Occupied Thoughts

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP's Sarah Anne Minkin speaks with journalists Basel Adraa and Yuval Abraham about the conditions of life in Masafer Yatta in the South Hebron Hills of the West Bank, and how things have changed - and gotten far worse - since the May 2022 Israeli Supreme Court decision that authorized the IDF to expel communities in Masafer Yatta. Basel and Yuval co-authored...

In this episode of "Occupied Thoughts," FMEP 2023 non-resident fellow Rabea Eghbariah speaks to Maria Zreik, a street photographer and political organizer from Nazareth who is coordinating the Baladna Youth Center, a Palestinian cooperative in Nazareth's Old City. The conversation delves into the challenges that Palestinians in Nazareth are facing today, how the city's landscape has shifted, and w...

In this episode of "Occupied Thoughts," FMEP 2023 non-resident fellow Rabea Eghbariah speaks to Raafat Sub Laban, a Palestinian human rights attorney from the Old City of Jerusalem whose family is under the threat of imminent dispossession from their home. Raafat explains how the dispossession of Palestinians in Jerusalem is enabled by Israeli law and settler organizations who work together to "Ju...

In this episode of "Occupied Thoughts," FMEP non resident fellow Peter Beinart speaks with Jonathan Pollak, an Israeli anti-Zionist activist and solidarity organizer who has been repeatedly arrested and imprisoned by Israel for his involvement in Palestine solidarity protests in the West Bank. Jonathan is currently facing two charges, and is expected to demand his trial take place in Israel's West...

In this episode of "Occupied Thoughts," FMEP 2023 non-resident fellow Rabea Eghbariah speaks to award-winning writer and journalist Mohammed El Kurd about the importance of developing an understanding of Palestine rooted in the experiences and realities of Palestinians on the ground. Who gets the permission to narrate the situation in Palestine? What frameworks do we use and does language really m...

In this episode of FMEP's Occupied Thoughts podcast, FMEP President Lara Friedman speaks the European Legal Support Center (ELSC) director Giovanni Fassini and ELSC manager of communication and advocacy strategies and campaigns Alice Garcia about ELSC's groundbreaking new report, “Suppressing Palestinian Rights Advocacy through the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism – Violating the Rights to...

In this episode of FMEP's Occupied Thoughts podcast, FMEP President Lara Friedman speaks with Yousef Munayyer (Arab Center Washington DC) & Emma Saltzberg (Diaspora Alliance), in the context of the newly-release US National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism (released by the White House May 25, 2023) and the its implications for both the fight against antisemitism and the ongoing, related fight agai...

In this episode of FMEP's Occupied Thoughts podcast, FMEP President Lara Friedman speaks with two formidable experts on human rights and civil society about pending Israeli legislation targeting civil society organizations and, in particular, the human rights sector: Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territories occupied since 1967; and J...

In this episode of "Occupied Thoughts," 2022 FMEP non-resident Fellow Dr. Maha Nassar speaks with Dr. Basil Farraj about the recent death of Khader Adnan - a 45-year-old Palestinian prisoner who died on May 2, 2023 in an Israeli prison cell following a hunger strike that spanned nearly three months. Israel has refused to return Khader Adnan's body to his family. Adnan was protesting Israel’s wides...

Project48 & FMEP proudly present a very special podcast commemorating 75 years of the Palestinian Nakba. We are honored to share the voices of 10 powerful Palestinian artists, sharing their works and that of other iconic Palestinian creators. Featured artists are: Ahmed Abu Artema, Hala Alyan, Suad Amiry, Zeina Azzam, Cherien Dabis, Fady Joudah, Tamer Nafar, Raja Shehadeh, Naomi Shihab Nye, and Wa...

In this episode of FMEP's Occupied Thoughts podcast, FMEP's Lara Friedman speaks with preeminent journalist Dalia Hatuqa on the 1-year anniversary of the killing of her friend and fellow journalist Shireen Abu Akleh's - killed by Israel on May 11, 2022 - including reflections on the continued efforts to secure justice and accountability for her death, and on Shireen's legacy. For more details & vi...

Palestinian-American civil rights attorney Huwaida Arraf speaks with FMEP Fellow Peter Beinart about what happened since she was invited to address a high school diversity assembly in Michigan last month. After Arraf spoke to the students about her family and life experiences, the backlash began almost immediately, with prominent local leaders and the school district superintendent accusing Arraf...

