Occupied Thoughts

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Fellow Peter Beinart speaks with UC Berkeley Professor Ussama Makdisi, who was recently informed that UC Berkeley shared his name, along with those of 159 other Berkeley faculty & students, with the federal government for "alleged incidents of antisemitism." Peter & Ussama discuss the absurdity of experience -- the accused have not been informed of any details of the allegations against them -- while looking at why UC Berkeley is not defending its faculty and students, how the Berkeley experience compares with how other universities have capitulated to the Trump administration, and whether academic freedom on campus will survive. Most urgently, they discuss how the attacks on universities are meant to distract from the genocide Israel is carrying out right now against Palestinians.  Resources on this topic include "UC Berkeley shares 160 names with Trump administration in ‘McCarthy era’ move," The Guardian 9/12/25; "UC Berkeley professor warns of 'unprecedented crackdown' on academic freedom." NPR interview with Ussama Makdisi on 9/18/25 "When Universities Become Informants," by Judith Butler, 9/13/25 "Kafka-land at UC Berkeley," by Judith Butler, The Nation, 9/16/25 Dr. Ussama Makdisi is Professor of History and Chancellor’s Chair at the University of California Berkeley. He was previously Professor of History and the first holder of the Arab-American Educational Foundation Chair of Arab Studies at Rice University in Houston.  During AY 2019-2020, Professor Makdisi was a Visiting Professor at the University of California at Berkeley in the Department of History. Makdisi was awarded the Berlin Prize and spent the Spring 2018 semester as a Fellow at the American Academy of Berlin. Professor Makdisi’s most recent book Age of Coexistence: The Ecumenical Frame and the Making of the Modern Arab World was published in 2019 by the University of California Press. He is also the author of Faith Misplaced: the Broken Promise of U.S.-Arab Relations, 1820-2001 (Public Affairs, 2010).  His previous books include Artillery of Heaven: American Missionaries and the Failed Conversion of the Middle East (Cornell University Press, 2008), which was the winner of the 2008 Albert Hourani Book Award from the Middle East Studies Association, the 2009 John Hope Franklin Prize of the American Studies Association, and a co-winner of the 2009 British-Kuwait Friendship Society Book Prize given by the British Society for Middle Eastern Studies. Makdisi is also the author of The Culture of Sectarianism: Community, History, and Violence in Nineteenth-Century Ottoman Lebanon (University of California Press, 2000) and co-editor of Memory and Violence in the Middle East and North Africa (Indiana University Press, 2006). He has published widely on Ottoman and Arab history as well as on U.S.-Arab relations and U.S. missionary work in the Middle East. Peter Beinart is a Non-Resident Fellow at the Foundation for Middle East Peace. He is also a Professor of Journalism and Political Science at the City University of New York, a Contributing opinion writer at the New York Times, an Editor-at-Large at Jewish Currents, and an MSNBC Political Commentator. His newest book (published 2025) is Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza: A Reckoning. Original music by Jalal Yaquoub.

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Fellows Ahmed Moor and Peter Beinart speak about the new developments with Palestinian statehood and their meaning and implications. They also discuss American politics and culture, discussing the shifts on the Right regarding Israel and looking ahead at the 2026 midterms. Peter Beinart is a Non-Resident Fellow at the Foundation for Middle East Peace. He is also a Professor of Journalism and Political Science at the City University of New York, a Contributing opinion writer at the New York Times, an Editor-at-Large at Jewish Currents, and an MSNBC Political Commentator. His newest book (published 2025) is Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza: A Reckoning. Ahmed Moor is a Palestinian-American writer born in Gaza and a 2025 Fellow at FMEP. He is an advisory board member of the US Campaign for Palestinian rights, co-editor of After Zionism (Saqi Books) and is currently writing a book about Palestine. He also currently serves on the board of the Independence Media Foundation. His work has been published in The Guardian, The London Review of Books, The Nation, and elsewhere. He earned a BA at the University of Pennsylvania and an MPP at Harvard University.  Original music by Jalal Yaquoub.

