Seth J. Frantzman

Empire, State and the Bedouin of the Middle East, Past and Present: A Comparative Study of Land and Settlement Policies

The Bedouin of the Middle East have been one of the regions most marginalized groups in modern times. This study assesses the interplay between state policies and the Bedouin in the last 150 years, from a comparative standpoint. We examine the development of land laws in the Middle East as they have affected the Bedouin, from the enactment of the Ottoman land laws of 1858 up to the present. Moreover we explore whether the land laws and the fate of the Bedouin are associated with the characteristics of the regime in each country. We find that the imposition of land laws and policies directed at nomadic and sedentarizing Bedouins has depended on disparate factors such as the origins of the leadership of countries (i.e. Bedouin or non-Bedouin) and the social and economic models embraced. Regimes with origins in the tribal-Bedouin fabric of the Middle East have pursued land policies that were favorable to the Bedouin, whereas regimes drawing their strength from urban elites and with socialist outlooks encouraged very different policies. We also consider whether the case of the Bedouin in Israel is unique or reflects a larger regional context.

The Negev: Land, Settlement, the Bedouin and Ottoman and British Policy 1871–1948

Focusing on the sub-district of Beersheba in British Mandatory Palestine, we examine issues of colonial administration, land use, relations between the government and indigenous nomads and extension of government control over marginal regions. Based on archival primary written sources and maps, we assess British Mandatory policy in the Negev, in the contexts of land ownership, settlement and the Bedouin population. The British Mandatory administration inherited a Southern Palestine Negev region that had been affected by a robust Ottoman policy of increasing administrative intervention, policing, land settlement and overall projection of government power. During 30 years of Mandatory rule, the policy was markedly different. The Beersheba sub-district, which incorporated almost half the area of Mandatory Palestine, was a unique administrative unit, populated almost entirely by nomadic Bedouins. Although the Mandatory authorities foresaw land settlement and sedenterisation as a goal in Palestine, they did not apply their administrative apparatus to fulfil this policy in the Negev, neglecting much of it.

The Anglican Church in Palestine and Israel: Colonialism, Arabization and Land Ownership

This study investigates the history and development of the Anglican Church under the Turkish, British, Jordanian and Israeli regimes. The paper recounts the development of various societies within the Anglican church and their politization, especially in the context of decolonization and the Arab-Israeli conflict over time. Our analysis is strengthened by an examination of the struggle over Church property between the local Arab clergy, the British Church leaders and the Israeli government. We conclude with a discussion of the scope and nature of the political and spatial/legal development of the Anglican Church in Palestine/Israel in the modern era. We stress the unique influence of spatial, political, economic, and political implications, at the local and international levels and situate the history within the general context of the Middle East, colonialism, Church history and local empowerment.

“One of the most spectacular lawsuits ever launched”: Abdülhamid's heirs, his lands and the land case in Palestine, 1908-1950

This paper is a sequel to Fischel and Karks study on the private lands owned by Sultan Abdulhamid II (1842-1918, ruled 1876-1909) in Palestine and analyzes their fate after his forced abdication. In particular, we examine the court cases that arose around these lands, cases which were initiated by his heirs after 1920. For 28 years the heirs, led by his eldest son, Mohammad Selim and his daughter Amina Namika, approached half a dozen governments in the Middle East and Europe to regain the properties they claimed. The appeals represented a test of the British colonial legal system as well as issues of land settlement and the role of foreign courts in interpreting Turkish and Ottoman law. We furthermore examine the disposition of the sultans lands from his abdication in 1909 to the last attempts by his heirs to recover them from the State of Israel in 1950, the general context of his lands in the Middle East as a whole, and the legal precedent set by the Mandatory Palestine court cases.

General Gordon, the Palestine Exploration Fund and the Origins of 'Gordon's Calvary' in the Holy Land

With Charles George Gordon’s pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 1883 as our focus, we argue that Gordon was not only an essential fi gure in the foundation of the Garden Tomb, but that he was the penultimate symbol of Victorian England’s perception of the Holy Land, embodying the new elements of biblical critique and evangelism in the same person. He was more than a symbol of his era but also one of the last prominent Englishmen to wrestle with these confl icting ideologies. In this paper, the religious, mystical motivations for his visit to the Holy Land and its implications are highlighted, as well as his semi-ascetic retirement. Based on primary sources, including his letters written in 1883, and his sketches, maps, and other sources, we focus on his theological ideas with special reference to his view of Calvary, which led to the founding of the Garden Tomb Association in the year 1894, and to the creation of the Jerusalem Protestant Garden Tomb which exists to the present, outside the Old City walls of Jerusalem.

Negev Bedouin and Indigenous People: A Comparative Review

In 2007 the United Nation (UN) adopted the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (DRIP). Even though this declaration is not legally binding, it drew international attention to the situation of indigenous populations as marginal groups that deserve special attention in the current process of globalization. The DRIP strengthened demands for indigenous rights . In Israel , the indigenous discourse began in the last 2 decades, focusing mainly on the Bedouin’s demand for private land ownership by way of recognition as the indigenous population of the Negev, in southern Israel. This article seeks to explore the development of the indigenous concept at the international level and applies the analysis to the case of the Negev Bedouin . The first part presents the roots of the indigenous concept and the development of the indigenous rights regime under international law. Since the DRIP does not include a formal workable definition it is necessary to explore legal definitions and to present a set of widely accepted characteristics. The second part deals with the regional and local levels: the Middle East (ME) and Israel. We present a brief history of the region, the various regimes, and the Islamic and Ottoman legal heritage. We distinguish between the ME’s history and the terra nullius or “discovered” territories where the indigenous concept was first applied. Then we relate specifically to the Bedouin of the Negev, their Arabian Peninsula origin, and the late date of arrival in the Negev of their forbearers. We also explore their current situation. The third part examines the question of whether the Negev Bedouin claim for recognition as an “indigenous people ” is consistent with the main features and parameters that were explored in the first part. Following the analysis, we argue that implementing the indigenous concept in Israel is inappropriate and that the Negev Bedouin claims are not compatible with prevailing notions of indigeneity .

The Catholic Church in Palestine/Israel: Real Estate in Terra Sancta

This paper traces the history and development of Catholic real estate ownership in Palestine/Israel, uses of the properties, and the impact on the physical and cultural landscapes and on identity formation of the local population. It takes a long-term perspective, beginning with the return, after a short absence, of the Franciscans to the Holy Land in the fourteenth century and ending with the present position of the Catholic Church and the properties of its various sects and orders. It examines the history of the Catholic Church in Palestine/Israel under the Ottoman, British, Jordanian, Egyptian and Israeli regimes. In contrast to the large body of existing scholarship on the Catholic Church in the Holy Land, this examination of the local history of the Catholic Church views it through the prism of land ownership and properties. The landholdings of the Catholics are compared and contrasted with findings of previous studies by authors on those of the Greek-Orthodox and Anglican churches. Special attention is paid to the differences in frameworks, functions and geographic dispersal of the church organs, such as monasteries and educational institutions as well as the property of the local Arab Greek-Catholics. The article also examines the effect of Arabization of the Catholic clergy in relation to the lands owned by the Catholic Church and finds that, unlike other churches in the Holy Land, the Catholic Church has not generally experienced ethnic-related dissent over property.