https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6670-4209
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ABSTRACT
The inclusion-moderation thesis posits that radical movements can be moderated through participation in democratic pluralist politics. Repeatedly applied to Islamist movements questions remain over its conceptual ambiguity and empirical veracity. Despite such weaknesses this thesis continues to be utilized to explain the diverging trajectories of the Islamic movement within Israel – its Southern accommodationist parliamentary branch (IMSB) and its separatist Northern branch (IMNB), now officially banned by Israel. This article examines this significant yet understudied movement, as a means of challenging the reductionist reading of Arab Islamist politics in Israel while at the same time rethinking the perimeters of inclusion-moderation theory. The case suggests that Islamist strategic moderation may be a result of both state repression and political inclusion but rarely does it lead to complete ideological transformation. This research suggests the IMSB’s pragmatic evolution, owes less to Knesset participation and more to internal organizational debate, a convergence of broader Arab-Israeli positions, and a response to the failings of post Arab Spring Islamist politics. Conversely, the IMNB’s perceived radicalism, is less to do with its extreme ideology but rather its own strategic framing and Israel’s ongoing fears of the mobilizing potential of Al-Aqsa mosque.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes
1 Kraetzschmar and Rivetti, Islamists and the Politics of the Arab Uprisings.
2 Yenigün, “The Political and Theological Boundaries of Islamist Moderation.”
3 Larkin and Dumper, “In Defense of Al-Aqsa.”
4 This is a concentration of Arab Israeli towns and villages close to the Green Line in the Samarian hills, stretching from Umm al-Fahm in the North to Kfar Qasim in the South.
5 Rubin, “Islamic Political Activism in Israel.”
6 Interview, Shaykh Sarsour, Kfar Qasim, August 2016.
7 Abu Oksa Daoud. “Israel and the Islamist Challenge,” 56.
8 Eseed, “When the State Fails to Provide Services.”
9 See Tilde Rosmer, “Raising the Green Banner” and “Agents of Change.”
10 Abu Oksa Daoud, “Islamism, Nationalism and Modernization.”
11 Rekhess, “The Islamic Movement in Israel.”
12 Louër, To be an Arab in Israel; Rubin, “Islamic Political Activism in Israel.”
13 The Prime Minister’s Office Press Release, “Security Cabinet Outlaws Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel” (November 17, 2015), https://mfa.gov.il/MFA/PressRoom/2015/Pages/Security-Cabinet-outlaws-northern-branch-of-Islamic-Movement-in-Israel-17-Nov-2015.aspx.
14 Israeli, Islamic Radicalism and Political Violence; Tal, Spreading the Movement’s Message.
15 Ghanem and Mustafa, “Explaining Political Islam.”
16 Pahwa, “Pathways of Islamist Adaptation.”
17 Schwedler, “Can Islamists Become Moderates?,” 349.
18 Schwedler, Faith in Moderation. Islamist Parties in Jordan and Yemen; Clark, “The Conditions of Islamist Moderation.”
19 Ashour, The De-Radicalization of Jihadists.
20 Tezcur, The Paradox of Moderation, 10.
21 Clark, “The Conditions of Islamist Moderation.”
22 Wickham, “The Path to Moderation.”
23 Jaffrelot, “Refining the Moderation Thesis,” 888.
24 Kalyvas, “Democracy and Religious Politics,” 296.
25 Pahwa, “Pathways of Islamist Adaptation,” 1080.
26 Ashour, The De-Radicalization of Jihadists, 14–15.
27 Schwedler, “Can Islamists Become Moderates?.”
28 Tepe, “Moderation of Religious Parties.”
29 Wickham, Mobilizing Islam.
30 Tezcur, “The Moderation Theory Revisited.”
31 Cavatorta and Garcia, “Islamism in Mauritania.”
32 Hamid, Temptations of Power.
33 Karakaya and Yildirim, “Islamist Moderation in Perspective.”
34 Ibid., 1324.
35 Cavatorta and Garia, “Islamism in Mauritania,” 307.
36 Bayat, “Islamism and Social Movement Theory,” 900.
37 Schwedler, “Conclusion: New Directions in the Study of Islamist Politics,” 361.
38 Somer, “Moderation of Religious and Secular Politics,” 248.
39 Hassanein, “Perceived Security Threat From Within.”
40 Shitrit, Righteous Transgressions.
41 Cakir, “The Onto-Politics of Moderation,” 146.
42 Ibid., 147.
43 Amara, “The Nature of Islamic Fundamentalism in Israel.”
44 Benjamin Wittes, “What Does an Israeli Islamist Sound Like? Meet Sheikh Abdullah Nimar Darwish,” Lawfare Blog, August 18, 2015, https://www.lawfareblog.com/what-does-israeli-islamist-sound-meet-sheikh-abdullah-nimar-darwish.
