International Protection of Palestinian Folklore as a Component of National Identity in the Face of Israeli Challenges

Abstract

This research aims to review the international protection of Palestinian popular heritage as one of the essential components of Palestinian national identity in the face of the Israeli narrative. The research employed a descriptive-analytical approach. The research problem is the main question: How do international conventions and agreements contribute to strengthening the protection of Palestinian popular heritage to confront the Israeli narrative?

The research yielded several key findings, the most significant of which are: Popular heritage is a vital component of national identity and an inherent right of peoples, and therefore enjoys international legal protection. International conventions provide an integrated legal framework for the direct and indirect protection of popular heritage. UNESCO is an organization specialized in protecting Palestinian folklore by registering elements of this heritage on World Heritage lists and exerting legal and political pressure against Israeli practices in targeting it. Case law shows that international justice has effectively contributed to the protection of tangible cultural heritage directly and popular heritage indirectly.

The research recommends calling on the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Culture to intensify efforts to register elements of Palestinian popular heritage (written, audio, and visual) on the World Heritage lists, to protect them from theft, distortion, or extinction. Calling on Palestinian embassies around the world and the Palestinian people to employ the Palestinian popular heritage as a tool for soft resistance, and to introduce the world to the Palestinian narrative in the face of the Israeli narrative. Calling on the Palestinian government to go to the International Criminal Court and file complaints against Israeli criminals about their practices of targeting Palestinian popular heritage, considering it an independent war crime. Calling on the Palestinian government to work on requesting a fatwa from the International Court of Justice regarding the Israeli targeting of Palestinian popular heritage and its effects on Palestinian identity, which contributes to protecting this heritage and strengthening the Palestinian narrative in the context of the narrative war waged by the Israeli occupying state