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Fellow Hilary Rantisi speaks with zehra imam, who launched Poetry of the Camps, a poetry program in Gaza with young writers. Basman Aldirawi and Duha Hassan Al Shaqaqi, former participants in the program who have become co-leaders of it, joined in the conversation. Basman and Duha shared what it meant for each of them to be writing poetry in Gaza during the genocide. They discussed the process of bringing students together virtually from all over the Gaza Strip, with different backgrounds and experiences, to write poetry. The themes of their sessions were miracles, homeland, the concept of colorism, love letters to Palestine, and freedom. They share a poem titled “Balsam” written by a student participant about her friend who was killed in the Israeli assault and discuss their experiences during the genocide: Basman, who was in Egypt on 10/7/23 and could not return to Gaza and Duha, who survived the genocide and was evacuated from Gaza just a few weeks ago. Basman Aldirawi (also published as Basman Derawi) is a physiotherapist and a graduate of Al-Azhar University in Gaza in 2010. Inspired by an interest in music, movies, and people with special needs, he contributes dozens of stories/poems to the online platform We Are Not Numbers and other platforms including Vivamost, Mondoweiss, ArabLit, and Written Revolution. He has contributed to the Arabic poetry anthology, Gaza: Land of Poetry, 2021 and to the English anthology, Light in Gaza: Writing Born in Fire, 2022. Basman was Illuminated Cities’ inaugural Fall 2024 Poetry of the Camps-Gaza fellow. He is now part of the Illuminated Cities program team.  Duha Hassan Al Shaqaqi is a Palestinian writer, student, and storyteller who finds power in words, resilience in education, and purpose in advocacy. She was a 2024 inaugural Poetry of the Camps-Gaza fellow. Duha is now part of the Illuminated Cities program team, and her poem was featured in the 2025 Harvard Divinity School commencement speech. Raised in Gaza, she has experienced firsthand the challenges of war, displacement, and interrupted education — but also the strength of community, the value of knowledge, and the hope that creativity brings. With a background in English literature and a passion for humanitarian work, Duha writes about survival, identity, and the silent strength found in everyday moments. She has worked as a social worker during wartime and continues to pursue global education opportunities to amplify her voice and the voices of others. zehra imam is the founder of Illuminated Cities, an education organization that works on creative expression with communities impacted by systemic violence such as war or occupation. She designed Poetry of the Camps in 2024 for students in Gaza, Rohingya refugee camps, Harvard, and MIT and it continues to this day in Gaza and Rohingya refugee camps. Hilary Rantisi grew up in Palestine and has been involved with education and advocacy on the Middle East since her move to the US. She is a 2025 Fellow at FMEP and was most recently the Associate Director of the Religion, Conflict and Peace Initiative (RCPI) and co-instructor of Learning in Context: Narratives of Displacement and Belonging in Israel/Palestine at Harvard Divinity School. She has over two decades of experience in institution building at Harvard, having been the Director of the Middle East Initiative (MEI) at Harvard Kennedy School of Government prior to her current role. She has a BA in Political Science/International Studies from Aurora University and a master’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Chicago. Before moving to the US, Hilary worked at Birzeit University and at the Jerusalem-based Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center. There, she co-edited a photo essay book Our Story: The Palestinians with the Rev. Naim Ateek. Original music by Jalal Yaquoub.

