Ahmed Nassef: As a Jew who has also lived on a kibbutz in Palestine, have your views changed at all over the years regarding the Israeli-Palestinian issue?
Noam Chomsky: My views have not changed. The only thing that has changed is that my views back in the 1940’s were labeled Zionist, and today they are labeled anti-Zionist. Although my views back then did not represent the majority of Zionist Jews, the idea of forming a democratic state for both Jews and Arabs in Palestine was still considered within the mainstream of debate. Now, any talk of a democratic secular state is considered anti-Zionist.
Ahmed Nassef: Many supporters of Israel demand from others that they recognize the right of the State of Israel to exist before engaging in any further discussions. What’s your view on this?
Noam Chomsky: The whole question of recognizing the right of a state to exist was invented solely for Israel. People, on the other hand, have a right to exist. So the people who live on the land—Israelis and Palestinians—have a right to live in security and peace.
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