Occupied Thoughts

Featuring Mkhaimar Abusada (Al Azhar University in Gaza City), Jehad Abusalim (American Friends Service Committee), and Tania Hary (Gisha). Co-moderated by Lara Friedman (FMEP) & Khaled Elgindy (MEI). Recorded Feb 25, 2022. This podcast is Part 3 of an 8-part series of webinars. For more information regarding this series, and links to the other sessions, please see: https://fmep.org/resource/2022-congressional-briefing-series-israel-palestine-hot-topics-in-congress/ In this session we explored issues related to Gaza, including the longstanding Israeli blockade and deliberate isolation of Gaza from the rest of Palestine and the world; the competing and complementary roles of Hamas, the Palestinian Authority, Israel, and Egypt; and how Gaza fits into the broader Palestinian picture.

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts podcast, FMEP's Lara Friedman speaks with preeminent journalist Dalia Hatuqa about Palestinian domestic politics, this week's normalization "summit" in the Negev, and the long-feared/long-predicted escalation of tensions/violence in the entire area between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, coinciding with Ramadan, Easter, and Passover, which many fear will turn into an even bloodier re-play of the events of summer 2021.

Featuring Paul O’Brien (Amnesty International), Dr. Maha Nassar (University of Arizona), and Peter Beinart (CUNY), in conversation with Lara Friedman (FMEP) For full bios & links to resources mentioned in this podcast, see: https://fmep.org/resource/policing-the-narrative-israel-apartheid-in-the-us-debate/ Last month, Amnesty International published a detailed and thorough report examining Israel’s treatment of Palestinians and concluding that it meets the legal definition of the crime of apartheid. With this conclusion, Amnesty joined the ranks of international and Israeli NGOs, including Human Rights Watch, B’Tselem, and Yesh Din, as well as Palestinian organizations and advocates, including Al Haq and Al Mezan, who have likewise concluded that that Israel’s treatment of Palestinians amounts to the crime of apartheid. And just last week, UN Special Rapporteur Michael Lynk articulated the same conclusion in an official report to the UN Security Council. In this webinar/podcast, we explore another aspect of this issue: the dynamics and tactics (some new, some old) on display in the responses from defenders of the status quo to the growing use and acceptance of the apartheid framing — including deflection and misdirection aimed at shifting focus away from factual findings and delegitimization and demonization of human rights defenders and Palestinian rights activists.

In this episode of "Occupied Thoughts," FMEP non-resident fellow Peter Beinart is joined by Khaled Elgindy (Middle East Institute) and Elizabeth Tsurkov (New Lines Institute) to discuss how Israeli and Palestinian officials have responded to Russia's invasion of the Ukraine, and how these responses are playing in the U.S. political world. For more information on the panelists, please visit: https://fmep.org/resource/israeli-palestinian-responses-to-russias-invasion-of-ukraine/

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts podcast, Lara Friedman speaks with Peter Beinart about his recent article, Justifications for Destroying a People, examining similarities between arguments Putin is putting forward to dehumanize Ukrainians and arguments long used by Israel to dehumanize Palestinians. This podcast is a follow-up to Lara's March 3rd Occupied Thoughts episode featuring Yousef Munayyer, looking at the world's double standard on BDS – Russia/Ukraine vs. Israel/Palestine.

On March 15, 2022, the Israeli Supreme Court is expected to render a decision on whether the state of Israel will be permitted to carry out a large expulsion of Palestinians in the West Bank. The Palestinians in question live in an area of the South Hebron Hills called Masafer Yatta, residing for many generations in small, shepherding-based villages. In the early 1980s, in violation of international law, the IDF declared the area a firing zone (“Firing Zone 918”) -- an action viewed by experts as taken with the clear Israeli objective  of displacing the Palestinian residents of the area and taking control of the land. Consistent with that analysis, for decades, Palestinians living in Masafer Yatta have faced constant threat of expulsion, home demolitions, confiscation of their property, harassment and violence at the hands of both the Israeli army and Israeli settlers.  Ali Awad, a writer and activist from Tuba - one of the villages slated in Masafer Yatta - and Maya Rosen, a Jerusalem-based Palestine solidarity activist, will join FMEP's Sarah Anne Minkin for a discussion of how Palestinians in Masafer Yatta continue to build their lives despite the constant existential threat they are under such threat, what they expect from the Israeli Supreme Court, and the international campaign they have launched to save their villages. We’ll also discuss the role of the Israeli judiciary in enabling Israeli apartheid and Israel’s  use of the “firing zone” designation as a means of confiscating Palestinian land.  Original music by Jalal Yaquoub