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Fellow Peter Beinart speaks with David Adler, co-general coordinator of the Progressive International, who is currently on the Global Sumud Flotilla, a humanitarian convoy currently on its way to Gaza. They discuss the remarkable cross-section of people who have joined the flotilla and what they hope to achieve by it while also looking at different ways Israel works to discredit and undermine this effort. Because David joined the podcast from the boat in the Mediterranean and lost access to the internet while he and Peter were speaking, this conversation happens in two parts. You'll hear the transition about halfway through the podcast.  David Adler is a political economist and the Co-General Coordinator of the Progressive International, founded in May 2020 to unite, organize, and mobilize progressive forces around the world. His research and writing have been featured in the New York Times, The Guardian, The Washington Post, and Foreign Affairs, among others. You can read more about him at https://davidrkadler.info/.  Peter Beinart is a Non-Resident Fellow at the Foundation for Middle East Peace. He is also a Professor of Journalism and Political Science at the City University of New York, a Contributing opinion writer at the New York Times, an Editor-at-Large at Jewish Currents, and an MSNBC Political Commentator. His newest book (published 2025) is Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza: A Reckoning. Original music by Jalal Yaquoub.

Daniel Levy, President of the U.S./Middle East Project, discusses the long-lasting implications of Israel's 2005 Gaza withdrawal and its role in the current humanitarian crisis. He argues that Israel's approach has shifted from apartheid to outright genocidal policies. The conversation also touches on the political impact of recent Israeli actions in Qatar, the dynamics of U.S. support for Israel, and the internal divisions in Israeli politics. Levy emphasizes the resilience of Palestinians amid escalating violence and the changing landscape of American attitudes toward Israel.

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Fellow Ahmed Moor speaks with Marianne Hirsch, Professor emerita of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University. Professor Hirsch made news recently when she withdrew from classroom teaching because Columbia instituted the IHRA Definition of Antisemitism, telling the Associated Press that “‘A university that treats criticism of Israel as antisemitic and threatens sanctions for those who disobey is no longer a place of open inquiry…I just don’t see how I can teach about genocide in that environment.”’ In this podcast, Ahmed Moor and Professor Hirsch discuss the IHRA definition of antisemitism and its impact on teaching and learning as well as the changes in academia and the changing balance of influence and power between administrators and scholars. Digging into Prof. Hirsch’s areas of expertise, they discuss genocide scholarship and Germany, looking at the achievements and failures of German “memory culture” and comparing the Holocaust, the Nakba, and the genocide in Palestine today. Through a look at the Genocide and Holocaust Studies Crisis Network, which Prof. Hirsch helped to found, they discuss how scholars are trying to use their expertise in fascism, mass atrocities, and political violence to name, explain, and counter the rise in authoritarianism and ethnonationalism around the world.  Marianne Hirsch is William Peterfield Trent Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University and Professor in the Institute for Research on Women, Gender, and Sexuality. She is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and a former  President of the Modern Language Association of America. She was born in Romania and educated at Brown University, where she received her BA/MA and Ph.D. degrees. Hirsch’s work combines feminist theory with memory studies, particularly the transmission of memories of violence across generations. Her recent books include School Photos in Liquid Time: Reframing Difference, co-authored with Leo Spitzer  (University of Washington Press, 2020), and the co-edited volumes Imagining Everyday Life: Engagements with Vernacular Photography (Steidl, 2020) and Women Mobilizing Memory (Columbia University Press, 2019).  Ahmed Moor is a Palestinian-American writer born in Gaza and a 2025 Fellow at FMEP. He is an advisory board member of the US Campaign for Palestinian rights, co-editor of After Zionism (Saqi Books) and is currently writing a book about Palestine. He also currently serves on the board of the Independence Media Foundation. His work has been published in The Guardian, The London Review of Books, The Nation, and elsewhere. He earned a BA at the University of Pennsylvania and an MPP at Harvard University. Original music by Jalal Yaquoub.

