Recommended publications
  • Geographers Mobilize: a Network-Diffusion Analysis of the Campaign to Free Ghazi-Walid Falah1
    Geographers Mobilize: A Network-Diffusion Analysis of the Campaign to Free Ghazi-Walid Falah1 Mark de Socio Department of Geography & Geosciences, Salisbury University, USA; [email protected] Abstract: In summer 2006, Professor Ghazi-Walid Falah, a political geographer and editor- in-chief of the journal Arab World Geographer, was arrested by Israeli police after taking photographs of rural landscapes in Northern Galilee. Falah was subsequently held for 23 days, incommunicado, and without charge. An international campaign to “Free Ghazi” was launched by his family, friends and colleagues, largely over academic listservs and other media. Utilizing social network analysis and contextualizing the campaign within structures of telecommunications technologies, the purpose of this paper is to assess the various factors that contributed to the campaign’s coalescence, its rapid development, and its global reach. Keywords: social networks, scale, political geography, Internet Introduction Kirby (1992:236) defines geography as what “geographers choose to do”. Ghazi-Walid Falah (2007:588) demonstrates that what geographers choose to do can, at times, be dangerous. Falah, for example, chose to research and write on the political geography of Palestine and Israel, beginning with his dissertation 25 years ago (Falah 1983). According to Falah, this career program of research runs counter to the hegemonic discourse—historical, political, or otherwise—concerning the geographies of Palestine and Israel (see, for example, Falah 1991, 1994, 1996, 2003). Consequently, Falah found himself under suspicion by the Israeli government as both a Palestinian and as a “rogue” scholar of political geography writing of the contested territories of Palestine/Israel within the broad framework of critical geopolitics (Morrissey 2006).
    [Show full text]
  • Inside Gaza: the Challenge of Clans and Families
    INSIDE GAZA: THE CHALLENGE OF CLANS AND FAMILIES Middle East Report N°71 – 20 December 2007 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...................................................................................................... i I. INTRODUCTION: THE DYNAMICS OF CHANGE ............................................... 1 II. THE CHANGING FORTUNES OF KINSHIP NETWORKS................................... 2 A. THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY AND CLAN POLITICS .............................................................2 B. THE 2000 UPRISING AND THE RISE OF CLAN POWER.............................................................3 C. ISRAEL’S GAZA DISENGAGEMENT AND FACTIONAL CONFLICT..............................................3 D. BETWEEN THE 2006 ELECTIONS AND HAMAS’S 2007 SEIZURE OF POWER.............................5 III. KINSHIP NETWORKS IN OPERATION .................................................................. 6 A. ECONOMIC SUPPORT .............................................................................................................6 B. FEUDS AND INFORMAL JUSTICE.............................................................................................7 C. POLITICAL AND SECURITY LEVERAGE...................................................................................9 IV. THE CLANS AND HAMAS........................................................................................ 13 A. BETWEEN GOVERNANCE AND CHAOS .................................................................................13 B. HAMAS’S SEIZURE OF POWER .............................................................................................14
    [Show full text]
  • Jerusalem: City of Dreams, City of Sorrows
    1 JERUSALEM: CITY OF DREAMS, CITY OF SORROWS More than ever before, urban historians tell us that global cities tend to look very much alike. For U.S. students. the“ look alike” perspective makes it more difficult to empathize with and to understand cultures and societies other than their own. The admittedly superficial similarities of global cities with U.S. ones leads to misunderstandings and confusion. The multiplicity of cybercafés, high-rise buildings, bars and discothèques, international hotels, restaurants, and boutique retailers in shopping malls and multiplex cinemas gives these global cities the appearances of familiarity. The ubiquity of schools, university campuses, signs, streetlights, and urban transportation systems can only add to an outsider’s “cultural and social blindness.” Prevailing U.S. learning goals that underscore American values of individualism, self-confidence, and material comfort are, more often than not, obstacles for any quick study or understanding of world cultures and societies by visiting U.S. student and faculty.1 Therefore, international educators need to look for and find ways in which their students are able to look beyond the veneer of the modern global city through careful program planning and learning strategies that seek to affect the students in their “reading and learning” about these fertile centers of liberal learning. As the students become acquainted with the streets, neighborhoods, and urban centers of their global city, their understanding of its ways and habits is embellished and enriched by the walls, neighborhoods, institutions, and archaeological sites that might otherwise cause them their “cultural and social blindness.” Jerusalem is more than an intriguing global historical city.
