Untitled

Track I - Session 6
Haider Saeed
Akram Alashqar
Houriya Ben Ali
Hosni Mlitat
Taghreed Al Soumairy
Track II - Session 6
Nadim Rouhana
Mostefa Bousboua
Michael R Fischbach
Emile Badarin participating remotely
Jawaid Iqbal participating remotely
Track III - Session 6
Amal Ghazal
Tahani Aldahdouh participating remotely
Fadi Elhindi
Nasreddin Elmezaini participating remotely
Sanaa Aboudagga
Track IV - Session 6
Areen Hawari
Mohanad Mustafa
Mtanes Shihadeh
Jackie Khoury
Alaa Mahajna
Mazen Masri
Track I - Session 7
Walid Habbas
Wafaa Albitawi
Ahmad Alawneh
Jumana Janazreh
Track II - Session 7
Emad Kaddorah
Mohammed Duraidi
Basnat Alghinaimi
Mohamad Elsousi
Sahera Bleibleh
Track III - Session 7
Hazim Rahahleh
Ghada Samman
Maher El-Kurd
Day 3 Symposium: "The Genocidal Israeli War on Gaza: Scenarios for the Day After"
Lourdes Habash
Lourdes Habash
Ali Shaath
Hani Almasri
Ayed Mahmoud Yaghi
Tarek Hamoud
The Forum Conclusion
Ayat Hamdan concluding the forum

Monday, 27 January 2025, marked the third and final day of the Annual Palestine Forum, which continued with extensive discussions, panels, and a concluding symposium. The morning began with four parallel tracks, each tackling different dimensions of Palestinian life, history, and the impact of the ongoing war on Gaza.

The first track, Collective Memory between the Nakba and Genocide, explored how narratives of Palestinian history and struggle are shaped and transmitted. In his paper, “The Memory of the Nakba in Contemporary Spanish Narrative”, Hosni Mlitat analysed how Spanish literary works echo the Palestinian Nakba’s aftermath and camp life. Akram Alashqar, in “Echoes of Resistance: Harnessing the Power of Music in Palestinian Revolutionary Cinema to Combat Erasure”, highlighted how soundtracks in militant-era films serve as sonic archives of defiance. Taghreed Al Soumairy, with “Collective Forgetting in the Digital Space: A Condition for Memory or an Erasure of the Memory of Colonized Peoples – The Palestinian Case”, argued that certain forms of social-media-based silence and forgetting can both impede and support collective memory. Lastly, Houriya Ben Ali, presenting “Collective Memory and Justification for the Extermination of the Other in Western Democracies: The Discourse of German and French Foreign Policy between Kosovo and Gaza”, examined how foreign-policy rhetoric uses manipulated “shared histories” to normalize or justify acts of aggression.

A second track, Genocide, Settler Colonialism, and Apartheid, dealt with the language, structures, and comparative frameworks that define Palestinian experiences under occupation. Michael R. Fischbach, in “‘Anti-anti-Zionism’ and Linguistic Warfare: Why Do Israel Partisans Hate the Terms Intersectionality and Settler Colonialism?”, contended that attacks on these concepts reflect broader efforts to discredit expanding solidarity networks. “Zionism and Apartheid: The Ideological Underside of Liberal Modernity”, by Jawaid Iqbal, traced how liberal modernity’s exclusions underpin both apartheid South Africa and Israel’s Zionist ethos. Emile Badarin, in “Settler Colonial Recognition and the Spectre of Elimination and Genocide in Palestine”, argued that “recognition” mechanisms can act as tools of dispossession, facilitating erasure of the Indigenous population. Rounding out the session, Mostefa Bousboua’s “Algeria and South Africa and Support for the Palestinian Cause: Colonial Pathways and Narratives of Struggle showed how shared anti-colonial histories bind these states to Palestinian liberation efforts”.

Simultaneously, the track Scholasticide in Gaza: The Erasure of Education (2) addressed the intense challenges faced by Gaza’s educational system. “University Education in Gaza During War: Reality and Challenges”, by Nasreddin Elmezaini, detailed how classrooms and infrastructure have been systematically targeted, yet universities adapt with remote learning. Sanaa Aboudagga, in “Online Learning for University Students in Gaza During the War: An Analysis of Challenges and Adaptation Strategies”, revealed how internet issues, material scarcity, and anxiety hamper distance education but do not end it. Tahani Aldahdouh’s “‘Waiting for a better time is a waste of time’: Motivations for Learning amid the Genocide in Gaza in Light of Sustainable Development Goal 4” surveyed the strong internal drive of students who see ongoing study as an act of defiance. Finally, Fadi Elhindi, in “National Initiatives for Access to Education and the Survival of Educational Institutions”, described grassroots and institutional efforts to safeguard learning continuity and prevent the “brain drain” of Gaza’s academic community.

