Occupied Thoughts

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Fellow Nour Joudah speaks with journalist Mariam Barghouti about reporting from the ground in the West Bank, views on the Palestinian Authority and Palestinian resistance, and understanding Israeli violence in Gaza and the West Bank within the larger frame of Palestinian history.  Mariam Barghouti is a Palestinian writer and commentator based in Ramallah. Her writing has appeared in the New York Times, Al-Jazeera English, Huffington Post, +972 Magazine, International Business Times and more. Nour Joudah is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Asian American Studies at UCLA, former President’s and Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow in Geography at UC-Berkeley (2022-23), and 2024 FMEP Fellow. Original music by Jalal Yaquoub.

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Fellow Peter Beinart speaks with policy experts Zack Paikin and Trita Parsi about the the new report they co-authored, “Toward a Better Security Order,” the first report by the Quincy Institute's Better Order Project. The report is the result of discussions with over 130 experts, scholars, and practitioners from over 40 countries, aspiring to put together a set of recommendations to stabilize international order as it (as they argue) transitions from away from a unipolar structure. They discuss the Biden administration's focus on the so-called "rules-based international order," recommendations for reforming the UN Security Council, and expectations for the incoming administration led by a president who, in the words of Trita Parsi, has "neither patience for rules nor laws."  For more information, please visit: https://fmep.org/?post_type=resource&p=29872&preview=true

On 11/28/24, despite warnings by the international community against such a step, Israel’s Knesset voted overwhelmingly to adopt two laws that effectively ban the United Nations Relief Works Agency (UNRWA), the UN agency that has served the needs of Palestinian refugees since 1949, from operating in Israel and the Israeli-occupied territories (West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem). Experts weigh in on what these laws say and what they will mean for Palestinian refugees. Find resources and speaker bios at: https://fmep.org/event/israels-unrwa-ban-what-it-means-for-gaza-the-un-and-the-world/

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP's Sarah Anne Minkin speaks with Israeli human rights attorney Alon Sapir about the legal complaint he recently filed, together with other Israeli attorneys, accusing Israeli media Channel 14 of incitement to genocide against Palestinians and other grave crimes. As Israel's genocidal assault on Gaza continues, intensifying especially in northern Gaza where hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civilians face mass displacement and forced hunger, the legal effort Alon describes represents one concrete attempt to hold promoters of genocide accountable for their speech and actions.  Alon Sapir is a human rights attorney with ten years experience in the field. He is currently completing an LLM in National Security Law at Georgetown University. Sarah Anne Minkin, PhD, is FMEP's Director of Programs & Partnerships. Original music by Jalal Yaquoub.

Ta-Nehisi Coates, an award-winning author and journalist, discusses his new book, The Message, which examines the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He shares eye-opening insights from his trip to Palestine, revealing how nationalist narratives distort the realities on the ground. Coates tackles the racial divide in media representation and the intersecting identities of Black Americans and Jewish communities. He further explores the complexities of nationalism, personal experiences following recent events, and the ethical dilemmas in the fight against oppression.

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP President Lara Friedman speaks with Mouin Rabbani about Israel's war on Gaza, its offensive in Lebanon, and how these and other developments fit into Israel's broader objectives in the region, most notably with respect to Iran. Mouin is widely published analyst and commentator on Palestinian affairs, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the contemporary Middle East. He was previously Senior Analyst Middle East and Special Advisor on Israel-Palestine with the International Crisis Group, and head of political affairs with the Office of the United Nations Special Envoy for Syria. He is Co-Editor of Jadaliyya E-zine. Show notes: https://fmep.org/resource/conversation-with-mouin-rabbani/ ‎

FMEP Fellow Peter Beinart speaks with Maya Berry, Executive Director of the Arab American Institute to discuss Maya’s experience testifying on hate crimes before the Senate Judiciary Committee, where several Republican Senators challenged her in expressly anti-Arab ways. For more information and resources, please visit: https://fmep.org/resource/the-bipartisan-betrayal-of-arab-americans/

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP President Lara Friedman discusses how Palestine is one of the defining issues of the 2024 elections with Rania Batrice, and FMEP 2024 non-Resident Fellow. Read more: https://fmep.org/resource/palestine-in-the-2024-u-s-elections/

FMEP Non-resident Fellow Rania Batrice talks with Matt Duss (Center for International Policy) about the current state of politics on Israel and Palestine in the U.S..

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Non-Resident Fellow Nour Joudah speaks with Philip Proudfoot and Mahdi Zaidan from the Accountability Archive (@archivegenocide), which describes itself as a “crowdsourced record of journalists, politicians, and public figures endorsing or encouraging the ethnic cleansing of Gaza and/or defaming pro-Palestinian activists.”  The trio discuss  how the archive came about, how it is coming along, and plans for the future, as well as what it has been like to undertake both such a massive project as well as the experience of wading through such incredibly graphic material.