    [Show full text]
  • Palestine 100 Years of Struggle: the Most Important Events Yasser
    Palestine 100 Years of Struggle: The Most Important Events Yasser Arafat Foundation 1 Early 20th Century - The total population of Palestine is estimated at 600,000, including approximately 36,000 of the Jewish faith, most of whom immigrated to Palestine for purely religious reasons, the remainder Muslims and Christians, all living and praying side by side. 1901 - The Zionist Organization (later called the World Zionist Organization [WZO]) founded during the First Zionist Congress held in Basel Switzerland in 1897, establishes the “Jewish National Fund” for the purpose of purchasing land in Palestine. 1902 - Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid II agrees to receives Theodor Herzl, the founder of the Zionist movement and, despite Herzl’s offer to pay off the debt of the Empire, decisively rejects the idea of Zionist settlement in Palestine. - A majority of the delegates at The Fifth Zionist Congress view with favor the British offer to allocate part of the lands of Uganda for the settlement of Jews. However, the offer was rejected the following year. 2 1904 - A wave of Jewish immigrants, mainly from Russia and Poland, begins to arrive in Palestine, settling in agricultural areas. 1909 Jewish immigrants establish the city of “Tel Aviv” on the outskirts of Jaffa. 1914 - The First World War begins. - - The Jewish population in Palestine grows to 59,000, of a total population of 657,000. 1915- 1916 - In correspondence between Sir Henry McMahon, the British High Commissioner in Egypt, and Sharif Hussein of Mecca, wherein Hussein demands the “independence of the Arab States”, specifying the boundaries of the territories within the Ottoman rule at the time, which clearly includes Palestine.
    [Show full text]
  • Palestinian Women: Mothers, Martyrs and Agents of Political Change
    University of Denver Digital Commons @ DU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies 1-1-2011 Palestinian Women: Mothers, Martyrs and Agents of Political Change Rebecca Ann Otis University of Denver Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd Part of the Gender and Sexuality Commons, Near and Middle Eastern Studies Commons, and the Politics and Social Change Commons Recommended Citation Otis, Rebecca Ann, "Palestinian Women: Mothers, Martyrs and Agents of Political Change" (2011). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 491. https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/491 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Studies at Digital Commons @ DU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ DU. For more information, please contact [email protected],[email protected]. Palestinian Women: Mothers, Martyrs and Agents of Political Change __________ A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Josef Korbel School of International Studies University of Denver __________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy __________ by Rebecca A. Otis June 2011 Advisor: Dr. Martin Rhodes ©Copyright by Rebecca A. Otis 2011 All Rights Reserved Author: Rebecca A. Otis Title: PALESTINIAN WOMEN: MOTHERS, MARTYRS AND AGENTS OF POLITICAL CHANGE Advisor: Dr. Martin Rhodes Degree Date: June 2011 ABSTRACT This dissertation seeks to understand the role of women as political actors in the rise of Islamo-nationalist movement in Palestine. Using a historical and ethnographic approach, it examines the changing opportunity structures available to Palestinian women in the nationalist struggle between 1987 and 2007.
    [Show full text]
  • Hamas's Political Wing: Terror by Other Means by Matthew Levitt
    MENU Policy Analysis / PolicyWatch 440 Hamas's Political Wing: Terror by Other Means by Matthew Levitt Jan 6, 2004 ABOUT THE AUTHORS Matthew Levitt Matthew Levitt is the Fromer-Wexler Fellow and director of the Reinhard Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence at The Washington Institute. Brief Analysis n January 5, 2004, the council of Arab interior ministers concluded its twenty-first session in Tunis by O renewing its "strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and sources." The question remains whether this condemnation will lead to action against Hamas, including its political leadership. The Role of Hamas's Political Leaders Hamas leaders readily acknowledge the central role that the organization's "political wing" plays in operational decisionmaking. For example, in May 2002, Hamas military commander Salah Shehada stated publicly that "the political apparatus is sovereign over the military apparatus, and a decision of the political [echelon] takes precedence over the decision of the military [echelon], without intervening in military operations." In July 2001, Hamas leader Abdel Aziz al-Rantisi told Reuters, "The [Hamas] political leadership has freed the hand of the [Izz al- Din al-Qassam] brigades to do whatever they want against the brothers of monkey and pigs." Indeed, it is the political leadership that has most clearly stated the movement's goals. According to one such leader, Ismail Abu Shanab, "There are no civilians in Israel because every citizen is required to serve in the army. We are at war with Israel.
