In Israeli schools, children are taught to hate not the perpetrators of the Holocaust—the Germans—but Palestinians and other Arabs, whom they label as “Nazis.”
Teaching Terror: How Holocaust Education Fuels Sinister Fear and Deadly Hatred Toward Palestinians
Imagine sitting in an Israeli classroom as a child. Your textbooks are filled with haunting images—concentration camps, mass graves, faces of ancestors caught in terror. The Holocaust isn’t just history; it’s a lived identity, an ever-present shadow shaping who you are.
But here’s the unsettling truth: while children learn in vivid detail about the horrors of the Holocaust, they are taught almost nothing about Palestinians or the conflict surrounding them. There is no conflict. There is no occupation. There are no Palestinians—they simply do not exist in the narrative.
Instead, children absorb a clear message: the entire land belongs to the Jewish people, and anyone who is not Jewish is a potential enemy. The fear of antisemitism is taught as universal and unrelenting, equating anyone outside the Jewish community with a Jew-hater. This education instills a single overriding goal: maintain a Jewish majority at all costs, because non-Jewish minorities are framed as existential threats—even genocidal.
Professor Nurit Peled-Elhanan’s research reveals how this selective teaching weaponizes Holocaust trauma, transforming it from a warning against hatred into a justification for fear and violence. The mortal danger children are taught to fear no longer comes from the Nazis—it comes from their Arab neighbors, cast as the new Nazis.
Professor Nurit Peled-Elhanan has been honored with several prestigious awards in recognition of her advocacy for human rights and her critical analysis of Israeli education. Notably, she received the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought from the European Parliament.
This fear primes children for military service, ingraining a mindset that Palestinians are not human beings but existential threats. By the time these children don Israeli uniforms, they have been conditioned to see every Palestinian face as dangerous, every protest as an act of war, and every stone thrown as a bullet fired.
This conditioning helps explain why Israeli soldiers carry out orders in Gaza and the West Bank with little hesitation or moral questioning. The humanity of those on the other side is erased long before these soldiers reach the frontlines.
The Deep Roots of Indoctrination and Militarism in Israeli Society: Insights from an Interview
In a recent in-depth interview, Nurit Peled-Elhanan explained how militarism and indoctrination are deeply woven into Israeli life from an early age, shaping generations far beyond national defense.
Military service is not just a civic duty but a cultural ideal. Unlike many Western countries—where military service is voluntary—Israel conscripts nearly every young adult at age 18. This universal conscription fosters a pervasive warrior ethos, beginning subtly in kindergarten, where children are primed for combat roles through cultural cues and education.
“Being a combatant is presented as an ideal,” the scholar explained. “This indoctrination is so powerful it’s very difficult to resist, even within families. The education system relentlessly focuses on military readiness and loyalty to the state.”
A core pillar of this indoctrination is Holocaust education. It is the cornerstone of Israeli identity—more foundational than Zionism or even Judaism itself. From an early age, children are repeatedly exposed to harrowing images and stories of Nazi atrocities. While intended to instill vigilance, these lessons also inflict deep trauma and fear.
“They are traumatized year after year,” the scholar said, “with photographs of naked, abused victims—often presented in ways that border on disrespect. This creates a population living under constant existential threat, reinforcing the idea that if Israel falters, a new Holocaust could occur.”
This pervasive fear fuels a hostile perception of Palestinians, frequently portrayed as modern-day Nazis in official discourse and education. This demonization justifies harsh military actions framed as necessary defense against existential evil. The narrative of victimhood and revenge has become a powerful tool for maintaining social cohesion and legitimizing state violence.
The scholar also noted demographic shifts within Israeli society, with Orthodox Jewish and Arab populations growing faster than secular Jews. Orthodox Jews often avoid military service, adding complexity to the military and social dynamics.
Regarding soldiers’ psychological conditioning, the scholar stated: “Soldiering is fundamentally about conditioning individuals to obey orders, even violent ones. There are very few cases of refusal anywhere.” Many comply out of obedience, belief, or simply to survive.
Israeli media, often self-censored and influenced by former military personnel, limits critical perspectives. Textbooks and curricula emphasize military readiness and a narrative of perpetual threat, leaving little room for alternative viewpoints.
The scholar concluded that early indoctrination, traumatic Holocaust education, pervasive militarism, and a national narrative steeped in victimhood normalize militarism and justify violence as defense. This system continues to shape Israeli society and its conflicts.
Living Amidst Fear and Conflict: A Personal Reflection on Israel’s Current Crisis
Living in Israel today means carrying history as a constant, heavy presence shaping every fear and decision. The trauma rooted in the Holocaust intertwines with ongoing violence—from rocket attacks in Gaza and Lebanon to military assaults.
Professor Peled-Elhanan reflects, “Yes, it comes from the Holocaust—we are hereditary victims. We must arm ourselves to survive. But how far can this go? Does it prevent critical thinking? There is a little, yes, but not in the government.”
She describes the reality of northern Israel during military escalations: schools closed, mass evacuations, paralyzed communities. “The causes of this conflict go back decades. We all saw the escalation coming.”
Political narratives frame Israel as under existential threat, justifying harsh policies. “Every bombardment gives Netanyahu’s right-wing government more ammunition,” she says.
But ordinary people suffer deeply. “They’ve lost homes, livelihoods, schools. Nobody cares about them. These are the real victims.” Yet Netanyahu exploits their plight to justify continued war, aiming to maintain power.
