The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is multifaceted, stemming from ethnic, national, historical, and, crucially, religious factors. While the influence of religion is often acknowledged, its profound impact on the identities, issues, policies, and attitudes of both religious and secular participants is frequently underestimated. This essay explores the core religious dimensions of the conflict and highlights the need for religious considerations in achieving a lasting solution.
The Centrality of Religion: Islam and Judaism
Several religious factors within Islam and Judaism contribute to the conflict’s religious core. The sanctity of holy sites and the apocalyptic narratives prevalent in both religions exacerbate tensions and hinder the prospect of lasting peace. Increasingly, religious Zionists in Israel view themselves as guardians of the Jewish state, exhibiting strict stances on concessions to Arabs. Conversely, Islamist groups in Palestine and the broader Islamic world advocate for the liberation of “holy” territories and sites, often preaching violence and hatred against Israel and the Jewish people.
Religion-based rumors disseminated by extremists via media and social media amplify these tensions. Fabrications about a “Jewish Plan” to destroy the al-Aqsa Mosque and construct the Third Temple, and counter-rumors that Muslims seek the annihilation of Jews, further inflame passions.
Worsening socioeconomic conditions in the Arab and Islamic world fuel religious radicalism, driving more youth towards fanaticism and religion-inspired politics.
The Arab Spring, paradoxically, also posed a threat to Arab-Israeli peace, with newly empowered extremist political views challenging previously stable regimes. The Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, for example, threatened to compromise the peace agreement with Israel based on its religious ideology after ascending to the presidency in 2012.
Practical Consequences on Negotiations
Examining permanent status issues – borders, security, mutual recognition, refugees, West Bank settlements, and Jerusalem – reveals that the latter two are intrinsically linked to the faiths of Jewish and Muslim people globally. Contested ownership and authority over Jerusalem arise from the presence of holy sites for Christians, Jews, and Muslims. This conflict is deeply entrenched in history, with Jerusalem enduring numerous attacks, captures, sieges, and destructions under various rulers, including Egyptians, Canaanites, Israelites, Greeks, Romans, Persians, Byzantines, Islamic Caliphates, Crusaders, Ottomans, and the British.
In Jewish and Biblical history, Jerusalem served as the capital of the Kingdom of Israel during King David’s reign. It houses the Temple Mount and the Western Wall, sites of immense sanctity in Judaism. In Islamic history, the city was the first Muslim Qiblah (direction of prayer). The Qur’an also identifies it as the location of Prophet Muhammad’s Isra’ and Mi’raj (Night Journey and Ascension).
The sanctity of Jerusalem resonates deeply among Muslims worldwide, not just Palestinians. Reactions to violence in Gaza and the West Bank following the U.S. embassy relocation to Jerusalem demonstrate a prevalent religious framing, even among seemingly secular individuals. Narratives on social media and in the media often incorporate religious references.
The West Bank settlement issue also carries a religious dimension. The physical restoration of the biblical Land of Israel before the Messiah’s return is central to the beliefs of some Orthodox Jews, leading them to settle the West Bank and clash with local Palestinians.
Conversely, fundamentalist schools of Islam envision the entire land of Israel and Palestine under Islamic rule at the end of days. Prophecies linked to this vision are ingrained in certain versions of the Hadith (Prophet’s sayings), although only implied in the Qur’an.
Historical and Organizational Ramifications
During the 1948 war, some Jewish extremist groups justified their actions as fulfilling a divinely promised return to the holy land. While the most extreme of these groups, such as the “Gush Emunim Underground,” were banned by Israeli authorities, their ideology persists.
On the Palestinian side, extremist groups like the Muslim Brotherhood have historically framed the conflict as an eschatological event preceding Judgment Day. Hamas, an offshoot of the Brotherhood, employs violence against Israel in the name of Islam, targeting both civilian and military entities, and using religion to garner support in Gaza and beyond through apocalyptic narratives. The Muslim Brotherhood seeks to revive Islam and re-establish the Islamic Caliphate, viewing Israel as a “foreign object” in its path.
Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Iran has been a fierce opponent of Israel, calling for its destruction based on theological grounds. Iran supports groups like Hezbollah and Hamas with financing, weapons, and training, while also backing Assad’s forces in Syria, creating a direct security threat to Israel, all ostensibly in the name of Islam.
Social Implications
Despite Egypt and Jordan establishing direct peace agreements with Israel, genuine people-to-people and cultural normalization have been hampered by various factors, including religious ones. Accepting peace with Israel can be construed as religious treachery, conflicting with the beliefs of both extremists and moderate individuals in Arab states. These religion-based conflict drivers extend beyond religious groups, reaching wider segments of society due to:
- Interest and Identity Overlap: Religious extremists’ interests often align with those of other segments of Arab and Islamic societies, sharing elements of their identities. Secular nationalists and religious Salafi Palestinians may hold similar views of Israel.
- Systematic Abuse of Linkages: Extremist groups exploit ideological and functional linkages to connect with wider societal bases. They radicalize elements with a potential inclination towards communal self-defense or superficial religious knowledge. They may also use isolated incidents of violence to justify retaliation by the wider society. Moreover, influential Imams utilize mosques and privately funded media to propagate narratives of violence against Israel and Jewish people.
Possible Interventions
Addressing the religious dimensions of the conflict requires interventions such as interfaith dialogue, recalling past instances of fruitful cooperation between Jews and Muslims, and emphasizing positive and tolerant religious values within educational systems.
The urgency and centrality of the religious component must be acknowledged in current efforts to achieve an Israeli-Palestinian resolution, or at least to mitigate the conflict and foster peaceful coexistence in the long term.
