As if illegal land theft wasn't enough, Israelis took the liberty to claim Palestinian and Middle Eastern culture as their own.
By stealing their cuisines, the occupiers aim to deny the history of Palestine and appropriate its territories and customs. Many of the recipes claimed by Israelis originate from mainly Arab countries in addition to Turkey, Cyprus, Persia, etc.
Here is a list of dishes colonized by Israel:
1. Hummus
Hummus has been around the Middle Eastern region for centuries. The word itself is Arabic for "chickpeas."
2. Halloumi cheese
The famous Halloumi is believed to have originated from Cyprus and made its way to the neighboring region decades before the Israelis occupied Palestine.
3. Falafel
Falafel has been around the Arab world for years and is often believed to have been invented in ancient Egypt by the Copts to replace meat during the fasting season. It is even an Arabic word which means the plural of "filfil" (pepper).
4. Shakshouka
Shakshuka is a North African dish which is also famous in the Gulf countries. It is believed to originate from the Ottoman empire.
5. Shawarma
While the Arabs and the Turks are still arguing about which side invented the dish, one thing is for sure: it does not belong to a non-existent Israeli cuisine.
6. Kibbeh
The word "kibbeh" is derived from the classical Arabic one "kubbah" which means ball. It is famous in most Arab countries and in Turkey and is said to have originated from Syria.
7. Kanafeh
Although it is often said that Kanafeh originated in Turkey, this sweet dish is actually entirely Arabic.
The word even comes from the Arabic verb “ka-na-fa” which means mercy. It first appeared during the Umayyad Caliphate when Muawiya asked his chef to prepare him a strong dish to help him endure Ramadan's fasting.
Originally from Nablus, Palestine, the well-loved dish has spread all over the region.
8. Labneh
Labneh in Arabic is self-explanatory: strained yogurt. While no-one knows exactly where it originates from, it has been eaten in Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, and Jordan for thousands of years.
9. Couscous
Couscous is originally a Berber dish, forming from the words seksu or kesksu, meaning ‘well rolled; well formed; rounded’.
It is a popular dish in many North African countries such as Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania, and Libya.
10. Baklawa
The Greeks and Turks have been fighting this one out for a while.
Even though it is said to go back as far as the 8th century, with Assyrians playing around with the recipe, it has definitely gone viral in the region.
No one is sure though of who is the original inventor of these sweet bites, but we know who isn't.