Settle and Rule: The Evolution of the Israeli National Project

Abstract

Settling in Palestine is an integral part of the national revival of the Jewish nation, which eventually led to the establishment of the state of Israel. This paper defines the Practical Zionism territorial strategy as a Settle and Rule mechanism that evolved through four periods of development, from the pre-state era to the post-state era: first, the agricultural settlements of the 1920s and 1930s (cultivate and rule); second, the 1950s’ industrial towns (industrialize and rule); third, the suburbs of the 1980s (suburbanize and rule) and; and fourth, the recent corporate-led development (financialize and rule). This paper argues that the national settlement mission transformed according to the changes in the modes of production and the interests of the ruling hegemony. Therefore, it focuses on four different national plans for the frontier area of the Galilee and analyses the layout of the proposed new settlements and the architecture of the housing units.