Nakba Settler Colonialism: Samir Abed-Rabbo, ‘The Nakba as Settler Colonial Catastrophe: Displacement, Erasure, and Historical Denial’, Arab Studies Quarterly, 2026 | settler colonial studies blog

Nakba Settler Colonialism: Samir Abed-Rabbo, ‘The Nakba as Settler Colonial Catastrophe: Displacement, Erasure, and Historical Denial’, Arab Studies Quarterly, 2026

22Sep26

Abstract: This essay examines the Nakba through the analytical framework of settler colonialism, arguing that the mass displacement and fragmentation of Palestinian society in 1948 constituted not merely a humanitarian consequence of war, but also a structural process of demographic transformation and territorial consolidation. The Nakba may be discussed within broader theories of settler colonialism by analyzing expulsions, village destruction, refugee production, and the systematic erasure of Palestinian presence through spatial, legal, and symbolic mechanisms. Further, the essay explores how the political structures established through the Nakba became institutionalized rather than reversed, producing an enduring condition of statelessness, exile, and unequal authority that continues to shape Palestinian life today. It also examines the persistence of Palestinian claims to return, restitution, and historical recognition, arguing that the passage of time does not erase the legal, moral, or historical dimensions of dispossession. In comparing Zionist narratives of national restoration with Palestinian anticolonial critiques, the study highlights the tension between competing claims of self-determination and historical justice. Finally, the essay argues that denial of the Nakba functions not only as a rejection of historical facts, but also as an attempt to delegitimize Palestinian historical experience and political claims. Recognition of the Nakba remains essential to any meaningful framework for justice, equality, and reconciliation in Palestine.

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