The war’s human toll is heartbreaking: children killed and maimed, talk but no action. This pattern is global: “It happens in Sudan, China, Africa, South America. People are shocked but do nothing.”
Peled-Elhanan calls the Gaza attacks genocide and “socio-cide”—terms highlighting brutality beyond legal debate. Global sympathy for Palestinians is growing but rarely translates into intervention.
Dangerous rhetoric in Israel—“Palestinian terrorists” and biblical calls for extermination—dehumanizes Palestinians, justifying violence against even children. Some politicians openly claim there are no innocents in Gaza.
This cycle of fear and hatred fuels brutal responses: a generation of Palestinians born under siege reacts with violence born from despair.
Peled-Elhanan has faced backlash for speaking out. After linking the Gaza siege to October 7 attacks, she was branded a terrorist supporter, summoned by police, attacked by far-right media, and lost her job. This reflects a broader crackdown on dissent in Israeli academia.
Despite this, she remains hopeful. Her husband works with bereaved Palestinian and Israeli families to foster dialogue—a quiet beacon amid chaos.
Her testimony offers a deeply personal, critical perspective on a conflict defining generations—a stark reminder of the human cost of perpetuating fear and hatred.
Israeli Culture of Power and Victimhood
Peled-Elhanan argues Israeli society and its official narratives rest on a dual framework:
- Power: Israel sees itself as a strong, legitimate state maintaining control through military and political dominance.
- Victimhood: Simultaneously, Israel constructs a narrative of itself as a perpetual victim, emphasizing the Holocaust and Jewish diaspora suffering.
This dual narrative shapes Israeli identity, politics, and education.
How This Culture Manifests in Israeli School Textbooks
Israeli schoolbooks promote this dual culture by:
- Elevating Jewish suffering—especially the Holocaust—as central to Israeli identity and morality.
- Portraying Palestinians and Arabs as threats or subordinate “others” endangering Jewish existence.
- Silencing or marginalizing Palestinian narratives, such as displacement (Nakba), occupation, and human rights abuses.
- Presenting Israeli actions as defensive responses, never as offensive, reinforcing the victimhood story.
This ideological framework justifies the status quo: Israeli dominance and control are necessary for survival, while Palestinians are often dehumanized or erased.
The Role of “Space” in This Narrative
In her 2025 lecture, Peled-Elhanan highlighted spatial representation in textbooks:
- Maps and images exclude or minimize Palestinian presence, erasing their history and claims.
- Israeli territory is depicted as “empty” or “desert” land, ignoring Palestinian villages and culture.
- This spatial erasure supports the idea that Israel’s power is natural and justified, while Palestinians are outsiders or invaders.
Consequences of This Culture
Peled-Elhanan argues Israeli culture of power and victimhood:
- Legitimizes colonialism and occupation under the guise of self-defense.
- Encourages fear, hostility, and dehumanization of Palestinians from a young age.
- Obstructs peace by maintaining asymmetric power and denying Palestinian narratives and rights.
- Creates a cycle of victimhood, reinforcing militarism and exclusionary policies.
Research and Publications
Peled-Elhanan has conducted extensive research on the representation of Palestinians in Israeli schoolbooks. In Palestine in Israeli School Books: Ideology and Propaganda in Education (2012), she argues Palestinians are often depicted as refugees, primitive farmers, or terrorists—without nuance or dignity. Using multimodal analysis, she examines how texts, images, and maps legitimize colonialism and an ethnocratic system. She also studies Holocaust education in Israel and its relation to the “othering” of Palestinians.
Recommended Works
- Palestine in Israeli School Books: Ideology and Propaganda in Education (2012)
- Holocaust Education and the Semiotics of Othering in Israeli Schoolbooks
- Various articles in journals such as Discourse & Society
Conclusion
Israel’s education system, as revealed through the work of scholars like Professor Nurit Peled-Elhanan, weaponizes Holocaust trauma not only to remember past horrors but to cultivate fear, justify militarization, and suppress empathy for Palestinians. By erasing Palestinian identity from textbooks, equating Arab neighbors with existential threats, and embedding a worldview of perpetual siege, generations are raised to see violence not as tragedy, but as necessity.
This indoctrination dehumanizes an entire people. It sustains a national psyche in which security is synonymous with supremacy and historical trauma is repurposed into political armor. The result is a society primed for conflict, not reconciliation—a society where children learn not just to mourn victims of genocide, but to see new enemies in their place.
Breaking this pattern demands more than curriculum reform. It requires collective courage to confront uncomfortable truths, to tell the full story—including the Nakba, the occupation, and the humanity of those long excluded from the national narrative. Voices like Professor Peled-Elhanan’s offer a glimpse of what an alternative future could look like: one rooted in honesty, empathy, and shared humanity.
Still, the road ahead is steep. Opinion polls consistently show that an overwhelming majority of Israeli citizens support the ongoing military campaign in Gaza, with many endorsing extreme measures against Palestinians. This suggests that indoctrination—beginning in childhood and reinforced by media, politics, and military culture—runs deep.
Change, therefore, is not inevitable. But neither is it impossible. As long as there are dissenting voices willing to speak truth in the face of repression, there remains a sliver of hope. Whether that hope grows into justice depends on the willingness of society—Israeli and global alike—to listen, to act, and to refuse complicity in silence.