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Fellow Peter Beinart speaks with Laila Al-Arian, the executive producer for Fault Lines, an award-winning current affairs program on Al Jazeera English. They discuss what it's like to be a journalist in Gaza and how Western journalists have failed their Palestinian colleagues. They also talk about remembering the journalists Israel has killed. On August 25, 2025, the day Peter & Laila spoke, Israel killed at least five Palestinian journalists in Gaza, including an Al Jazeera cameraman. Israel has killed nearly 200 Palestinian journalists in Gaza since 10/7/23.   Laila Al-Arian is a Washington DC-based journalist, journalist, and executive producer for Fault Lines, an award-winning current affairs program on Al Jazeera English. She has produced documentaries on subjects ranging from the Trump administration’s Muslim ban to the impact of the heroin epidemic on children and an investigation into factory conditions in Bangladesh. For her work, she has been honored with a News and Documentary Emmy, Peabody Award, Robert F. Kennedy Award in journalism, National Headliner Award, and has been nominated for 15 News and Documentary Emmys. Prior to joining Fault Lines, Laila worked for Al Jazeera English for four years, covering everything from Guantanamo Bay’s youngest detainee to the re-settlement of Iraqi refugees in the U.S. She received a BA in English literature from Georgetown University and an M.S. from Columbia’s Graduate School of Journalism. Her work has appeared in The Nation, Salon, The Independent, and other publications, and she is co-author of the book Collateral Damage: America’s War Against Iraqi Civilians. Peter Beinart is a Non-Resident Fellow at the Foundation for Middle East Peace. He is also a Professor of Journalism and Political Science at the City University of New York, a Contributing opinion writer at the New York Times, an Editor-at-Large at Jewish Currents, and an MSNBC Political Commentator. His newest book (published 2025) is Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza: A Reckoning. Original music by Jalal Yaquoub.

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Fellow Hilary Rantisi speaks with researcher Randa Wahbe about the Israeli policy and practice of holding Palestinian corpses as part of the broader Israeli regime of control over Palestinians. At present, Israel holds more than 740 Palestinian bodies. Randa describes this practice of control, which can be defined as "necropolitics" and/or "necroviolence,"  and which includes desecration of burial sites and cemeteries. She also describes Palestinian practices of defiance and dignity that aim to counter the impact that this particular form of violence has on Palestinian families and communities. FMEP initiated this conversation after FMEP's partner and friend Awdah Hathaleen was murdered on 7/28/25 by an Israeli settler who invaded Awdah's village, Umm al Khair in Masafer Yatta, and Israel then held Awdah's body, refusing to return it to his family for burial. Women in Umm al Khair, including Awdah's mother, widow, and extended family, launched a hunger strike to demand that Israel return his body for burial without conditions. 10 days after the murder, Israel returned Awdah's body and allowed his family to bury him. Read more about Awdah Hathaleen and the events surrounding his murder, Israel withholding his body, and his village's response here: "Awdah Hathaleen laid to rest after Israel withheld body for 10 days" (Oren Ziv, +972 Magazine, 8/7/25) and "Israel is holding Awdah Hathaleen’s body. His killer roams freely through his village" (Sahar Vardi and Basel Adra, +972 Magazine, 8/5/25)  Also see this 2021 conversation FMEP hosted, "Palestinian Bodies Held Hostage by Israel," with human rights advocate & researcher Budour Hassan and Professor Noura Erakat about Israel’s policy of holding hostage the bodies of slain Palestinians. This conversation drew on Israeli authorities holding the body of Ahmad Erekat, Noura's cousin.  Randa May Wahbe earned her PhD in anthropology from Harvard University. Her dissertation is titled “The Politics of Karameh: Palestinian Dignity and Defiance Against the Necrocarceral State” in which she investigates Israel’s exploitation of the Palestinian dead. Randa currently works in movement advocacy to support progressive groups elevate their voices in the media and is an Adjunct Professor at University of San Francisco. Previously, she served as head of international advocacy for a leading human rights organization in Palestine that defends political prisoners rights, where she led global campaigns during hunger strikes and moments of escalating violence. Hilary Rantisi grew up in Palestine and has been involved with education and advocacy on the Middle East since her move to the US. She is a 2025 Fellow at FMEP and was most recently the Associate Director of the Religion, Conflict and Peace Initiative (RCPI) and co-instructor of Learning in Context: Narratives of Displacement and Belonging in Israel/Palestine at Harvard Divinity School. She has over two decades of experience in institution building at Harvard, having been the Director of the Middle East Initiative (MEI) at Harvard Kennedy School of Government prior to her current role. She has a BA in Political Science/International Studies from Aurora University and a master’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Chicago. Before moving to the US, Hilary worked at Birzeit University and at the Jerusalem-based Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center. There, she co-edited a photo essay book Our Story: The Palestinians with the Rev. Naim Ateek. Original music by Jalal Yaquoub.

