Table Of ContentReconstructing Jihad amid
Competing International Norms
Reconstructing Jihad amid
Competing International Norms
By Halim Rane
RECONSTRUCTING JIHAD AMID COMPETING INTERNATIONAL NORMS
Copyright © Halim Rane, 2009.
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2009 978-0-230-61483-3
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To Nora,
I’m here because of you.
Contents
List of Abbreviations ix
Preface xi
Introduction 1
Part I: The Israel-Palestine Conflict
1 Origin, Nature, and Progression of the Conflict 17
2 The United Nations Security Council Resolutions
on the Question of Palestine: A Normative Framework
for a Just Resolution 47
Part II: Theoretical Foundation
3 Constructivism and the Role of International Norms
and Identity in Conflict Resolution 73
4 Contemporary Realities and the Imperative of a
Nonviolent Intifada 105
Part III: Reformulation
5 The Islamic Doctrines of War and Peace 135
6 Putting Jihad into Context: Intent, Purpose,
and Objectives 159
Conclusion 203
Notes 213
Glossary 217
References 221
Index 233
Abbreviations
AMA: Agreement on Movement and Access
DFLP: Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine
EU: European Union
DOP: Declaration of Principles
GI: Geneva Initiative
IAEA: International Atomic Energy Agency
ICJ: International Court of Justice
IDF: Israeli Defense Forces
JA: Jewish Agency
JNF: Jewish National Fund
KN: Knowledge Network
NAM: Non-Aligned Movement
OCHA: Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
OIC: Organization of the Islamic Conference
PA: Palestinian Authority
PFLP: Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine
PIPA: Program on International Policy Attitudes
PLO: Palestinian Liberation Organization
UN: United Nations
x abbreviations
UNC: United National Command
UNDOF: United Nations Disengagement Observer Force
UNEF: United Nations Emergency Force
UNIFIL: United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon
UNGA: United Nations General Assembly
UNLU: United Leadership of the Uprising
UNRWA: United Nations Relief and Works Agency
UNSC: United Nations Security Council
UNSCOP: United Nations Special Committee on Palestine
WZO: World Zionist Organization
Preface
I completed my undergraduate degree (with honors) from the Inter-
national Islamic University Malaysia. While I recall having developed
an interest in the impact of colonialism on Islam and the Muslim
world generally, the case of Palestine was not, during those years, a
particular concentration. It was not until returning to Australia, and
after completing my Master’s degree—when I was approached by the
Head of International Relations at Bond University to develop and
teach a course entitled Islam and contemporary civilization—that I
began to read on the issue in depth. Prior to embarking on this book,
I had been following and reading on the Israel-Palestine issue for sev-
eral years. During the years I have worked on this book, my thoughts
on a resolution of the conflict have become increasingly focused. My
first major contribution to the topic was published in the journal
Global change, peace and security in an article entitled “Reformulating
jihad in the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: A theoretical
framework” (Rane, 2007).
In early 2006, I spent several weeks in Israel and Palestine orient-
ing myself to the physical, geographical, and infrastructural context
of the lands and their people. There, I conducted in-depth interviews
with Israeli and Palestinian academics, researchers, peace negotiators,
political advisors, social workers, human rights and peace activists, and
business people, as well as Western diplomats posted in Israel and Pal-
estine. I also spoke at length with everyday Israelis and Palestinians.
I give my sincere thanks to all of those people who gave me their time
and shared with me their knowledge, experiences, insights, concerns,
and aspirations. They have significantly enriched and expanded my
own understanding and analysis of the issues.
The focus of this book is the situation of the Palestinians and, prin-
cipally, how they might best contribute to creating conditions most
conducive to achieving a just peace in the context of contemporary
international normative and political dynamics. I take a multidisci-
plinary approach in this examination of the Israel-Palestine conflict.
xii preface
It is unique in that its approach combines theoretical and method-
ological perspectives from both the fields of international relations
and Islamic studies. There are three central research questions of this
book: What is the main obstacle to a just peace in Israel-Palestine?
What is the mechanism through which the Israel-Palestine conflict can
be resolved? What is required of the Palestinians in order to advance
this process?
Utilizing the constructivist perspective of international relations
along with the contextualist and objective-oriented (maqasid
approaches of Islamic studies, the aim of this book is to determine the
conditions under which a just resolution of the conflict is probable.
Based on relevant research and statistics, it demonstrates why Palestin-
ian nonviolence would be more conducive to their liberation struggle
than violent resistance and how this is a legitimate and authentic form
of jihad consistent with the higher objectives of Islam—a necessary real-
ization for Islamic militants if the conflict is to find a just resolution.
Independent of strategic and material concerns, international norms
and identity factors are fundamental determinants of the interests and
policies of even the most powerful nations. In the context of the Israel-
Palestine conflict, a just resolution has been obstructed by the compe-
tition that exists between the norms of self-determination (central to
Palestinian claims) and self-defense (central to Israeli concerns). This
book makes a significant contribution to the literature on international
norms by exploring the implications for conflict resolution when two
equally legitimate norms compete. With the norm of self-defense pre-
dominant in the peace process, Palestinian use of violence has become
increasingly detrimental to their struggle for self-determination.
However, the dominant interpretations and application of jihad
equates the concept with armed struggle. A just resolution of the
Israel-Palestine conflict requires a reconstruction of jihad through a
process that broadens the concept to include nonviolent resistance
but that retains Islamic legitimacy and authenticity. This reconstruc-
tion, based on context and objectives, will make a critical contribu-
tion to generating the requisite international support for the norm
of self-determination for the Palestinians, without compromising the
norm of self-defense for the Israelis. It is argued that this approach
may contribute to a redirection of the strategic and material interests
of influential states and has the potential to shift their foreign poli-
cies toward a just resolution of the conflict based on the normative
framework provided by the relevant resolutions of the United Nations
Security Council (UNSC).