45 Interview, Shaykh Sarsour, Kfar Qasim, August 2016.
46 Rubin, “Islamic Political Activism in Israel,” 6.
47 Interview Shaykh Freig, July 2017.
48 Daoud, “Islamism, Nationalism and Modernization,” 27.
49 Abu Helal, Dialogues with Sheikh Raed Salah, 98–100.
50 Ashour, The De-Radicalization of Jihadists, 15.
51 Hamid, Temptations of Power, 115.
52 Cavatorta and Merone, “Moderation Through Exclusion?,” 859.
53 Nasasra, “The Politics of Claiming and Representation,” 58.
54 Ra’id Salah, Sawt al-Haqwa wa al-Huriyya, 2003.
55 Interview, Shaykh Sarsour, Kfar Qasim, August 2016.
56 Abu Helal, “Dialogues with Sheikh Raed Salah.”
57 IM Documents, Unity Proposal and Responses, (Arabic texts) 2000.
58 Clark, “The Conditions of Islamist Moderation,” 542.
59 Ibid.
60 Interview Shaykh Freig, Kfar Qasim, July 2017.
61 Tezcur, “The Moderation Theory Revisited.”
62 Karakaya and Yildirim, “Islamist Moderation in Perspective,” 1338.
63 Freer, “Exclusion-Moderation in the Gulf Context,” 3.
64 Shelef and Shelef, “Democratic Inclusion and Religious Nationalists in Israel,” 290–91.
65 Interview, Anonymous IM leader, Rahat, April 2017.
66 Interview, Shaykh Sarsour, August 2016.
67 Interview, Anonymous IM leader, Naqab, April 2017.
68 Qaradawi’s fatwa cited in Rekhess, “The Islamic Movement in Israel,” 3.
69 Interview, Anonymous IM leader, August 2016.
70 Rayan, “‘Diversity’ in Arab Society in Israel,” 78.
71 Jamal, “The Arab Leadership in Israel,” 17.
72 Interview in Nazareth, 19 August 2016.
73 Interviews in kfar Qasim and Rahat, April 2017.
74 Ghanem and Mustafa, “Explaining Political Islam,” 338.
75 Pahwa, “Pathways of Islamist Adaptation,” 1070.
76 Ibid., 1077.
77 Samer Shehata, Islamist Politics in the Middle East, 121.
78 Ra’id Salah, “1948 Palestinians and a Self-Reliant Community,” Palestinian Network for Dialogue, June 25, 2002, https://www.paldf.net/forum/showthread.php?t=3686.
79 Eseed, “When the State Fails to Provide Services,” 574.
80 Louër, To be an Arab in Israel, 74.
81 Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2016.
82 Nasasra, “The Politics of Claiming and Representation,” 53.
83 Interview, Assad Ghanem, Haifa, September 2016.
84 Rayan, “‘Diversity’ in Arab Society in Israel,” 70.
85 Interview with Mayor Adel Badir in Jerusalem Post, January 29, 2016.
86 Interview, Youssef Jabareen, Jerusalem, December 2016.
87 Rubin, “Islamic Political Activism in Israel,” 13.
88 Siryoti, Daniel, “Umm al-Fahm, a Capital of Terrorism in Israel”, Jewish News Syndicate, August 22, 2018, https://www.jns.org/opinion/umm-al-fahm-a-capital-of-terrorism-in-israel/.
89 Massalha, “In Suspension – the Case of Umm Al-Fahem.”
90 Ahmad Melhem, “Umm al-Fahm: Where the Streets Have No Name.” al-Monitor, February 26, 2018, https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2018/02/palestine-umm-al-fahm-city-israel-street-names.html#ixzz65A6jXICj.
91 Israeli Socio-Economic Index, 20th worst out of 252, cluster 2.
92 Joseph Algazy, “Um Al-Fahm Prefers Israel.” Ha'aretz, August 1, 2000.
93 Rayan, “‘Diversity’ in Arab Society in Israel,” 71.
94 “Future Vision Document” of the Nation Committees for the Heads of Arab Local Authorities in Israel; “Haifa Document” by Mada al-Carmel and the “Democratic Constitution” by Adalah.
95 General Charter of IM, Chp.2, pg.23 (Arabic text).
96 Ibid., 33.
97 Interview Abu Jaffar, Rahat, April 2017.
98 The Prime Minister’s Office, 17 November 2015.
99 Larkin and Dumper, “In Defense of Al-Aqsa,” 40.
100 Schmitt, “Ribat in Palestine.”
101 Ra’id Salah, Sawt al-Haq, September 15, 2000.
102 Kamal Khatib, “Kamal Khatib Speaks About the ‘Knights of the Knesset’.” Mawteni48, February 12, 2019, https://www.mawteni48.com/archives/65398?fbclid=IwAR2TVEV4mJNU7LuPRt03JkmwoVxLos9t-j_Wz1wjqFk5eHns9HYSaVbv5Po.
103 Interview, Tamra, July 2017.
104 Yenigün, “The Political and Theological Boundaries of Islamist Moderation,” 2305.
105 Pahwa, “Pathways of Islamist adaptation,” 1076–7.
106 Matesan, “Grievances and Fears in Islamist Movements.”
107 Brocker and Künkler, “Religious Parties,” 177.
108 Hamid, Temptations of Power, 136–7.
109 The Prime Minister’s office, 17 November 2015.
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Craig Larkin
Craig Larkin is a Senior Lecturer in Comparative Politics of the Middle East and Co-Director of the Centre for the Study of Divided Societies at King's College London. His research interests include political Islam, memory studies, urban violence, identity politics and conflict resolution. He is author of Memory and Conflict in Lebanon: remembering and forgetting the past (2012); co-author of The Struggle for Jerusalem’s Holy Places (2013) and co-editor of The Alawis of Syria: War, Faith and Politics in the Levant (2015).
Mansour Nasasra
Mansour Nasasra is a Senior Lecturer in Middle East politics and International Relations at the Department of Politics and Government, Ben Gurion University of the Negev. He previously was a Research Fellow at the Council for British Research in the Levant, East Jerusalem. His research interests include: Bedouin Tribes and the modern Middle Eastern State; Arab Political Parties in Israel. He is the author of The Naqab Bedouins: A Century of Politics and Resistance, (2017), co-editor of The Naqab Bedouin and Colonialism: New Perspectives (2015), and co-editor of The Routledge Handbook on Middle East Cities (2019).