The Faculty of Arts is honoured to present guest speaker Neve Gordon from the School of Law at Queen Mary University of London.
About the talk
In this talk, Neve Gordon introduces what he calls the “Gaza Doctrine,” a concept he uses to describe a pattern of modern warfare characterized by mass civilian displacement, significant civilian casualties, and extensive destruction of civilian infrastructure.
He examines how, in the context of the violence in Gaza, Israel frames its military operations as lawful actions targeting Hamas, and how international law is invoked in that justification. Gordon further argues that similar patterns may be emerging in other conflicts in the Middle East, and raises broader questions about the role of European countries and Canada in shaping or enabling evolving norms of international warfare where "might makes right".
About the speaker
Neve Gordon joined the School of Law at Queen Mary University of London after teaching for seventeen years at Ben-Gurion University in Israel. He is the author of Israel’s Occupation (University of California Press, 2008) and co-author of The Human Right to Dominate (Oxford University Press, 2015), Human Shields: A History of People in the Line of Fire (University of California Press, 2020, published in paperback in 2026 with a new preface and epilogue). He is a Fellow of the British Academy of Social Sciences, a panel member of the Gaza Tribunal and a board member of the International State Crime Initiative.
Details and proceedings
Registration is required for in-person and online attendance. For those attending in-person, proof of registration is required at the reception area.
- Doors open: 6:30 p.m.
- Lecture and moderated Q & A: 7:00 to 8:20 p.m.
- Reception for the in-person audience: 8:30 to 9:00 p.m.
Paid visitor parking is available in Lot M across from Federation Hall. More parking information.
This lecture is made possible through the generosity of alumni and friends. We extend sincere appreciation to the donors who contributed to the Foundation for Palestinian Studies Fund.
Register
Watch past recordings from our Palestinian Lectures series on YouTube.