The term ‘food fight’ usually generates images of
screeching children smooshing ice cream, jelly and cake into each other’s
faces; or drunk undergrads throwing around baked beans, pot noodle and other
excuses for food while howling with laughter before running off to go and pull
up some flowers somewhere.
As usual, when put into the context of Arab-Israeli
relations, food fights refer to a much less fun reality.
So…what’s the problem?
In recent years, there have been a number of spats
over the origin and ownership of various types of Middle Eastern food. In 2008,
Fadi Abboud, the president of the Lebanese Industrialists' Association, stated
that Lebanon was preparing an international lawsuit against Israel to stop
Israeli companies marketing products such as hummus and tabboleh as ‘Israeli’
(this is not as ridiculous as it sounds, in 2005 Greece won an international lawsuit against other EU countries for exclusive
rights to make and market ‘feta’ cheese, and won). More recently (February
2015), an article entitled: 'Israel's Answer to Hot Chocolate' caused a furore online as
Arab populations and publications insisted
that the origin of sahlab was
Arab rather than Israeli.
So what is the truth?
The truth is that it is very difficult to pinpoint
the origin of a particular kind of food; many similar foods and dishes are
eaten in numerous Middle Eastern countries. Any one country claiming ownership
of a Middle Eastern dish, will always be slightly stretching their hand
(remembering of course that the food was there before the borders of these
countries were).
There also was a Kingdom of Israel from somethingBC
to somethingBC so isn't modern-day Israeli food a continuation of ancient
Israeli food?
Well...yes and no...again, it's difficult to
pinpoint which ancient Israeli foods continued to be cooked and developed in
communities of the Jewish diaspora, and it gets even more complicated when we
remember that there were significant Jewish populations in Arab countries and
within historical Palestine itself so a blending of ancient Israeli, Jewish and
Arab foods was bound to (and did) happen.
So, the truth is really that these foods are both
Arab and Israeli.
So...why does it matter?
The increasing trend of branding certain Middle
Eastern foods as originating from, and belonging to Israel (culminating most
recently in a 32 page supplement for Waitrose Magazine, entitled 'A Taste of Israel'), is part of the Israeli state's efforts to wipe Palestinian
people, history and culture out of the annals, and out of (Western) public
consciousness.
This attempt to delete Palestinian history, culture
and people can be found in the very founding philosophy of the state of Israel:
Zionism.
Zionism today comes in many different forms but uniform amongst
them is the belief in the Jewish right to a homeland in the ex-Kingdom of
Israel (also historical Palestine). In order for this to occur, Jews obviously
had to colonise the land and replace the indigenous population of Palestinians.
Through mass Jewish immigration, Zionist terrorism, and an eventual resolution from the UN, in 1948 the state of Israel was established.
In an effort to justify the ethnic cleansing of
Palestine, part of the Israeli state narrative has always been that the land of
historical Palestine was uninhabited*, and that (therefore) there is no such
thing as Palestinians.** Indeed, many Israeli citizens refuse to even use
the term ‘Palestinian’ as this recognises their existence and the previous
existence of a land called Palestine. Instead, many use the term: 'West Bank
Arabs' (for Palestinians in the West Bank. They have other terms for other
populations of Palestinians depending on where they're now living). This
widespread refusal to recognise the existence of Palestinians is not only a
refusal to recognise their right to the land, but also a refusal to recognise
their history and culture, which includes food. Israel’s attempt to
invisibilise Palestinians – to deny their very existence – is promoted,
supported and disseminated by publications such as that produced by Waitrose
last month.
None of this negates the fact that falafel or
hummus may also be national dishes of Israel, and be close to the hearts of
many Israelis (which I know they are). The point is that these do not belong to
Israel; these foods and dishes come from a rich, diverse, and mostly Arab
history which Israeli - and Western - press attempt to ignore.
Though seemingly (and perhaps realistically) small
fry in the wider context of Israeli-Arab politics in the region, it is in fact
seemingly small, apparently insignificant cultural appropriations like this one
that enable Israel to supplant itself in the place of Palestine both on the
ground and in the minds of the general public.
So next time you’re lifting that falafel sandwich to
your mouth or dipping your bread in hummus, why not instead throw it in the
face of an Israeli and shout PALESTINE! (and then run away quickly as you can because they will probably want to wreak swift vengeance upon you).
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*“Land without a people for a people without a
land”, Israel Zangwill (prominent Zionist), New Liberal Review, 1901.
**"Even
amidst the violent attacks launched against us for months past, we call upon
the sons of the Arab people dwelling in Israel to keep the
peace and to play their part in building the State on basis of full and equal
citizenship and due representation in all its institutions, provisional and
permanent [italics added]. Ben Gurion (1st and 3rd Prime Minister of
Israel) during Israel's Declaration of Independence, 1948.
"There were no such things as Palestinians.
They did not exist”. Golda Meir, reported in the Sunday Times 15 June 1969.
