11Received 28.05.2025. Revised 25.06.2025. Accepted 31.07.2025.
Abstract. The Palestinian-Israeli conflict is ethnopolitical in nature. It has a number of features that distinguish it from other conflicts of a similar type. The distinctive features of the conflict go beyond the contradictions at the level of regional politics. They touch on the deep nature of the Arab-Israeli/Palestinian-Israeli conflict. In addition to the political and economic component of the conflict, other factors such as culture, values of ethnic identity are of great importance. From the very beginning, the Arab-Israeli conflict in Palestine reflected more than just a struggle for the territory. It was a struggle for their history, myths, traditions, and religion, associated with this land by both peoples. The expanding borders of the Israeli state especially after the 1967 war are perceived by Palestinians not only as a confirmation of the seizure of their territories, but also as an assertion of differences and hostility between the two peoples. Due to the ethnic component, it is perceived by the parties not only as a conflict of interests but as a conflict of values. The concept and essence of ethnopolitical conflict and the complexity of its regulation reflect the main characteristics of the Palestinian-Israeli confrontation. These features make the Arab-Israeli conflict the most difficult to manage and to settle. The difficulties of resolution through political compromises create serious problems for the peace process. Despite the ongoing local and international peace efforts, the Jews, Arabs, and other residents of Israel and the Palestinian territories (i. e. the West Bank and Gaza) have endured decades of political, social, and physical upheaval with periodic eruptions of violence.
Keywords: ethnopolitical conflict, conflicts of values, violence, long-term effects of war, collective memories, ethos of conflicts, psychological stress
REFERENCES
1. Shevtsov V.M. Ethnopolitical conflicts: Mechanisms for their solution. Moscow, “UMC”, 2024. 80 ð. (In Russ.) Available at: https://www.litres.ru/book/valeriy-mihaylovich/etnopoliticheskie-konflikty-mehanizmy-ih-uregulirovan-70985146/chitat-onlayn/ (accessed 11.07.2025).
2. Zelenkov M.Yu. Social Conflictology. Textbook. Moscow, MIIT Law Institute, 2003. 262 p. (In Russ.)
3. Cherkesov B.A. Cultural Fundamentals of ethnopolitical conflicts. Fundamental Research, 2005, no. 9, pp. 110-112. (In Russ.) Available at: https://fundamental-research.ru/ru/article/view?id=6641 (accessed 26.03.2025).
4. Naumkin V.V., Kuznecov V.A. Gaza. Yemen. The Epicenter of pain. About Feelings, Myths and Memories in the Middle East. “Valdai” International Discussion Club, 2024. 23 p. (In Russ.) Available at: https://ru.valdaiclub.com/files/47263/ (accessed 11.07.2025).
5. Blohina O.V. Contemporal Political Conflicts of Modern Times: Theory and Practice. The GUU Newsletter, 2014, no. 6, pp. 238-242. (In Russ.) Available at: https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/politicheskie-konflikty-sovremennosti-teoriya-i-praktika (accessed 11.07.2025).
6. Lantsov S.A., ed. Political Conflictology. Moscow, St. Petersburg, 2008. 319 p. (In Russ.)
7. Nafees H. Opinion: Psychology explains why the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is so intractable. CNN, 16.01.2024. Available at: https://edition.cnn.com/2024/01/16/opinions/opinion-psychology-of-israeli-palestinian-conflict-hamid/index.html (accessed 16.01.2024).
8. Zvyagelskaya I.D. Religious nationalists in Palestine and Israel: Return to the forefront? Polis. Political Studies, 2024, no. 6, pp. 91-103. (In Russ.) DOI: 10.17976/jpps/2024.06.07
9. Zvyagelskaya I.D., ed. The Middle East: Politics and Identity. Collective Monograph. IMEMO. Moscow, “Aspekt Press”, 2020. 336 p. (In Russ.)
10. Kosach G.G. Arab World: Identity and structure of the geopolitical region. The Middle East and Modernity, 2009, no. 39. (In Russ.) Available at: http://www.iimes.ru/?p=8483 (accessed 19.03.2009).
11. Kudryashova I.V. The Muslim Political Identity in modern times: Sacred Text and Social Experience. RUDN Journal of Political Science, 2017, vol. 19, no. 4, pp. 349-365. (In Russ.) DOI: 10.22363/2313-1438-2017-19-4-349-365
12. Lebedev S.V. Israeli-Arab Conflict Through the Prism of Political Psychology. Russian Oriental Studies, 12.10.2023. (In Russ.) Available at: https://orientaliarossica.com/page/14/99976 (accessed 12.10.2023).
