Haoues Seniguer, a professor of contemporary international relations at the Montpellier Paul-Valéry University, is the author of Dieu est avec Nous! Le 7-Octobre et ses Conséquences. Comment les Religions Juive et Islamique Justifient la Violence (“God is with us! October 7 and its Consequences: How the Jewish and Islamic Religions Justify Violence”).

The Israel-Palestine conflict is often interpreted as a modern-day religious war. Are its theological roots truly predominant?

First, let me clarify that I did not set out to position myself as an improvised specialist on the Israel-Palestine conflict, but rather to analyze the political use of religious references. To do this, I tried to avoid two pitfalls.

The first is overestimating the role of religion in this conflict; the second, conversely, is suggesting that religion plays no part in it. I therefore focused on the actors who use religious language in their rhetoric: On the Palestinian side, Hamas, a main actor in the conflict, and, on the Israeli side, the coalition comprised of [Prime Minister] Benjamin Netanyahu and the far right. While religion plays a greater or lesser role depending on the actor, all of them refer to it – well before October 7, for that matter.

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