The Political Mythology of the Battle of Karameh

The March 1968 battle of Karameh was a conflict with limited military importance fought primarily between the Israelis and Jordanians with some Palestinian guerrilla participation. Despite the limited guerrilla role, this battle, nevertheless, became a pivotal event in the emergence of a new Palestinian political identity. It also became an important case study in the role of political mythology in supporting emerging and evolving nationalisms. Demoralized Palestinians seized upon the heroic image of the small group of Palestinian guerrillas who had fought bravely during the battle. The myth about Karameh grew, for the most part, spontaneously because it met critical human needs among the Palestinians. This growth also occurred despite Jordanian and Israeli efforts to provide alternative descriptions of the same events. Distortions created by this myth and the Israeli countermyth can now be assessed using new and more candid sources. Additionally, Karameh also provides an interesting example of how political myths erode as they become less relevant to changing needs among the community they previously served.