Contact Us

Zionism is an extension of Western imperialism in the Holy Land: Historian

Prominent Palestinian American historian Ussama Makdisi underscores the paradox of European antisemitism contributing to sympathy for Zionism and explores how the Jewish Question influenced Western backing for the movement, citing the example of British Secretary Edwin Montagu's opposition to the Balfour Declaration.

  • 4
  • 12
Elaborating on the Europeanness of Zionism, he highlighted that Zionism emerged in Europe, not among the Jewish communities of the Ottoman Empire or the Middle East or the wider Muslim word. "Namely, Zionism responded to European questions. It responded to European antisemitism, European racism, European nationalism and European romanticism. Zionist leaders also proposed a quintessentially European solution: colonizing somebody's else land and transforming it into a European-style Jewish state."