Talk: When The World Looked Away – Palestine

Loughborough University and College Union (UCU) will be hosting a talk, open to all staff and students, by Ali Bilgic – Professor of International Relations and Middle East Politics at Loughborough University. Please contact ucu@lboro.ac.uk to register your interest in attending in person or online.

This talk offers a concise examination of the historical, political, and legal dynamics shaping the conflict in Palestine, with particular focus on Gaza. Beginning with the ideological origins of Zionism and the waves of settler migration under British rule, it traces how settler‑colonial practices, racialisation, and land dispossession laid the foundations for ongoing structural violence Palestinians have to endure everyday.

The talk also unpacks Israel’s legal framework highlighting systemic inequalities entrenched in state policy. Contemporary developments such as ICC arrest warrant applications, UN findings about the genocide in Gaza, and escalating settler violence in the West Bank illuminate the severity of present‑day conditions. The presentation also foregrounds Gaza’s environmental devastation, described as ecocide, and the humanitarian catastrophe persisting even after the ceasefire. Concluding with avenues for solidarity and cultural engagement, it challenges audiences to recognise moral responsibilities and to amplify Palestinian voices wherever they can.