13. Aptekar P. The Arab-Isael conflict: on the Ground and in Minds. HSE Daily, 15.11.2023. (In Russ.) Available at: https://www.daily.hse.ru/post/arabo-izrailskii-konflikt-na-zemle-i-v-umax (accessed 15.11.2023).
14. Nestik T.A. The Influence of Military Conflicts on the Psychological State of Society: Promising Areas of Research. Social Psychology and Society, 2023, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 5-22. (In Russ.) DOI: 10.17759/sps.2023140401
15. Nuttman-Shwartz O., Dekel R., Regev I. Continuous exposure to life threats among different age groups in different types of communities. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 2015, no. 7 (3), pp. 269-276. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1037/a0038772
16. Abudayya A., Bruaset T.F., Nyhus H.B., Aburukba R., Tofthagen R. Consequences of war-related traumatic stress among Palestinian young people in the Gaza Strip: A scoping review. Mental Health & Prevention, 2023, vol. 32, pp. 1-15. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mhp.2023.200305
17. Abu Rabia R., Hendel T., Kagan I. Views of Bedouin physicians and nurses on nursing as a profession in Israel: there is more to strive for. Nursing and Health Sciences, 2021, no. 23 (2), pp. 498-505. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/nhs.12834
18. Axelrad H., Matar H., Tehawkho M. The Digital Challenge Facing Israeli Arab Society. IDC Herzliya, June 2021. Available at: https://www.runi.ac.il/media/adtj5514/the_digital_challenge_facing_israeli_arab_society.pdf (accessed 11.07.2025).
19. Shvartsur R., Savitsky B. Civilians under Missile Attack: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder among the Jewish and Bedouin Population of Southern Israel. Israel Journal of Health Policy Research, 2024, vol. 13, pp. 1-12. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13584-024-00625-9
20. Besser A., Neria Y. When Home Isn’t a Safe Haven: Insecure Attachment Orientations, Perceived Social Support, andPTSD Symptoms among Israeli Evacuees under Missile Threat. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 2012, no. 4 (1), pp. 34-46. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1037/a0017835
21. Ellenberg E., Yakir A., Bar-On Z., Sasson Y., Luft-Afik D., Cohen O., Lavenda O., Mahat-Shamir M., Hamama-Raz Y., Ben Ezra M., Frueh C., Ostfeld I. Naturalistic Study of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Among Israeli Civilians Exposed to Wartime Attacks. Psychiatric Services, 2021, no. 72 (9), pp. 1026-1030. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.201900313
22. Bar-Tal D., Sharvit K., Galperin E., Zafran A. Ethos of conflict: The concept and its measurement. Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology, 2012, no. 18 (1), pp. 40-61. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1037/a0026860
23. Freitas S. The Nature of intractable conflict: resolution in the twenty-first century. Accord, 17.12.2015. Available at: https://www.accord.org.za/ajcr-issues/the-nature-of-intractable-conflict-resolution-in-the-twenty-first-century/ (accessed 17.12.2015).
24. Bar Siman-Tov Y., ed. The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: From Conflict Resolution to Conflict Management. The Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, 2007. 303 p.
25. Bar-Tal D. Sociopsychological Foundations of Intractable Conflicts. American Behavioral Scientist, 2007, vol. 50, no. 11, pp. 2-25. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764207302462
26. Somer E., Ruvio A. The Going Gets Tough, So Let’s Go Shopping: On Materialism, Coping, and Consumer Behaviors Under Traumatic Stress. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 2014, no. 19 (5), pp. 426-441. DOI: 10.1080/15325024.2013.794670
27. Andreev A.L., ed. Political Psychology: University Textbook. Moscow, Uright, 2025. 162 p. (In Russ.) Available at: https://urait.ru/bcode/564560 (accessed 11.07.2025).
28. Golynchik E.O. Etos of Intractable Interethnic Conflict: Research Approaches and Study Prospects. RUDN Journal of Psychology and Pedagogics, 2020, ò. 17, no. 1, pp. 29-50. (In Russ.) DOI: 10.22363/2313-1683-2020-17-1-29-50
29. Fiedler C., Rohles C. Social cohesion after armed conflict: A literature review. DIE, July 2021. DOI: 10.23661/dp7.2021.v1.1
30. Lojenberger K. The Walls are erected in August. New Literary Review, 2012, no. 4. (In Russ.) Available at: https://www.nlobooks.ru/magazines/novoe_literaturnoe_obozrenie/116_nlo_4_2012/article/18879/ (accessed 11.07.2025).
