Cultural Genocide in Gaza: Legal and Psychological Impacts on Palestinian Identity
Date
2025-06-01
Authors
Nour Iriqat
Danyah Jaber
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Deanship of Research - Al-Quds University
Abstract
Cultural genocide, as theorized by Raphael Lemkin, involves the systematic destruction of a group’s cultural identity, traditions, and historical memory. In Gaza, the ongoing targeting of cultural, religious, and educational institutions by Israeli forces raises serious questions about whether these acts constitute cultural genocide. This study explores how the destruction of sites such as mosques, churches, libraries, and universities functions as a means of erasing Palestinian identity and severing connections to heritage and collective memory. The research aims to examine whether such acts fall under Lemkin’s broader concept of genocide, despite the exclusion of cultural genocide from the 1948 Genocide Convention. It also investigates how this legal omission enables impunity and complicates international recognition of cultural destruction as a form of mass atrocity.