This paper assesses the functioning of law and legal institutions in Palestine/Israel through the lens of settler colonialism by analysing two thematically interconnected decisions issued by the Supreme Court of Israel, the first involving the starvation of besieged Palestinian civilians and the second involving the force-feeding of Palestinian prisoners. Following a discussion regarding the role of law in settler colonialism, it proceeds to argue that the Court enabled, legitimised and legalised state-sanctioned violence that targeted the native Palestinian population by and through a jurisprudence of elimination in order to facilitate the attainment of Israeli settler-colonial objectives. By so doing, the paper provides further evidence in support of the appropriateness of settler colonialism as a theoretical framework for the case of Israel, including in legal matters.
This article examines the significance of a legal analysis supporting the recognition of a Palestinian human right to Israeli citizenship for the advancement of equality in Israel-Palestine. It does so by assessing the workings of Israeli citizenship in accordance with the theoretical frameworks of the nation-state and settler colonialism and in light of the one-state reality. The article demonstrates the importance of treating the two frameworks as complementary, rather than mutually exclusive, in analyses involving Palestinian rights. It argues that the struggle for Palestinian equality is not only a legal one but also a moral one, the success of which depends upon a nuanced understanding of the functioning of law in settler colonialism.
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