Israel’s withholding of Palestinian clearance revenues is a longstanding practice, historically used to punish or manipulate the Palestinian Authority (PA). Since October 2023, the Israeli regime has only escalated its theft of Palestinian funds, bringing the PA to the verge of financial collapse. This policy memo argues that Israel’s weaponization of clearance revenues is not merely an extension of past measures but a reflection of a new, more radical agenda driven by the far-right.
On November 5, 2024, the US electorate voted Donald J. Trump for a second term in the 60th presidential election. While many aspects of the incoming administration's foreign policy plans remain uncertain, they will undoubtedly continue to have devastating consequences for the Palestinian people.
In this roundtable, Al-Shabaka analysts Tariq Kenney-Shawa, Abdullah Al-Arian, Andrew Kadi, and Hanna Alshaikh offer insights into how Trump will compare to his predecessor, what his presidency will mean for US policy across the Arab region, what lies ahead for Palestine solidarity organizing in the US, and the material impact will be on the ground in Palestine.
In this policy lab, Yara Asi and Layth Hanbali join host Tariq Kenney-Shawa to discuss Israel’s systematic assault on civilian infrastructure across Gaza and efforts to survive and rebuild against all odds.
The only global network of Palestinian experts to produce critical policy analysis and collectively imagine a new policymaking paradigm for Palestine and Palestinians worldwide.
Policy Briefs
In-depth analysis on existing or potential policies that impact possibilities for Palestinian liberation. Policy briefs are peer-reviewed and include recommendations for engagement.
In their struggle against Zionist settler colonialism, Palestinians have long worked towards establishing a resistance economy. Today, food sovereignty constitutes a natural continuation of this process, building upon the principles of agricultural self-sufficiency practiced throughout the history of the Palestinian revolution.
In this policy brief, Fathi Nimer traces the origins of food sovereignty and the challenges Palestinians face today to effectively put the framework into practice. He argues that doing so will help better recontextualize the resistance economy and help pave the way for a more contentious economic order.
For decades, Israel has spearheaded a campaign against UNRWA meant to erase the question of Palestinian refugees and their collective right of return. While not new, the latest defunding of the agency by Israel’s allies is unprecedented in terms of its scope and perilous timing.
Disinformation is being produced at industrial scale by official Israeli sources to justify its ongoing genocide in Gaza. Journalists and open-source intelligence analysts have only added fuel to this fire of Palestinian dehumanization by propping up the false news without necessary scrutiny. In his latest policy brief, Tariq Kenney-Shawa delves into Israel’s information warfare tactics, exploring how these efforts have contributed to the decay of truth and how they hamper efforts to organize a global response. He offers recommendations for reporters, analysts, and the wider public to leverage open-source tools to refute dominant Israeli propaganda and disinformation.
In recent years, much has been written about the overwhelming support former President Donald Trump has received from white evangelical Christians, particularly Christian Zionists. Less examined is the relationship between white supremacy and Christian Zionism, namely their overlapping ideologies and political clout.
In this policy brief, analysts Halah Ahmad and Mimi Kirk examine the sinister synergy between Christian Zionism and white supremacy, unpacking the exceptionalism upon which Christian Zionist racist ideologies, discourses, and politics are based.
Commentaries
Insights and perspectives on social, political, and economic questions related to Palestine and Palestinians globally.
After a year of enduring relentless violence and devastation, Palestinians stand at a pivotal moment. In this commentary, Yara Hawari reflects on the immense losses for the Palestinian people since October 2023 and the emerging opportunities to work towards a future free of settler colonial oppression. Hawari argues that now is the time for the movement to shift from a reactive stance to one that defines its own priorities. As part of this transition, she outlines three necessary steps: moving beyond a reliance on international law, deepening connections in the Global South, and dedicating resources to exploring radical visions of a liberated future.
In this commentary, Samer Alatout offers key insights into this new wave of student mobilization. He details student demands and places them within the historical legacy of US student organizing. He also examines the relationship between university administrators, students, and faculty, and finds hope in the kinship emerging between the latter two groups at this critical moment.
On May 17, 2024, the US began operating a temporary floating pier off the coast of Gaza. Since the project’s announcement, many have expressed skepticism towards the pier’s effectiveness and deep concern regarding the US’s long-term plans and the pier’s potential role in serving Israeli objectives.
This commentary examines the pier’s operations and unpacks the many incentives for its development by key geopolitical players. It positions the pier within Israel’s longer-term strategy for Palestine, using the structure as a window into understanding the regime’s broader regional aims. Temporary or not, this commentary contends that the pier must not be viewed as merely a short-term humanitarian effort, but also as a symbol of the US and Israel’s continued imperial and colonial endeavors.
Policy Focus
Compilations of past Al-Shabaka works surrounding a specific theme.
Since October 2023, Israeli forces have brutally murdered over 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza, injured 100,000, and displaced nearly all of the occupied area’s population. In that same time, the Israeli regime has embarked on the largest invasion of the West Bank since the Second Intifada, resulting in over 600 Palestinians killed and 10,900 detained. Israel has likewise expanded its genocidal assault into Lebanon, killing well over 1,000 people and displacing more than one million.
This Focus On highlights how Al-Shabaka has sought to respond to these developments over the past year. From grounding October 7th in the broader context of Israeli settler colonialism, to interrogating Israel's multifaceted war machine, to assessing rapidly evolving regional relations, this compilation of works represents Al-Shabaka's ongoing effort to articulate the Palestinian condition in real time.
