The Architecture of Legal Exclusion and Palestinian Apartheid in East Jerusalem

A lecture by Dr. Hadeel S. Abu Hussein, Senior Research Fellow, International Institute of Social Studies (ISS), Erasmus University Rotterdam Dr. Abu Hussein's research delves into the evolution of land law within a settler-colonial framework, examining how states construct land regimes to marginalize and exclude vulnerable groups. Utilizing critical legal geography theory, her work provides a nuanced understanding of the intersection between law, space, and power. She draws upon her book, "The Struggle for Land Under Israeli Law: An Architecture of Exclusion” that critically analyzes the land laws in Israel/Palestine through the lenses of international law, colonization, and critical legal geography. Dr. Abu Hussein undertakes a comprehensive study of Palestinian rights to land under Israeli law exploring issues of land expropriation, forced evictions, and the broader settler-colonial land regime. In this lecture, Dr. Abu Hussein interrogates how land and land regime —a fundamental resource for human existence, development, and political power—becomes a tool for shaping social and political hierarchies. Her lecture will unpack these systematic spatial strategies of marginalization, offering a critical perspective on how law and space intersect in civil, political, and socio-economic landscapes, focusing on East Jerusalem.

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