From the River to the Sea: Environmental Ecocide in Palestine
Abstract
This paper investigates the environmental and ecological impact of Apartheid through Israel’s decades-long occupation of Palestine. Chapter 1 takes a dive into the impacts that prolonged warfare can have on a region and its inhabitants and how the continued siege on Gaza threatens plans for environmental sustainability. Chapter 2 explains the historical context behind Israel’s colonization of Palestine, as well as what the country looked like before the occupation. It discusses the transformation of the land from a once prosperous agricultural society to an arable desert cleared for settlements. Chapter 3 compares and analyzes the difference in philosophies between The State of Israel and Indigenous Palestinians, the prevalent environmental racism, and the poor conditions and elevated ecological risk factors faced by Palestinians. This chapter also discusses the ostracization and alienation of Indigenous peoples on their land. Chapter 4 details the current environmental policies and laws protecting Palestine and the Palestinian people from ecological destruction and loss of biodiversity, highlighting Israel’s present and future violations of Palestinian Environmental Rights and a global lack of interference in the genocide. Chapter 5 explores the essentiality of an immediate ceasefire and end to US intervention in the Middle East, imploring that the land must be returned to its people to ensure a viable recovery and restoration to its formal natural glory.