As the Israeli regime continues its genocidal campaign against Palestinians in Gaza, many have begun to weigh in on the future of Hamas and of Palestinian leadership more broadly once the bombardment ends. One of the dominant proposals is the revival of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), with Hamas as a member party.
But revival of the PLO requires more than bringing Hamas into the fold, as the Fatah-controlled PA has effectively whittled down the PLO to a barren institution. What then, beyond inclusion, is needed in order to resuscitate the viability of the PLO? In an effort to strengthen the generative thinking around these questions, Al-Shabaka revisits a collection of its past works that sought to confront this very topic.
As much of the world struggles to make sense of the devastation across colonized Palestine since October 7th, Palestinians speaking out continue to be dehumanized and silenced in an effort to quash testimonies that challenge the dominant discourse.
To counter this strategy, Al-Shabaka has compiled a collection of its past works that may serve to ground readers in the wider context of this current moment. Together, these publications, webinars, and podcasts speak to the many layers that form the foundation of this point of rupture. They offer possibilities for new ways both to understand the past and present, as well as to envision a radically different future.
Grounding the Gaza Genocide
Al-Shabaka has compiled a collection of its past works that may serve to ground readers in the wider context of this current moment.
The only global network of Palestinians who produce critical policy analysis and put Palestinian policy voices on the map
Al-Shabaka is a network of intellectuals, practitioners, and activists based in Palestine and around the globe, collectively imagining a new policymaking paradigm for Palestine.
Policy Labs
Our monthly webinar series that brings together Palestinian experts to discuss and debate policy and strategy related to Palestine in front of a live audience.
In this policy lab, Yara Asi and Layth Hanbali join host Tariq Kenney-Shawa to discuss Israel’s systematic assault on civilian infrastructure across Gaza and efforts to survive and rebuild against all odds.
In our upcoming policy lab, Marwa Fatafta and Antony Loewenstein join host Tariq Kenney-Shawa to discuss Gaza as a testing ground for Israel’s global war industry.
In this policy lab, Nour Joudah and Kylie Broderick join host Tariq Kenney-Shawa to discuss some of the key lessons to be gleaned from the encampments and how we can best build on them to strengthen the Palestine solidarity movement moving forward.
In this policy lab, Ihab Maharmeh and Ahmed Abu Ziad join us with facilitator Fathi Nimer to discuss the past, present, and future of the student movement in Palestine.
Policy Memos
Concise analysis into a specific policy, its background and implications.
Israel’s withholding of Palestinian clearance revenues is a longstanding practice, historically used to punish or manipulate the Palestinian Authority (PA). Since October 2023, the Israeli regime has only escalated its theft of Palestinian funds, bringing the PA to the verge of financial collapse. This policy memo argues that Israel’s weaponization of clearance revenues is not merely an extension of past measures but a reflection of a new, more radical agenda driven by the far-right.
UK arms companies have long profited from selling weapons to Israel, with licenses issued from the British government. Since 2008, these exports have totaled an estimated $740 million, continuing even amid the ongoing genocide in Gaza.
Following the Labour Party's July 2024 election victory, which promised alignment with international law, some were cautiously optimistic that an arms embargo would be forthcoming. In September 2024, the British government suspended 30 out of 350 arms export licenses to Israel. Activists and human rights groups argue that this is far too limited. Accordingly, this policy memo details Britain's international legal obligations and potential governmental maneuvers regarding arms sales to Israel.
On November 5, 2024, the US electorate voted Donald J. Trump for a second term in the 60th presidential election. While many aspects of the incoming administration's foreign policy plans remain uncertain, they will undoubtedly continue to have devastating consequences for the Palestinian people.
In this roundtable, Al-Shabaka analysts Tariq Kenney-Shawa, Abdullah Al-Arian, Andrew Kadi, and Hanna Alshaikh offer insights into how Trump will compare to his predecessor, what his presidency will mean for US policy across the Arab region, what lies ahead for Palestine solidarity organizing in the US, and the material impact will be on the ground in Palestine.
In this roundtable, Al-Shabaka analysts Belal Shobaki, Tariq Kenney-Shawa, and Fathi Nimer offer their insights on the impact of Haniyeh's assassination. They reflect on Hamas's future, the impetus behind the operation, and its wider regional consequences, placing them within the historical context of so-called Israeli diplomacy.
Rethinking Palestine
Rethinking Palestine is a podcast from Al-Shabaka: The Palestinian Policy Network, a transnational think tank that brings together Palestinians from across the globe to produce critical policy analysis and craft visions for a liberated, self-determined future. Host Yara Hawari engages with various Palestinian analysts to discuss recent developments and long-standing questions facing Palestinians worldwide.
Recent Podcast
Al-Shabaka US Policy Fellow Tariq Kenney-Shawa joins the podcast to reflect on the 2024 US presidential election results in the context of ongoing genocide in Gaza and the future of the liberation movement for Palestine.
Media & Outreach
Following the ICC issuing arrest warrants, Yara Hawari argues that global leaders like Keir Starmer must also be held to account for supporting Israel's crimes.
“Esto podría tener un impacto psicológico, ya que profundizará la idea de que los palestinos en Gaza están solos en su resistencia contra sus ocupantes”, dijo Tariq Kenney Shawa, becario de políticas estadunidenses en Al-Shabaka, un centro de estudios palestino.
For many across the Middle East, the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire came as a relief: the first major sign of progress in the region since war began more than a year ago.
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