Mothers of Martyrs and Suicide Bombers: The Gender of Ethical Discourse in the Second Palestinian Intifada
turned to an impromptu analysis of gender and the state when I told my friends, all men, that during my wait I had observed that the Israeli security staff who escorted numerous travelers to another room were consistently of the same gender as the foreigner being questioned. This observation prompted speculation into the whys and wherefores of the Israeli security state?always a topic full of possibilities precisely because of the lack of factual information available. The discussion that ensued highlighted the complex ways in which gendered aspects of Palestinian nationalism intersect with Western preconceptions about the relationship of women, politics, and Islam. This article examines the mutual constitution of those entangled understandings, misunderstandings, and representations. Sami, a man in his mid 3 0s who had been politically active during the first intifada (1987 1993) or uprising against Israeli occupation, offered his interpretation of the Israeli security's actions: "This was to reduce the possibility of flirting," which could put a female traveler at an advantage over a male interrogator, and vice versa. He recalled that during one of his many stints in political prison (for his anti occupation activities) he had flirted with a pretty Israeli interrogator (with green eyes, he fondly remarked) In his impish and somewhat self aggrandizing way, he suggested that his powers of seduction had given him the edge in these interrogations. Our discussion then turned to the relative merits and demerits of Israeli women prison guards, with