Shippensburg University hosted a speaker event on the Israel-Palestine crisis in Gaza. Four specialists gave short presentations from their areas of expertise: Dr. Mireille Rebeiz from Dickinson College spoke about international law and human rights; the three other scholars are from Shippensburg University. Dr. David Weaver addressed the military strategy of Hamas and IDF (Israel Defense Forces); Professor Emeritus Dr. Robert Shaffer discussed the place of Israel and Palestine in terms of international relations; and Dr. Brian Ulrich gave a brief historical context of the development of Israeli and Palestinian nationalism.
Thus, these scholars covered a lot of ground, but I appreciated several key points: for instance, the critical role of the British in developing the animosity between Palestinians and Israelis in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; also, the rise in religious fundamentalism among Israeli and Palestinian leaders in more recent history. It was also interesting to hear their opinions on what the best way forward might be — to continue to pursue a two-state approach? To manage global opinion on the war to navigate a ceasefire?
The audience asked questions about the place of resources like oil and water, and the problems of widespread prejudice against Jewish people globally as well as the voices in the Israeli government who would use the war as an opportunity to destroy not just Hamas, but the Palestinian population in Gaza.
