Ilan Pappé Receives Award for Services to Middle Eastern Studies

BRISMES is delighted and proud to award the 2024 Award for Services to Middle Eastern Studies to Professor Ilan Pappé.

Professor Pappé’s contribution to our field has been nothing short of transformative. Over decades, he has helped reshape our understanding of modern Middle Eastern history—especially the history of Israel-Palestine. As one of the original Israeli ‘new historians’, he has challenged dominant narratives and, through meticulous archival work, amplified perspectives of Palestinian historians that had long been marginalized.

His landmark publication, The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine, stands as a testament to fearless, rigorous, and morally courageous scholarship.

Over the course of his distinguished career, Professor Pappé has authored more than a dozen books that have critically advanced our understanding of the region’s history and politics. These include A History of Modern Palestine, Out of the Frame: The Struggle for Academic Freedom in Israel, and The Idea of Israel, among many others. His writing is characterised by its clarity, depth, and moral urgency—qualities that have made his work foundational reading in Middle Eastern Studies and far beyond.

But Ilan’s impact reaches far beyond the page. As co-founder of the Centre for Palestine Studies at the University of Exeter—the first of its kind in the UK—he has helped institutionalise the study of Palestine, creating vital intellectual infrastructure and mentoring a generation of scholars, many of whom are now themselves leading voices in the field.

Equally important is Professor Pappé’s contribution to public understanding of Israel-Palestine through his extensive engagement with a wide range of media. Over the years, he has become a vital voice on platforms that reach beyond the academy—from independent news outlets and online journals to widely viewed YouTube interviews, podcasts, and international webinars. Whether speaking to solidarity groups, students, or global audiences, he consistently brings historical clarity, moral urgency, and scholarly insight to bear on contemporary debates. His ability to bridge academic research with accessible, principled commentary has ensured that his work resonates far beyond the university, shaping public discourse and informing global awareness of the Palestinian struggle.

And it is this role—as mentor, teacher, colleague, and comrade—that so many have spoken of so movingly.

Professor Pappé embodies everything this award was created to recognise:

A distinguished body of published work; the building of academic institutions; the shaping of new generations of scholars; and an extraordinary contribution to public and political understanding of the Middle East.

We are privileged to count him among us, and BRISMES is proud to honour him today.

Professor Nicola Pratt, BRISMES President

1 July 2025