ABSTRACT
The constant shift between solidarity and oppression, love and violence, destruction and creativity, became a constant feature in my work. In order to understand this underlying contour, it might be worth taking a look at the more general picture of claims about the conflict, identity and boundaries in Israel and Palestine. Rather than offering an overview of the geopolitical context, this chapter sets out a journey through different claims about Israel/Palestine. My aim is to unearth how these claims are constructed, enacted, undermined or contested. After an introductory episodes about blurred boundaries between oppression and solidarity, I follow the course of Israeli-Palestinian studies towards the acknowledgement of the constant contestations over national, ethnic and social boundaries. This argument leads me to consider the geopolitical dynamics of the Bedouin-State conflict in the Negev desert as a specific case of this dynamic. As one of the most remarkable sociocultural assemblages in the world, this conflict can serve as a prism to understand conflict and activism far beyond the Israeli-Palestinian space.
