030191 KU Israel, the Westbank & Gaza (2024S)

The Middle East Conflict is arguably one of the world’s most complex and persistent trouble spots. Hidden behind the horrors of actual warfare, restless diplomacy and a public discourse frequently not lacking in all too easy proposals for solutions, there is a whole array of problems, some of them dating back to the times, when, what is today Israel, the Westbank and Gaza, were ruled by Ottoman Turkey. By making a turn to history and by exploring the Middle East conflict from the perspective of international and constitutional law from the end of the 19th century this class aims at providing a better understanding of some of the core issues, which are at the heart of the present conflict. Along the way the class will link the current problems to general challenges of international and constitutional law, such as the meaning of sovereignty, national self-determination, the relationship between the secular and the sacred, therelationship between state and nation or the land question. As part of the attempt to explore the Middle East conflict in the context of international and constitutional law the class will pay particular attention to the transfer of legal institutes and legal provisions developed within the Habsburg Empire in order to contain the nationality conflicts to the Middle East.