The Dual Legacy of a Palestinian Icon

For many years, Palestine had one of the strongest left-wing movements in the Arab world, represented by prominent figures such as Leila Khaled and Ghassan Kanafani. At the beginning of the First Intifada in the 1980s, Palestinian left groups were the main challengers to the hegemony of Fatah. Although the Palestinian left has lost much of its influence since the 1980s, they still play an important role today.

Red Star Over Palestine: Histories of the Palestinian Left is a six-part series from Long Reads exploring radical movements and progressive organizations of the region. The podcast examines the experience of Palestinian communism and the left-wing currents inside the PLO, the Palestine Liberation Organization. We also look at the outsized impact of the Left on Palestinian cultural life.

In our third episode, we discuss two of the most prominent figures associated with Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine: Ghassan Kanafani and Leila Khaled.

Get a digital subscription to Jacobin for just $1, or $10 for the print magazine, by following this link: https://jacobin.com/subscribe/?code=MAYDAY2025

Red Star Over Palestine is hosted by Daniel Finn and produced by Conor Gillies. Music provided by Fadi Tabbal.