A fourth track, Changes in Israeli Society and Governance amid Gaza’s Genocide, examined the reverberations of the war within Israel. Mohanad Mustafa, with “The War on Gaza and the Rise of Militia Tendencies in Israel”, observed an alarming drift toward militia-like fragmentation and a weakened centralized authority. In “How Did the Israeli Right Respond to the Events of 7 October 2023”, Mtanes Shihadeh mapped how far-right factions seized on a climate of national fear to accelerate efforts against Palestinians. Jackie Khoury, presenting “The Genocidal War on Gaza and Its Impact on Israel: Where Is Israel Heading?”, interpreted Israel’s current political upheaval as emblematic of deeper divisions. Finally, “Palestinians in Israel in the Shadow of the Genocidal War and the Deepening of Colonial Elimination: From Conditional Rights to No Rights”, by Alaa Mahajna and Mazen Masri, warned that civil rights for Palestinians with Israeli citizenship have rapidly eroded, marking a shift toward full-fledged exclusionary policies.

The first track of the second session turned to the Economic Impact of Settlements in the West Bank. “Economic and Social Dynamics of Jerusalemite Villages and Towns as a Result of Settlement Expansion in the Jerusalem Governorate”, by Anmar Rafeedie and Malakeh Abdellatif, outlined how confiscated land and segregating roads impose new social hierarchies and economic constraints on Palestinian communities. Wafaa Albitawi, with “Economic Diagnosis of the Income and Poverty Levels of Palestinian Women Working in Israeli Settlements”, illustrated how livelihood pressures, limited job opportunities, and lack of labor protections drive Palestinian women into precarious settlement-based employment. Meanwhile, Jumana Janazreh and Walid Habbas showcased “Economic Impacts of Israeli Industrial Zones in the West Bank”, describing these zones as sophisticated colonial infrastructure reinforcing Palestinian economic dependency. Finally, in “The Digital Dashboard – The Israeli Settlement Platform in the Occupied Territories”, Ahmad Alawneh introduced an interactive data tool that tracks settlement growth over time.

Another track focused on Gaza after the Genocide. “Healing Urbanism: Sustainable Planning towards Recovery and Resilience in the Gaza Strip”, by Sahera Bleibleh and Maha Samman, proposed a “trauma-informed design” that addresses psychosocial scars alongside physical reconstruction. Mohamad Elsousi and Basnat Alghinaimi, co-authors of “Beyond Rubble: Addressing Environmental Destruction in Gaza’s Post-War Reconstruction”, discussed the toxic legacy of bombardment, emphasizing the need for ecological rehabilitation. In “The Israeli Aggression against the Population of Gaza Strip: Demographic Effects and Future Expectations”, Mohammed Duraidi highlighted catastrophic demographic shifts – particularly the toll on youth – which may shape Gaza’s social landscape for generations.

A third track, On the Palestinian Economy and Its Implications, spotlighted Maher El-Kurd’s “Israel’s Responsibility for Economic Reparations to Compensate Damages Resulting from the October 2023 War”, pressing for legal claims to hold Israel accountable for devastation in Gaza; Anas Iqtait’s “Taxation and Settler Colonialism: The Palestinian Case”, revealing how Israeli tax controls perpetuate economic subjugation; and Ghada Samman’s “Neoliberal Bureaucracy: Ramallah Case Study”, critiquing how market-driven, privatized governance fosters abstracted processes that undermine meaningful policymaking.

In the evening, the Forum hosted a final symposium, “The Genocidal Israeli War on Gaza: Scenarios for the Day After”, which weighed potential scenarios for Gaza’s recovery, political prospects, and strategies to counter forced migrations. Speakers Ali Shaath, Ayed Mahmoud Yaghi, Hani Almasri, and Tarek Hamoud analysed regional and global dimensions, possible “day after” frameworks imposed by external actors, and the urgency of supporting Palestinian resilience.

As proceedings drew to a close, participants stressed the necessity of continuing this intellectual collaboration and documenting the urgent realities on the ground. In weaving together historical memory, contemporary analyses, and future-oriented research, the Annual Palestine Forum’s third day served as a significant space for nuanced dialogue, particularly in the face of unrelenting violence, deepening colonial policies, and the pressing need to envision a just and sustainable future for Palestine.