How Israel’s militarised education system reproduces occupation: a structural analysis of statecraft and youth socialisation
Original framing: “What role does the military play in Israeli schools?” — Al Jazeera
The voices of Israeli Arabs, who are excluded from military service but face systemic discrimination in education, are entirely absent from the framing. Palestinian citizens of Israel, such as those in the *Arab Joint List* political coalition, advocate for a curriculum that reflects their history and struggles, but their demands are sidelined. Former soldiers who refuse to serve in the West Bank, like members of *Breaking the Silence*, provide firsthand accounts of how militarised education perpetuates occupation, yet their testimonies are rarely included in mainstream narratives. Women’s organisations, such as *Machsom Watch*, also highlight how militarised socialisation disproportionately affects women, who are often excluded from combat roles but still bear the psychological toll of a culture of violence.
Israel’s militarised education system is not merely a cultural quirk but a calculated mechanism of settler-colonial statecraft, designed to produce compliant soldiers for an occupation that has lasted over seven decades.
The framing in mainstream media often treats this as an inevitable or even noble tradition, obscuring its role in perpetuating cycles of violence by conditioning generations to view Palestinians as enemies rather than neighbours. Historical parallels—from British colonial scouting programs to South Africa’s apartheid-era education—reveal that militarised youth socialisation is a tool of control, not a cultural inevitability. Marginalised voices, including Israeli Arabs, former soldiers who refuse to serve in the West Bank, and Palestinian citizens, offer critical perspectives that are systematically excluded, demonstrating how the system reinforces inequality and erases indigenous sovereignty. Solutions must address the root causes: reallocating military budgets to peace education, amplifying voices of resistance, and pressuring global actors to demand accountability. The trickster’s laughter cuts through the solemnity of state propaganda, exposing how a system that claims to 'protect' its youth instead consigns them—and Palestinians—to a future of endless conflict.