Imperial Perceptions of Palestine: British influence and power in late Ottoman times

Imperial Perceptions of Palestine is a historic account of the way Palestine has been viewed by imperial powers, with specific attention paid to European powers during the decline of the Ottoman Empire. It explores the origins of the mainstream perception of Palestine and the myths surrounding Palestine that followed, which were used as an ideological pretext for the foundation of the state of Israel in 1948. It brings back old debates that have been buried in the underscores of history to bring a refreshing angle to the discourse on Palestine and Israel today.

The book begins by exploring the concept of Biblical Orientalism, which is a concept that uses Abrahamic religions selectively to depict Palestine as “The Holy Land”. Even today, this is being used as a pretext to justify the Zionist ideology. Not only did Kamel explain the reason behind Biblical Orientalism being one of the ideological catalysts for creating the state of Israel but, by comparing local historic accounts of how Palestine was truly like, he found a way to debunk myths in the Biblical Orientalist discourse regarding Palestine.

This book has been shortlisted for the Palestine Book awards 2016, please click here to read the full review on the Palestine book awards site.