31. Mitchell G.J. Sharm El-Sheikh Fact-Finding Committee Report. US Department of State, 30.04.2001. Available at: https://2001-2009.state.gov/p/nea/rls/rpt/3060.htm (accessed 11.07.2025).
32. El-Deek J. The Image of the Israeli: Its Evolution in the Palestinian Mind. Palestine-Israel Journal: Psychological Dimensions of the Conflict, 1994, no. 4, pp. 53-56.
33. Falk A. Fratricide in the Holy Land: A Psychoanalytic View of the Arab-Israeli Conflict. Wisconsin, The University of Wisconsin Press, 2004. 280 p.
34. Beit-Halahmi B. Some Psychosocial and Cultural Factors in the Arab-Israeli Conflict: A Review of the Literature. Journal îf Conflict Resolution, 1972, no. 16 (2), pp. 269-280. Available at: https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/handle/2027.42/66497/10.1177_002200277201600210.pdf?sequence=2 (accessed 11.07.2025).
35. Kushner H. To Life: A Celebration of Jewish Being and Thinking. Warner Books, 1994. 304 p.
36. Shutcenberger A.A. Ancestral Syndrom. Moscow, “Psihoterapiya”, 2020. 254 p. (In Russ.)
37. Stern J., Kolk B., van der. POV: Israeli-Palestinian Conflict and Psychology of Trauma. BU Today, 10.01.2024. Available at: https://www.bu.edu/articles/2024/the-israeli-palestinian-conflict-and-the-psychology-of-trauma/ (accessed 10.01. 2024).
38. Mahmoud M. Can Palestinians imagine a future with Israelis after this war? Portside, 31.05.2024. Available at: https://portside.org/2024-05-31/can-palestinians-imagine-future-israelis-after-war (accessed 27.05.2024).
39. Krylov A.V., Morozov V.M. Islam in Palestine. Efimova L.M., Sapronova M.A., ed. Islam in State and Political Systems of the Orient Countries: Textbook. Moscow, MGIMO-University, 2018, pp. 88-117. (In Russ.)
40. Sharon S. Messeanism, Misticism and Madjic. A sociological Analisys of the Jewish Religious Movement. Studies in Religion. Chapel Hill, The University of North California Press, 1982. 230 p.
41. Hoffman B. Understanding Hamas’s Genocidal Ideology. The Atlantic, 10.10.2023. Available at: https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2023/10/hamas-covenant-israel-attack-war-genocide/675602/ (accessed 16.10.2023).
42. Kosach G.G. Palestine and Palestinians. Reflections on the Palestinian Problem. Moscow, IV RAN, 2024. 358 p. (In Russ.)
43. Gorin A.A. Religious Wars. Historical overview. Kazan, KFU, 2018. 280 p. (In Russ.) Available at: https://kpfu.ru/staff_files/F1879331364/MONOGRAFIYa_OKONChATELNYJ_VARIANT.pdf (accessed 11.07.2025).
44. Karasova T.A. Aggravation of the smoldering Palestinian-Israeli conflict in May 2021. Historical Psychology and Sociology of History, 2021, no. 1, pp. 75-84. (In Russ.) DOI: 10.30884/ipsi/2021.01.06
45. Arad U. Territorial Exchanges and the Two-State Solution for the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict. Working Paper. Submitted for the Herzliya Conference. IDC Herzliya, 2006, January 21–24. Available at: https://www.runi.ac.il/media/mmymmwpb/2135stahim2006.pdf (accessed 11.07.2025).
46. Cook J. How will US Jerusalem move affect Israel’s far right? Al Jazeera, 10.12.2017. Available at: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/12/10/how-will-us-jerusalem-move-affect-israels-far-right (accessed 10.12.2017).
47. Karasova T.A. The Story of Israeli Alternatives to the Two-States Solution. MGIMO Review of International Relations, 2010, no. 5 (14), pp. 173-181. (In Russ.) Available at: https://doi.org/10.24833/2071-8160-2010-5-14-173-181
SOURCES
1. Timofey Nestik: “Social Optimism will Help to Overcome Psychological Trauma against the Background of the SMO”. Vechernyaya Kazan, 24.11.2023. (In Russ.) Available at: https://dzen.ru/a/ZWBAjNv9hxez1ue?ysclid=m9ycn5isxp671316471 (accessed 24.11.2023).
2. Psychology of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (lecture by Sam Vaknin). Olga Kovaleva. Pogovorim, 25.10.2023. (In Russ.) Available at: https://yandex.ru/video/preview/4371430372368929568 (accessed 11.07.2025).
No comments