Middle Eastern experts explain the wave of solidarity with Palestine and the violent demonstrations: “It’s about structural discrimination”

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What is happening in the Middle East keeps the world in suspense. The conflict, which has been going on for decades, has flared up again – and is more polarizing than ever. Thousands of people take to the streets all over the world.

Most of them show solidarity with Palestine. The scale of the demonstrations is enormous. For example, around 4,500 participants showed up at a rally in Lausanne on Thursday evening instead of the expected 1,000 participants. Although most demonstrations in Switzerland are peaceful, there are serious riots abroad.

But why are so many people demonstrating for Palestine and who are the people who participate in such demonstrations? Blick asked Middle East experts Mustafa Nasar from the University of Basel and Andreas Böhm, Middle East expert from the University of St. Gallen.

“The Israelis have a rather negative reputation among some people when it comes to the conflict between Israel and Palestine,” Mustafa Nasar, assistant at the Seminar for Middle East Studies, told Blick. The reason for this is the unequal relationship between the two countries that has been going on for years. “Palestine was oppressed by the occupying power Israel for decades. The fact that Israelis in particular are now being portrayed as victims causes frustration among many,” says Nasar.

Inequality is also the reason why many show solidarity with Palestine and take to the streets. The Middle East expert explains the enormous amount by the fact that many people have been actively following the conflict for decades – and as a result, emotions become heated again and again.

Expert Andreas Böhm also points out that the term structural discrimination plays a major role. “Similar phenomena have already been observed in movements such as ‘Black Lives Matter’ or #MeToo. Discrimination is at the forefront of all these phenomena.” The topics are therefore emotionally charged.

Nasar speaks of the demo participants as a “very diverse group”. In addition to people who are interested in the conflict and want to express their solidarity, academics, media professionals and religious people can also be found at the meetings.

Especially in the latter case the spectrum is large. “In addition to Christians and Muslims, there are also Jews who protest for Palestine. An example of this is the members of the “Jewish Voice for Peace” who loudly called for a ceasefire in Washington on Wednesday,” Nasar said. However, the expert emphasizes that you cannot say that Muslims from all countries are demonstrating for Palestine.

The claim that the demonstrators are exclusively left-wing people would also be untenable. “Especially at the meetings in Geneva, the political spectrum is very broad because of the numerous humanitarian organizations on the ground.”

Freeriders can also be found in the demos

Böhm also sees a difference in demo participants depending on the country. “The demonstrators in France are often people from the former colonies in northern France who feel discriminated against.” Because many people there have closer ties with the Arab world, the chance of escalation is also much greater.

But not only in France, the situation is also in danger of escalating in Germany. There have already been serious riots this week during a pro-Palestine demonstration in Berlin.

According to “Tagesspiegel” the participants were a “mixed scene”. In addition to the well-known Islamists, there were also teenagers among the demonstrators who had previously hardly been noticed. Many of them are unemployed and therefore have a lot of time to participate in such meetings.

An official from the security authority summarized it this way: “A mix of Islamists with legal experience, young people prone to violence and still numerous, often understanding representatives from civil society, make it so difficult for us.”

Expert Nasar is not surprised about that. Germany was in a difficult situation because of its past with Hitler. “The Germans feel an obligation to Jews and Israel – at the same time they have a large diaspora from Palestine, Lebanon and Syria. That obviously leads to tensions.”

According to Nasar, the motives of the demo participants also differ. “The majority of demonstrators take to the streets out of conviction. Yet there are also free riders among them who do not want to position themselves well.”

According to both experts, this clearly has to do with the Swiss context. “We have much fewer connections with the Middle East,” says Böhm. Britain and France are much more heavily burdened by their colonial past when it comes to the entire conflict.

According to Nasar, Switzerland, on the other hand, has hardly any controversial ties with the Middle East. This means that it does not have to take a position regarding the conflict. This means that neither Israel nor Palestine will be exploited for the political agenda.

Nasar of the University of Basel does not estimate the potential danger in Switzerland to be great. “Violent fronts have increasingly faded into the background in recent years.” Moreover, pro-Palestinian demonstrations are nothing new. Nevertheless, the whole matter should not be taken lightly: “Violent riots can happen again and again.”

“The most extreme example is certainly the death of the young Iranian woman Mahsa Amini. Her death sparked a violent wave of protests across the country,” Nasar said. Amini sparked a wave of protests across the country a year ago. The young woman was taken into police custody in September 2022 for allegedly violating the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code. It is believed she was beaten and fatally injured by police. As another example, Nasar cites the elections in Turkey, which led to violent protests this spring.

Source: Blick