Featuring: Hassan El-Tayyab (FCNL), Rebecca Abou Chedid (Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP), and Josh Ruebner (IMEU) This session explored the unique role played by Congress in shaping US policy toward Israel/Palestine and the various intended and unintended consequences of that role. Recorded March 17, 2023. For resources and further information, please visit: https://fmep.org/resource/2023-congressio...

Part 5: Internal Palestinian Politics Featuring: Dr. Dana El Kurd (University of Richmond), Salem Barahmeh, and Khaled Hroub (Northwest University – Qatar) This session will look at the state of Palestinian politics and political institutions as well as the future of the Palestinian national movement, including the effects of the ongoing political division between Fatah & Hamas, the question of if...

Part 4 - Free Speech, Lawfare, & the Right to Protest Featuring: Suhad Babaa (Just Vision), Yousef Munayyer (Arab Center Washington DC), & Dylan Saba (Palestine Legal) In this session we explored issues surrounding grassroots activism in protest of Israeli policies, including through calls for boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS), and the parallel rise in efforts, including in Congress and sta...

Part 2: Extremism in Israel Featuring: Amjad Iraqi (+972 Magazine), Natasha Roth-Rowland (+972 Magazine), and Shaul Magid (Dartmouth) This session explored the rise and normalization of extremism and extremists in Israeli politics, particularly in light of the current far-right government of Benjamin Netanyahu, and what it means for Palestinian rights, prospects for peace, regional stability, and...

Part 1 – Beyond Oslo Featuring: Omar Dajani, Dr. Maha Nassar, & Dr. Shibley Telhami This session examined the successes and failures of the Oslo process 30 years on and the extent to which the Oslo framework, including the two-state solution, remains relevant to a lasting peace settlement in Palestine/Israel. Recorded February 10, 2023. For resources and further information, visit: https://fmep.or...

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP 2023 Palestinian Non-resident Fellow Dr. Yara Asi speaks with FMEP's Sarah Anne Minkin about how to understand Palestinian public health, especially in the West Bank and Gaza. What are the impacts of Israeli apartheid and occupation on Palestinian public health? What is the role of the Palestinian Authority? What are possibilities and priorities for chang...

As Israel’s far-right has gained political influence and momentum, including with respect to the current government’s “judicial reform” plans, the outsized impact of the Kohelet Policy Forum - a formerly low-profile, high-impact Israeli think-tank - has increasingly been making headlines. These include the New York Times (“Who’s Behind the Judicial Overhaul Now Dividing Israel? Two New Yorkers”),...

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP’s Lara Friedman speaks to Vito Todeschini (legal expert in human rights law, international humanitarian law and international accountability, focusing on Palestine/Israel and the wider MENA region) about ongoing efforts to enforce some measure of accountability on Israel for its actions vis-a-vis Palestinians via international legal bodies - most notably...

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP's Sarah Anne Minkin speaks with +972's Haggai Matar about the developments of the last two days -- Netanyahu firing the Defense Minister after the latter spoke out against the judicial and legislative reforms; hundreds of thousands of Israelis protesting against the government; a general strike that has shut down businesses, universities, ports and the ai...

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP’s Sarah Anne Minkin speaks with Ali Awad, writer & activist from Tuba in Masafer Yatta, and Cassandra Dixon, a carpenter from Wisconsin. On March 7th, Cassandra was present on Ali’s grandfather’s land in Tuba when Israeli settlers attacked. One of them hit Cassandra with a stick and fractured her skull, giving her a concussion. In this podcast, Ali and Ca...

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Non-resident Fellow Peter Beinart speaks to Maya Berry (Arab American Institute) and Jim Cavallaro (University Network for Human Rights) about the Biden Administration's recent decision to rescind Cavallaro's nomination to the serve as an independent expert on the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Their discussion explores the Biden Administratio...

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP's Sarah Anne Minkin speaks with Haggai Matar about the growing Israeli protest movement against the Netanyahu government's plans to remake the Israeli government, and how to understand it in light of Israeli apartheid and the escalating violence against Palestinians. Original music by Jalal Yaquoub.

In this episode of "Occupied Thoughts," FMEP's Kristin McCarthy speaks to Rafat Sub Laban (human rights lawyer) and Amy Cohen (Ir Amim) about the Sub Laban family's 40-year legal battle against settlers (and the State) over their home in the Muslim Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. Facing a March 15th eviction deadline, the Sub Laban family needs international attention and intervention. This...