Israel's 'purple-washing' and the dehumanisation of Palestinian men and women

For the past four months, Israel has continued to engage in a brutal campaign of aerial bombardment against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, with casualties nearing 30,000 lives and rising by the day.

The physical destruction done unto individuals, residences, hospitals, holy spaces, educational facilities, and general infrastructure is unprecedented in modern warfare.

Palestinian prisoners in the West Bank are facing different forms of brutality committed against them as their families and neighbours are terrorised by the Israeli army in tandem.

Despite international criticism and court orders, Israel continues to gaslight the global community and act with total impunity, continuing its reign of illegal occupation and associated crimes. 

"Purple-washing exists in a two-fold sense here; first, the demonisation of men, particularly Muslim men, as this tactic is usually employed by Western societies against Arab and Muslim societies. Secondly, through the purported claim of women’s interests while simultaneously disregarding them entirely"

What is 'purple-washing' and how does it affect the Palestinians?

One such way in which this gaslighting presents itself is in the form of ‘purple-washing,’ otherwise known as gender-washing, or fem-washing.

The term is used to refer to a phenomenon, or a political tactic, whereby the concept of women’s rights, or rather the guise of, is used to distract from other egregious violations of human rights.

This has been employed throughout multiple instances in these past months, in an attempt to deflect from the crimes against humanity committed against the Palestinians.

A long-standing way in which this has been used by Israel, is the so-called gender inclusivity of the IDF, as all citizens of the State of Israel are obligated to conduct military service.

This has been used as a form of ‘proof’ of a gender-inclusive society — a society wherein all people participate in the oppression of another.

Furthermore, despite preaching women’s rights and inclusivity, it is not at all uncommon to see completely sexualised images of female IDF soldiers from both official and non-official mouthpieces.

This objectification, ironically, only emphasises what a misogynistic culture ‘Israel’ has bred. There are similar concepts relating to the use of environmental issues, green-washing, and LGBT+ rights, pink-washing — both of which have also been employed by Israel against the Palestinians.

Purple-washing exists in a two-fold sense here; first, the demonisation of men, particularly Muslim men, as this tactic is usually employed by Western societies against Arab and Muslim societies. Secondly, through the purported claim of women’s interests while simultaneously disregarding them entirely. 

The most apparent case of this weaponising is the, thus far, unsubstantiated claims of ‘mass rape as a tool of war’ allegedly committed by Palestinian resistance fighters on October 7, 2023.

In a viral article published by the New York Times in late December last year, the authors paint a picture of a wide-scale brutal sexual assault campaign, with highly questionable evidence.

This information has also been used by other outlets such as BBC News, and the Guardian, among others. Though this is debunked by multiple independent use outlets, including the Electronic Intifada, the Intercept, and here at The New Arab, it continues to be repeated.

Not only were the key witnesses from an organisation that is already shrouded in cases of fraud, misappropriation of charitable funds, and several allegations of sexual abuse and rape against the founder of this organisation but there is yet to be any evidence other than their statements. 

A Mondoweiss article summarises these issues: “The organisation was founded in the late 1990s by Yehuda Meshi-Zahav. Meshi-Zahav was previously the leader of 'Keshet,' an ultra-Orthodox Jewish terrorist group that targeted forensic pathologists and used explosives against shops selling 'secular' newspapers. Meshi-Zahav led ZAKA until 2021 when he attempted suicide after shocking revelations of dozens of rape and sexual assault cases committed by him. Since its inception, the organisation — described as a 'militia' by the highly esteemed Israeli journalist Yigal Sarna — has been subject to incessant criticism, investigations, and demands to dismantle it.”

This is the same group that fabricated the false and flagrant claim of beheaded babies, one repeated, and later retracted, by US President Joe Biden. 

It is clear that this gender-based propaganda is utilised to paint resistance fighters as ruthless and sub-human; this, if believed, and circulated as it has been, then provides some ‘legitimacy’ and justification to the ongoing genocide against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. 

"There is nothing but silence from feminists in the West — let alone Israeli authorities — regarding the rights of Gazan and Palestinian women, in conflict or otherwise. While the focus remains on unsubstantiated claims of mass sexual violence, issues faced by women in Gaza are ignored"

'Gender-inclusivity' as a smokescreen against the Palestinians

These allegations not only put into question the moral character of a resistance movement, one whose sole purpose is to liberate the Palestinians from Israeli oppression and illegal occupation; but also perpetuate the stereotypical and orientalist tropes of Arab and Muslim men as oppressive and misogynistic.

In this clouded perspective, they are therefore deserving of punishment; and through this fallacy, the violence against the entire Gaza strip is ‘merited’. 

Other, veiled, fluff pieces also published by the New York Times and similar outlets, glorify the participation of women in the IDF ground invasion of the Gaza Strip.

In this sense, the purple-washing tactic uses women’s inclusivity to distract from the high levels of violence the IDF is committing against civilians.

It is important to note, the attack on the Gaza Strip is disproportionately affecting women and children with estimates citing that they make up approximately 70 percent of all casualties. 

In the second vein, there is nothing but silence from feminists in the West — let alone Israeli authorities — regarding the rights of Gazan and Palestinian women, in conflict or otherwise. While the focus remains on unsubstantiated claims of mass sexual violence, issues faced by women in Gaza are ignored. 

As Israel continues to commit atrocities against the entire population, displacing over one million people, and depriving them of the most necessities such as food and water; women face a specific and unique set of struggles.

These very real issues include but are not limited to a lack of sanitary products for menstrual cycles (affecting more than 700,000 women and girls), causing women to use whatever is available including cardboard, parts of the tent, and reusing cloth, amongst other problematic items which is leading to infections.

Additionally, due to the destruction of the vast majority of hospitals, there is a definitive lack of neonatal care that has caused unimaginable situations in which women are giving birth on their own.

Accounts range from a woman pregnant with quadruplets walking 5 km to a hospital, and many other similar cases, to women having to give birth in their homes using unsterilised and improper tools to tend to the umbilical cords and the after-births.

It includes doctors performing C-sections with no anaesthesia, and a lack of incubation of premature babies. There is a heightened need for formula for newborns as many mothers are unable to breastfeed their children due to the intentional starvation of the population. 

Furthermore, there have been real substantiated claims of torture and rape and threats of rape against the Palestinians — taking place in both Gaza and the West Bank — as presented by Israeli officers

Several testimonies have been given by released prisoners in the earlier hostage exchange. There have been also real and substantiated claims of rape within the IDF, where a new case has been reported that a man assaulted a woman in service. 

And yet, near-absolute silence from feminists in the West. This serves as a case study highlighting that Western theory generally does not have applicability in the region not only because the contexts are drastically different, but because Western theorists somehow struggle to understand who the oppressor is, blinded by a narrative of the oppressive nature of Arab and Muslim men.

As Maryam Aldossari highlights of this colonial feminism, “It justifies invasions and occupations under the guise of aid, portraying Palestinian women as mere victims in need of rescue, while simultaneously denying their right to resistance. Ultimately, the selective empathy of Western feminists serves to reinforce power structures that continue the cycle of violence.”

Considering the powers that be are barely inclined to offer the people of Gaza and the Palestinians basic human rights, they are certainly not waiting for their gendered rights to be respected.

Thus the Palestinian people and their resistance movement, in all its facets, is the only recourse to rectify the violent injustices both Palestinian men and women face today. 

Nadine Sayegh is a multidisciplinary writer and researcher covering the Arab world. For over ten years, she has covered a variety of both social and geopolitical issues including gender in the region, human security, and the Occupied Palestinian Territories

Follow Nadine on Instagram/X: @ntnncy