In this episode of "Occupied Thoughts," FMEP's Sarah Anne Minkin speaks with Dr. Maha Nassar, associate professor in the School of Middle Eastern and North African Studies at the University of Arizona and 2022 FMEP Fellow, about the question of "Who are Palestine's people?" This question anchors Dr. Nassar's new research into the communities that made their homes in Palestine over the last 1500 years. This deep dive into history sheds light on Palestinian nationalism, the Palestinian diaspora, and potential paths forward. Original music by Jalal Yaquob.

As evidence of the current & future climate crisis continues to mount, join FMEP and key activists & researchers as we look at the dynamics of climate change for Palestinians. How do the realities of apartheid in Israel/Palestine, and additionally Israel’s siege and recurring bombardment of Gaza, affect Palestinians’ access to clean water, sustainable land, consistent electricity, and food security? What bearing do these Israeli-imposed environmental limitations have on Palestinians’ ability to stay on their land? And what does “climate justice” mean, and what could it look like for Palestinians? Featuring Jessica Anderson (Visualizing Palestine), Khalil Abu Yahia (Gaza-based scholar), and Manal Shqair (Stop the Wall Campaign) with Dr. Sarah Anne Minkin (FMEP). Original music by Jalal Yaquoub

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP's Lara Friedman speaks to Yousef Munayyer (Arab Center DC) about how the near global embrace of boycotts, divestment, and sanctions against Russia in response to its military assault on Ukraine contrasts to longstanding, far-reaching efforts to delegitimize, quash, and even criminalize these same tactics as a response to Israel's systematic violence against Palestinians and violations of Palestinian rights. Yousef Munayyer, PhD, is a non-resident Fellow at Arab Center Washington DC (ACW). He writes on the Arab-Israeli conflict and is a member of the editorial committee of the Journal of Palestine Studies. Some of his published articles can be found in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Nation, Boston Globe, Foreign Policy, Journal of Palestine Studies, Middle East Policy, and others. Dr. Munayyer holds a PhD in International Relations and Comparative Politics from the University of Maryland. He tweets @YousefMunayyer. Lara Friedman is the President of the Foundation for Middle East Peace (FMEP). With more than 25 years working in the Middle East foreign policy arena, Lara is a leading authority on U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East, with particular expertise on the Israeli-Arab conflict, Israeli settlements, Jerusalem, and the role of the U.S. Congress. She is published widely in the U.S. and international press and is regularly consulted by members of Congress and their staffs, by Washington-based diplomats, by policy-makers in capitals around the world, and by journalists in the U.S. and abroad. In addition to her work at FMEP, Lara is a Contributing Writer at Jewish Currents and a non-resident fellow at the U.S./Middle East Project (USMEP). Prior to joining FMEP, Lara was the Director of Policy and Government Relations at Americans for Peace Now, and before that she was a U.S. Foreign Service Officer, serving in Jerusalem, Washington, Tunis and Beirut. She holds a B.A. from the University of Arizona and a Master’s degree from Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service. She tweets @LaraFriedmanDC Original Music by Jalal Yaquoub

Featuring Salem Barahmeh (Palestine Institute for Public Diplomacy), Hagai El-Ad (B’Tselem) and Sherine Tadros (Amnesty International). Co-moderated by Lara Friedman (FMEP) & Khaled Elgindy (MEI). Recorded February 18, 2022. This webinar is Part 3 of an 8-part series of webinars. For more information regarding this series, and links to the other sessions, please see: https://fmep.org/resource/2022-congressional-briefing-series-israel-palestine-hot-topics-in-congress/ In this session we explored the increasing adoption by human rights experts of the term “apartheid” to describe the reality in Israel/Palestine, including on both sides of the Green Line, and the view that, today, Palestinians and Israelis live in a de facto one-state, apartheid reality.