Lezingenreeks
11-13-18-20 Maart | 18:30-20:30
The war on Gaza shook and continues to shake the world. The latest episode in a decades-long and highly asymmetrical conflict between Israel and Palestine, the war on Gaza claimed tens of thousands of lives and wrought unspeakable destruction on the living environment of the Gazans. Responding to a gruesome Hamas attack on Israeli towns on 7 October 2023, the Israeli government struck back hard in what first seemed a spirit of revenge but soon became a systematic military operation with the stated aim of returning Israeli hostages and eradicating Hamas. The world witnessed the unfolding of the war. The world lamented the disproportionality of the Israeli response. The world complained about the curtailing of humanitarian aid. The world warned about the genocidal character of the violence that the Israeli government inflicted on the Gazans.
The world witnessed the war on Gaza … but remained largely aloof. Civil society did organize protests, lobbied governments and called for boycotts. South Africa did bring a case before the International Court of Justice in which it accused Israel of genocide. The United Nations General Assembly did vote resolutions and United Nations Special Rapporteurs did issue reports condemning Israeli aggression. The International Criminal Court did issue arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders. Diplomatic negotiations did lead to a ceasefire agreement that took force on 19 January 2025. After fifteen months of unforgiving violence, the world could sigh in relief, even though it understood that the ceasefire agreement is a fragile accomplishment that may be breached at any time and that is, in any case, too little, too late.
The world witnessed the war on Gaza and remained largely aloof. One wonders why. Was it from a basic agreement with the Israeli government that Hamas ought to be eradicated? Was it from a fear of escalation into a regional or even global war? Was it from a sense of historical guilt and sympathy for the plight of Israel in light of the horrors of the holocaust? Was it the expression of a colonial mindset which devalues the lives of Palestinians? Was it from a genuine uncertainty about right and wrong due to the profusion of narratives and counternarratives on social media? Was it a more general indifference about the fate of distant strangers? Or was it due to the institutional shortcomings of the international legal order, which cannot authorize a forceful intervention without the support of the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council?
Lecture #1: The war on Gaza in historical & regional context | 11 March 18:30 CST R.007
Main speaker: Ramsey Nasr
Respondent: Ludo Abicht
Lecture #2: Reporting on the war on Gaza | 13 March 18:30 CST R.007
Main speaker: Ghousoon Bisharat (+972 Magazine)
Respondent: Derk Walters (NRC)
Lecture #3: Civil engagement on the war on Gaza | 18 March 18:30 CST R.007
Main speaker: Anya Topolski (Een Andere Joodse Stem)
Respondent: Rikkert Horemans (Broederlijk Delen)
Lecture #4: The war on Gaza and international law | 20 March 18:30 CST R.007
Main speakers: Maha Abdallah & Gamze Erdem Türkelli
Respondent: Tom Neijens (Belgian diplomat)