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, former FMEP President Matt Duss speaks with professor & author Brian Barber, who recently published No Way But Forward: Life Stories of Three Families in the Gaza Strip. The book tells the stories of day-t0-day life under decades of military occupation, building on the close relationships Brian built there through many years of academic research. Brian maintains close contact with the families and finishes the book with a section on each family's harrowing efforts to survive the current genocide in Gaza. Brian and Matt discuss the book -- how Brian came to write it, the contents of it, and the challenge of publishing it -- as well as Brian's experience of encountering Palestinian communities, overcoming unconscious biases, and withstanding direct challenges to the legitimacy of Palestinian voices in order to fulfill a promise and share Palestinian stories.  Brian K. Barber is Professor Emeritus, University of Tennessee and the author of No Way But Forward: Life Stories of Three Families in the Gaza Strip. He currently lives in Washington, DC. His work has addressed how context—from parenting to political systems—impact individual and social development. Among other books, he is editor of Intrusive Parenting: How Psychological Control Affects Children and Adolescents (2002, American Psychological Association), and Adolescents and War: How Youth Deal with Political Conflict (2008, Oxford University Press). Matthew Duss is Executive Vice-President at the Center for International Policy. Before joining CIP, Duss was a visiting scholar in the American Statecraft Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. From 2017-22, Duss was foreign policy advisor to Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt). From 2014-17, Duss was the president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace. From 2008-14 Duss was a National Security and International Policy analyst at the Center for American Progress. Original music by Jalal Yaquoub.

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Fellow Hilary Rantisi speaks with Palestinian-Canadian lawyer and analyst Diana Buttu. They discuss Palestinian citizens of Israel, who have long navigated Israeli racism and have faced accelerated repression over the last 22 months that has included arrests, threats, and efforts to impeach Palestinian Knesset Member Ayman Odeh and undermine Palestinian political participation inside of Israel. They talk about responses to the Israeli genocide in Gaza, including recent protests and hunger strikes led by Palestinian citizens of Israel as well as growing numbers of Jewish Israelis who are naming Israeli actions in Gaza as genocide. They also look at the new diplomatic wave led by many Western states promising to recognize a Palestinian state and, specifically, how that state recognition is juxtaposed against the International Court of Justice's rulings on Israeli occupation. Finally, Diana reflects on the legacy of the Oslo Accords and the reckoning on those agreements that has never occurred.  Diana Buttu is a Palestinian-Canadian lawyer, analyst, and writer. She is also the Communications Director in Palestine for the Institute for Middle East Understanding (IMEU). Previously, she served as a legal advisor to the Palestinian Liberation Organization. Hilary Rantisi grew up in Palestine and has been involved with education and advocacy on the Middle East since her move to the US. She is a 2025 Fellow at FMEP and was most recently the Associate Director of the Religion, Conflict and Peace Initiative (RCPI) and co-instructor of Learning in Context: Narratives of Displacement and Belonging in Israel/Palestine at Harvard Divinity School. She has over two decades of experience in institution building at Harvard, having been the Director of the Middle East Initiative (MEI) at Harvard Kennedy School of Government prior to her current role. She has a BA in Political Science/International Studies from Aurora University and a master’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Chicago. Before moving to the US, Hilary worked at Birzeit University and at the Jerusalem-based Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center. There, she co-edited a photo essay book Our Story: The Palestinians with the Rev. Naim Ateek. Original music by Jalal Yaquoub.