Perceptions of Violent National-Political Protest among Arabs Living in Israel: A Pilot Study

• Author: Moshe Bensimon,Keren Cohen-Louck,Mariana Halellya Malinovsky
• DOI: 10.1177/0306624X20952392
• Date: 01 February 2021
• Published date: 01 February 2021
• Subject Matter: Articles

https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X20952392

International Journal of

Offender Therapy and

Comparative Criminology

2021, Vol. 65(2-3) 282 –302

© The Author(s) 2020

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DOI: 10.1177/0306624X20952392

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Article

Perceptions of Violent

National-Political Protest

among Arabs Living in

Israel: A Pilot Study

Keren Cohen-Louck1, Moshe Bensimon2,

and Mariana Halellya Malinovsky2

Abstract

This pilot study examines the perceptions of Arabs living in Israel (ALI) regarding

violent national-political protests (VNPP). ALI, exposed to VNPP by organizations

of their own ethnic minority, are trapped in a political and cultural conflict between

their state and their nation. Qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews with 15

Muslim ALI identified four possible groups presenting four types of VNPP perceptions:

(a) justifiers, who regard VNPP as a legitimate means of protecting the Palestinians

and who profess Palestinian identity; (b) opponents, who strongly condemn VNPP

and who profess Israeli identity; (c) those understanding but disagreeing with VNPP,

professing a dual Palestinian-Israeli identity; and (d) the ambivalents, representing

people with internal conflicts and mixed feelings regarding the Palestinian VNPP and

their own identity. The study contributes to the understanding of how a group of ALI

perceives the Palestinian VNPP, and implies that this population consists of different

groups, each with its own unique identity.

Keywords

trapped minority, violence national political protest, Arabs living in Israel, collective

identity, ethnic minority

Introduction

The rise in global terrorism has motivated researchers to investigate the psychological

implications of terror acts (Cohen-Louck & Saka, 2017), mainly in the US and Europe

(Strebel & Steenbergen, 2017). In Israel, Palestinian terrorism exposes Jewish, Arab,

1Ariel University, Israel

2Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel

Corresponding Author:

Keren Cohen-Louck, Department of Criminology, Ariel University, Kiryat Hamada, Ariel, 40700, Israel.

Email: keren.cohenlouck@gmail.com

952392IJOXXX10.1177/0306624X20952392International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative CriminologyCohen-Louck et al.

research-article2020

Cohen-Louck et al. 283

and Christian citizens to devastating consequences (Shechory-Bitton & Silawi, 2019).

Most of the research has been done on Israeli Jews, while little attention has been paid

to Arab citizens (Wolmer et al., 2013). Those who examined consequences of terror-

ism on Arabs living in Israel (ALI) focused on psychological reactions (trauma and

post-traumatic stress disorder) and fear of terrorism Shechory-Bitton & Silawi, 2019).

The way ALI perceive terrorism as a trapped minority has never been thoroughly

researched.

“Terror” is a familiar term in the literature for Palestinian attacks against Israel

(Bensimon et al., 2013). However, some call those who attack Israeli civilians “freedom

fighters.” Therefore, we have chosen to use a more neutral term for Palestinian attacks

against Israeli civilians: “violent national-political protests (VNPP). Rabinowitz (2001)

called ALI a “trapped minority,” marginalized as a minority both in Israel and among

most non-Israeli Palestinians. According to Rabinowitz, ALI, who constitute about 21%

of the Israeli population (Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics, 2018), are painfully aware

of two conflicting national narratives and political entities: Israelis, who treat them as

less than equal citizens, and Palestinians, who regard them as problematic elements, and

whose loyalty to the Palestinian nation is suspect. According to Rabinowitz, trapped

minorities feel torn between the culture of their mother nation and the host state, and

may suffer from identity difficulties and feelings of exclusion (Pinson, 2008).

The few studies that examined trapped minorities in Israel show that ALI realize

that they are trapped in political and cultural cross-fires between their state and their

nation (Monterescu & Rabinowitz, 2007) and between their civic and national identi-

ties, being partially belonging to both. As a result, they often find it difficult and frus-

trating to define who they are (Pinson, 2008). This phenomenon was also found to

exist among the Kurd minority in Turkey, Iran, and Syria, and among Muslims in the

Balkans. Such minorities, who are citizens of a country at war with their ethnic group,

often tacitly identify with VNPP of individuals sharing their ethnicity, though they

may also feel threatened by those VNPP which target their country (Amara, 2016).

This phenomenon was also found among Muslim civilians in Africa who have been

hurt by al-Qaeda attacks (Nformi, 2018), and Muslim citizens in the UK and the US

who are threatened by violent Islamic movements (Abu-Ras & Suarez, 2009). This

study seeks to better understand the perceptions of individuals belonging to minorities

exposed to VNPP and their coping mechanisms. It is important to understand the way

these populations understand their experiences and perceptions since in violent con-

flict situations, each side tends to generalize, simplify, label, and avoid nuanced per-

ception of the other (Alon & Omer, 2005). The present study seeks to present the

complexity of perceptions among ALI, and thus prevent generalizing and labeling of

an entire population. Additionally, in conflict situations, there is a tendency for each

side to be self-centered in its pain and less attentive to hearing and seeing the other

side’s pain (Bruneau & Saxe, 2012). This study seeks to present the pain of the ALI

minority, who is in conflict with the ruling majority. This will hopefully lead to empa-

thy towards ALI and to understanding, even if not accepting, their position. In addi-

tion, the present study hopes to further advance the discourse towards reconciliation

between Jews and Arabs involved in the Israeli-Arab/Palestinian conflict.