This is a special episode of Long Reads that we’ve recorded because of the war in Gaza. Dan speaks with Palestinian academic Bashir Abu-Manneh about the situation that’s developed over the last week and what’s likely to happen next. Bashir is a Reader in Postcolonial Literature at the University of Kent and the author of The Palestinian Novel: From 1948 to the Present.

Bashir is also a contributing editor at Jacobin who’s written many articles about Palestinian politics, including, most recently, "Israel’s Assault on Gaza Is Part of Its Permanent War on Palestinians": https://jacobin.com/2023/10/israel-palestine-gaza-strip-permanent-war-international-law-air-strikes

By October 16th, when this interview was recorded, Israeli air strikes had killed at least 2,800 people in Gaza, including more than seven hundred children. The following day, we saw the greatest single loss of life to date, with hundreds killed by an explosion at a hospital in Gaza. Western leaders are still refusing to call for a ceasefire.

A lightly edited transcript of this interview can be found here: https://jacobin.com/2023/10/gaza-war-israel-apartheid-international-solidarity-movement

Long Reads is a Jacobin podcast looking in-depth at political topics and thinkers, both contemporary and historical, with the magazine’s longform writers. Hosted by features editor Daniel Finn. Produced by Conor Gillies, music by Knxwledge.