How Did the Watermelon Slice Become the Symbol of Palestine?

watermelon slice, is actually a metaphor that has been used for years as a symbol of freedom and resistance. How could the watermelon have become a metaphor for protest, when even those who carried it on the streets were arrested and punished?

The subject of this issue is Palestine. watermelon slice, An important thing that symbolizes resistance in Palestine. The interesting thing is that if we had thought of such a thing before, most of us would not have even thought of it. So how could this slice of fruit become a symbol of resistance?

In fact, using it as a symbol of resistance is nothing new.

After the Six-Day War in 1967 A ban on the Palestinian flag emerged after Israel took control of the West Bank and Gaza, as well as annexed East Jerusalem. At the time, the Israeli government deemed it a crime to openly display the Palestinian flag in Gaza and the West Bank.

However, the Oslo Accords of 1993 included mutual recognition between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization, and after these agreements Israel lifted the ban on the Palestinian flag.

The Palestinian flag is a symbol of the Palestinian administration that will govern Gaza and the West Bank. It was accepted as a means of representation.

The watermelon slice, which seems to symbolize Palestinian resistance, stands out as a reaction to the Israeli government’s ban on the Palestinian flag.

Israeli authorities not only restrict the use of the flag, but also It also placed restrictions on works of art featuring the colors of the flag. Artist Sliman Mansour states that an exhibition in Ramallah in 1980 was closed and he was banned from using Palestinian flag colors in his paintings.

According to Mansour, upon the suggestion of a painterIn this period, when even painting a watermelon slice was considered an enterprise that could be confiscated, artists had to work under difficult restrictions. The watermelon carried similar symbolism as it bore the colors of the Palestinian flag, but Mansour has no memory of the watermelon being used as a political motif at the time.

Over time, the adoption of the watermelon as a symbolic expression continued among artists.

Khaled Hourani in 2007 “Subjective Atlas of Palestine” His project attracted international attention with his painting of a watermelon slice on canvas. In 1993, just after the Oslo Accords, the New York Times noted that the watermelon was accepted as a symbol among Palestinians and that this symbol remained prominent while the flag ban continued.

Although the origins of the use of watermelon as a symbol in Palestine cannot be fully determined, artists and activists have used this fruit as a symbol. They adopted it as a symbol of the Palestinian struggle. Now, watermelon has gone beyond being just a fruit and has become a symbol of a people’s history, common culture and struggle.

Today, people continue to use watermelon slices in everyday clothing, artwork, and emojis to show their support for Palestine.

The watermelon symbol has become a long-standing tradition for Palestine, especially We see that it emerged as a reaction against Israeli censorship. The Israel-Hamas War, which started last month with Hamas’s attack on Israel, is a watermelon symbol not only among Palestinians; It has been adopted by many people around the world who want to support Palestine.