The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: An Ethnographic Study on Conflict Perception and Its Implications for Peace in the Middle East Source: America.aljazeera.com An Undergraduate Honors Thesis Presented to the Department of International Studies at the University of Oregon Colin M. McClellan Spring 2015 Advisor: Professor Reut Livne-Tarandach, Ph.D. Lundquist College of Business, Department of Management McClellan 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ....................................................................................................... 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................................................................................... 4 ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................... 5 CHAPTER 1: Introduction .......................................................................................................... 6 What is the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict? ................................................................................ 6 Recognition of Potential Author Bias ...................................................................................... 6 CHAPTER 2: Study of First Hand Experience with the Conflict ............................................ 8 Unpacking the Rocket Fire: My Story with the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict ...................... 8 Reflections Post-Conflict Exposure ....................................................................................... 15 CHAPTER 3: Research Methods .............................................................................................. 19 Analytical Approach ............................................................................................................... 19 First, Second, and Third Person Action Inquiry Research ................................................. 20 Research Procedures .............................................................................................................. 23 Research Sample ..................................................................................................................... 25 CHAPTER 4: Historical Context of the Conflict, with Focus on the Gaza Strip ................. 27 World War I Transforms the Middle East 1900 - 1922 ...................................................... 27 The Effects of Imperialism on ‘The Promised Land’ 1923 – 1947 ..................................... 29 The Founding of Israel 1948 – 1966 ...................................................................................... 33 War and Occupation 1967 ...................................................................................................... 38 Palestinian Resistance 1968 – 1987 ........................................................................................ 42 CHAPTER 5: The Modern Israeli-Palestinian Condition ...................................................... 46 Volatile Peace Attempts 1988 – 2000 ..................................................................................... 46 Stalemate 2000 - 2014 ............................................................................................................. 47 Israel-Gaza War of Summer 2014 ......................................................................................... 50 “Operation Protective Edge” ................................................................................................. 52 Outcome ................................................................................................................................ 55 CHAPTER 6: Israeli and Palestinian Interviews .................................................................... 59 Israeli Interviews ..................................................................................................................... 59 The Past: Key Drivers of the Problem .................................................................................. 59 The Present: Thought Processes on the Conflict .................................................................. 64 The Future: Opinions on Conflict Transformation ............................................................... 70 Palestinian Interviews ............................................................................................................. 75 The Past: Key Drivers of the Problem .................................................................................. 75 The Present: Thought Processes on the Conflict .................................................................. 80 The Future: Opinions on Conflict Transformation ............................................................... 86 Cross-Category Interview Analysis ....................................................................................... 92 Similarities ............................................................................................................................ 93 Differences ............................................................................................................................ 95 CHAPTER 7: Concluding Thoughts Going Forward ............................................................. 98 Is Peace Possible? .................................................................................................................... 98 McClellan 2 “Acknowledge and Legitimize My Pain” – Compassion’s Role in Conflict Resolution . 100 Tangible Steps Towards Peace ............................................................................................ 104 APPENDICES ........................................................................................................................... 109 APPENDIX A – Thesis Research Protocol, Preliminary Interview Questions ............... 109 APPENDIX B – Thesis Research Protocol, Background Information Survey ............... 111 APPENDIX C – Map of Key Nation-State Actors in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict ... 113 BIBLIOGRAPHY ..................................................................................................................... 114 © Colin M. McClellan McClellan 3 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figure 3.1 Visual representation of types of Action Inquiry research that when practiced results in successful organizational transformation ................................................................................. 22 Figure 4.1 British Mandate of Palestine geographic area 1923 - 1948 ...................................... 30 Figure 4.2 United Nations 1947 Partition Plan for Palestine into Jewish and Arab States ........ 34 Figure 4.3 Map of Israel land gain post-1948 War ..................................................................... 36 Figure 4.4 Israeli land acquisition post-1967 War ...................................................................... 40 Figure 5.1 Modern Day Map of Israel and Palestinian Territories, as of 2015 .......................... 50 Figure 6.1 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Human Needs ....................................................................... 92 Figure 7.1 Subprocesses of an empathetic response to the suffering of others ......................... 101 McClellan 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I would like to acknowledge God for not only providing the experience for me to study in Israel, but also giving me the continual strength to write this thesis. Second, I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to my thesis advisor, Professor Reut Livne- Tarandach, for being a transformative individual during my undergraduate education. I have never met anyone so invested in helping others achieve their goals. Reut has continually gone above and beyond, and invested countless hours to contribute towards both my academic and personal growth. I hope that one day I can pass on the depth of service to other individuals that she has shown me during my undergraduate tenure. I also want to extend a huge thank you to my family for constantly supporting me throughout undergrad, and for always believing in my achievement capabilities. I would not be here today without their encouragement and sacrifice. Furthermore, thank you to the University of Oregon’s Department of International Studies, and especially Kathie Carpenter, for providing this opportunity to write a thesis and answering any question I could possibly imagine. To all the individuals listed above, I am forever grateful. McClellan 5 ABSTRACT This honors thesis examines how individuals in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict personally interpret the conflict, and how those perceptions are similar or different across the two populations. In order to achieve this I utilize a research method, known as Action Inquiry research, that involves researching first, second, and third person perspectives over the past, present, and future dimensions of time. Several firsthand accounts of conflict zone experiences are presented in the paper, including my own from being in Israel during the summer 2014 Israel-Gaza War. Using my experience, I present an analysis of my time on the ground followed by post-conflict exposure reflections. The thesis then presents a literature review of the key historical events from 1900 – 2014 that have unfolded to create the modern day Israeli- Palestinian condition. Furthermore, a qualitative analysis is discussed of in-person interviews that I conducted of three Israelis and three Palestinians to better understand their past with the conflict, present conflict interpretations, and future perceptions for conflict