The Conflict over the Conflict: Israel/Palestine and German Universities
Panel Discussion

Few current topics have polarized German society as strongly as the Middle East conflict and the relationship to Israel and Palestine. Since the Hamas massacre in Israel on October 7, 2023, which caused the deaths of more than 1,200 people and led to the taking as hostages of more than 200 others, and Israel’s subsequent war on Hamas in Gaza, which has killed tens of thousands of civilians, violence in the region has only escalated, as has the fierceness of the debate in Germany. Universities have become a point of particular focus: as places of protest, eagerly watched by the media, but of course also as places of scholarship and expertise.

While considering the causes and dynamics of the current polarization, the panel will address a number of crucial questions: What kind of potential does scholarly debate possess in times of crisis? Which role should universities play in society and what are the conditions that enable them to fulfill this role? How does the scholarly discourse on Israel/Palestine differ between German universities and universities in the English-speaking world? How much freedom does scholarly discourse require, and where should the limits of dialogue be set? Jacob Eder will lead a discussion of these questions with Johannes Becke, Miriam Rürup, and Eckart Woertz.

Johannes Becke studied political science at the University of Heidelberg, at the University of Illinois, and at Cairo University. Since 2020 he has been Professor of Israel and Middle East Studies and held the Ben-Gurion Chair at the Heidelberg University of Jewish Studies. His research focuses on modern Israeli society and Arab-Israeli relations.

Miriam Rürup studied history, sociology, and European ethnology at the universities of Göttingen and Tel Aviv. From 2012 to 2020 she was director of the Hamburg Institute for the History of the German Jews. Since then, she has served as director of the Moses Mendelssohn Center for European-Jewish Studies at the University of Potsdam.

Eckart Woertz studied political science, political economics, and Islamic Studies in Erlangen, Damascus, and Berlin. Since 2019 he has been Professor of Contemporary History and Politics of the Middle East at the University of Hamburg and Director of the GIGA Institute for Middle East Studies. He previously held positions at the Barcelona Center for International Affairs, Sciences Po in Paris, Princeton University, and the Gulf Research Center in Dubai, and has worked for banks in Germany and the United Arab Emirates.

Presented in German
Featuring a musical performance by Barenboim-Said Akademie student Katia Abdel Kader