    [Show full text]
  • Is It All About Territory? Israel's Settlement Policy in The
    DIIS REPORT 2012:08 DIIS REPORT IS IT ALL ABOUT TERRITORY? ISRAEL’s SETTLEMENT POLICY IN THE OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY SINCE 1967 Leila Stockmarr DIIS REPORT 2012:08 DIIS REPORT DIIS . DANISH INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDIES 1 DIIS REPORT 2012:08 © Copenhagen 2012, the author and DIIS Danish Institute for International Studies, DIIS Strandgade 56, DK-1401 Copenhagen, Denmark Ph: +45 32 69 87 87 Fax: +45 32 69 87 00 E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.diis.dk Cover photo: Bernat Armangue/AP Layout: Allan Lind Jørgensen Printed in Denmark by Vesterkopi AS ISBN 978-87-7605-504-2 Price: DKK 50.00 (VAT included) DIIS publications can be downloaded free of charge from www.diis.dk Hardcopies can be ordered at www.diis.dk Leila Stockmarr, PhD Fellow, Roskilde University [email protected] 2 DIIS REPORT 2012:08 Contents Abstract 4 Dansk resumé 5 Abbreviations 6 Introduction 7 Aim of the report 7 Part 1 10 Back to basics 1: the intertwining of territory and legitimacy 10 The nature and extent of the phenomenon 11 Strategies of legitimisation 13 Part 2 17 The international community’s legal positions on settlements and occupation 17 Occupation 17 Settlements 19 Israeli contra-arguments and ‘legal regime’ 20 Settlers at the frontline – a question of security? 22 Shifting dynamics of the settlers’ influence 23 Restricting use of space: internal closure, planning and zoning 25 Settlements and outposts: a false dichotomy between ‘legal’ and ‘illegal’ 30 Part 3 32 Back to basics 2: asymmetry as a precondition 32 Blurring the lines: Oslo’s failure to halt
    [Show full text]
  • Dealing with Hamas
    DEALING WITH HAMAS 26 January 2004 ICG Middle East Report N°21 Amman/Brussels TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS................................................. i I. INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................... 1 II. HAMAS: ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENT.............................................................. 4 A. ORIGINS................................................................................................................................4 B. TRANSFORMATION................................................................................................................5 C. ASCENDANCY .......................................................................................................................6 D. THE CHALLENGE OF OSLO ....................................................................................................8 III. HAMAS AND THE POLITICS OF VIOLENCE ..................................................... 10 A. ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE ...........................................................................................10 B. THE HAMAS CHARTER ........................................................................................................11 C. HAMAS AND THE TWO-STATE SOLUTION ............................................................................13 D. HAMAS AND THE USES OF VIOLENCE ..................................................................................16 IV. OPTIONS AND FUTURE PROSPECTS..................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • A Multi-Dimensional Approach to Suicide Bombing Paul Gill, School of Politics and International Relations, University College Dublin, Ireland
    urn:nbn:de:0070-ijcv-2007246 IJCV : Vol. 1 (2) 2007, pp. 142–159 A Multi-Dimensional Approach to Suicide Bombing Paul Gill, School of Politics and International Relations, University College Dublin, Ireland Editorial (p. 91) Focus: Terrorism From Classical Terrorism to ‘Global’ Terrorism Michel Wieviorka (pp. 92 –104) Post-9/11 Terrorism Threats, News Coverage, and Public Perceptions in the United States Brigitte L. Nacos, Yaeli Bloch-Elkon, Robert Y. Shapiro (pp. 105–126) Attributions of Responsibility for Terrorist Attacks: The Role of Group Membership and Identification Bertjan Doosje, Sven Zebel, Marieke Scheermeijer, Pauline Mathyi (pp. 127– 141) A Multi-Dimensional Approach to Suicide Bombing Paul Gill (pp. 142–159) Suicide Bombers in Israel: Their Motivations, Characteristics, and Prior Activity in Terrorist Organizations Revital Sela-Shayovitz (pp. 160–168) Open Section Living with Contradiction: Examining the Worldview of the Jewish Settlers in Hebron Hanne Eggen Røislien (pp. 169 –184) Explaining the Long-Term Trend in Violent Crime: A Heuristic Scheme and Some Methodological Considerations Helmut Thome (pp. 185 –202) All text of the International Journal of Conflict and Violence is subject to the terms of the Digital Peer Publishing Licence. http://www.ijcv.org /docs/licence/DPPL_v2_en_06-2004.pdf IJCV : Vol. 1 (2) 2007, pp. 142–159 Paul Gill: A Multi-Dimensional Approach to Suicide Bombing 143 A Multi-Dimensional Approach to Suicide Bombing Paul Gill, School of Politics and International Relations, University College Dublin, Ireland Understanding suicide bombing entails studying the phenomenon on three different dimensions: the suicide bomber, the terrorist organization, and the com- munity from which suicide bombings emerge.
    [Show full text]
  • Score One for 'Hamaswood' | the Washington Institute
    MENU Policy Analysis / Articles & Op-Eds Score One for 'Hamaswood' Aug 11, 2009 Articles & Testimony amas, which recently created a production company and released its first major film production glorifying H the life of a master terrorist, has scored its first major public relations coup. In a new article on the website of Foreign Affairs, Michael Bröning (director of the East Jerusalem office of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung) cites the group's recent downplaying of the relevance of its own charter as a telltale sign that Hamas is turning around or even "growing up." To be sure, the rhetoric of Hamas leaders has visibly changed in public statements. But in focusing on these statements alone, Bröning misses the real point: Hamas's words have changed, but their actions have not. Hamas cannot be judged on the basis of its choice of vocabulary alone. Neither the relevance of each and every part of the Hamas charter (which Hamas leaders have expressly refused to revoke or update) nor the public statements of its leaders deserve as much weight as what the group actually does in judging whether or not it has truly evolved. The approach of solely examining what the group says, rather than what the group does -- the approach upon which Bröning has relied -- dangerously disregards Hamas's actions on the ground. True, in recent interviews, Hamas leader Khaled Meshal has offered to cooperate with U.S. efforts to promote a peaceful resolution to the Arab-Israeli conflict, indicated a willingness to implement an immediate and reciprocal ceasefire with Israel, and stated that the militant group would accept and respect a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
    [Show full text]
  • Inculcating Kindergarten Children with Radical Islamic Ideology and the Culture of Anti-Israel Terrorism
    June 6, 2007 Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Israel Intelligence Heritage & Commemoration Center (IICC) Inculcating kindergarten children with radical Islamic ideology and the culture of anti-Israel terrorism The end of the year party for kindergarten children in the Gaza Strip (Al-Aqsa TV, May 31). The Islamic society operating the participating kindergartens is part of the Hamas movement’s social infrastructure and uses them to inculcate pre-school children with the movement’s ideology. Indoctrination at an end of the year kindergarten party 1. On May 31, 2007, Hamas’s Al-Aqsa TV satellite channel broadcast the end of the year party held for the 29th class of kindergartens belonging to the Al- Mujamma’ al-Islami Islamic society, a part of Hamas’ social infrastructure (da’wah) in the Gaza Strip.1 The children, dressed in camouflage suits and wearing green headbands inscribed “There is no God but Allah,” put on a show. They carried plastic rifles and waved flags bearing the insignia of the Muslim Brotherhood (the movement which founded Hamas). 2. As part of the show, children, some of them masked, marched in a kind of military formation and demonstrated martial exercises such as summersaults, jumps, crawling as if under fire and sword-waving, while in the background a song of praise for Hamas was played. Some of the lyrics were “a Hamas [member] does not fear death,” “a Hamas [member operates] for the sake of [Islam],” “the name of Hamas is exalted,” and “Ahmad Yassin shook Israel from his [wheel] chair and his firm stance never faltered.” The end of the year kindergarten party (Al-Aqsa TV, May 31).
    [Show full text]
  • IS IT ALL ABOUT TERRITORY? ISRAEL’S SETTLEMENT POLICY in the OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY SINCE 1967 Leila Stockmarr DIIS REPORT 2012:08 DIIS REPORT
    DIIS REPORT 2012:08 DIIS REPORT IS IT ALL ABOUT TERRITORY? ISRAEL’s SETTLEMENT POLICY IN THE OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY SINCE 1967 Leila Stockmarr DIIS REPORT 2012:08 DIIS REPORT DIIS . DANISH INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDIES 1 DIIS REPORT 2012:08 © Copenhagen 2012, the author and DIIS Danish Institute for International Studies, DIIS Strandgade 56, DK-1401 Copenhagen, Denmark Ph: +45 32 69 87 87 Fax: +45 32 69 87 00 E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.diis.dk Cover photo: Bernat Armangue/AP Layout: Allan Lind Jørgensen Printed in Denmark by Vesterkopi AS ISBN 978-87-7605-504-2 Price: DKK 50.00 (VAT included) DIIS publications can be downloaded free of charge from www.diis.dk Hardcopies can be ordered at www.diis.dk Leila Stockmarr, PhD Fellow, Roskilde University [email protected] 2 DIIS REPORT 2012:08 Contents Abstract 4 Dansk resumé 5 Abbreviations 6 Introduction 7 Aim of the report 7 Part 1 10 Back to basics 1: the intertwining of territory and legitimacy 10 The nature and extent of the phenomenon 11 Strategies of legitimisation 13 Part 2 17 The international community’s legal positions on settlements and occupation 17 Occupation 17 Settlements 19 Israeli contra-arguments and ‘legal regime’ 20 Settlers at the frontline – a question of security? 22 Shifting dynamics of the settlers’ influence 23 Restricting use of space: internal closure, planning and zoning 25 Settlements and outposts: a false dichotomy between ‘legal’ and ‘illegal’ 30 Part 3 32 Back to basics 2: asymmetry as a precondition 32 Blurring the lines: Oslo’s failure to halt
    [Show full text]