Civil Society

The majority of suppression of Palestine advocacy in the US targets university students and faculty. Al-Shabaka’s Hatem Bazian traces the historic rise of this advocacy, offering recommendations for how the university, despite attacks against it, can continue to provide and even amplify an environment that fosters critical thinking on Palestine, in turn furthering the struggle for Palestinian rights. 

The West Bank and Gaza Strip are confronting COVID-19 from a reality of Israeli military occupation. Al-Shabaka Senior Palestine Policy Fellow Yara Hawari analyzes the severe challenges this presents to Palestinians, Israel’s political manipulation of the virus, and the international community’s normalizing response – and how it should change.  

Settler colonial projects such as Israel seek to control perceptions of reality in order to bind Indigenous and colonized people in a seemingly perpetual state of being. Imagining a future beyond this state is thus a rebellious and radical act. Al-Shabaka’s Yara Hawari explores the need for Palestinian imaginings of radical futures and highlights current examples of such work. 

The EU recently announced additional conditions on its aid to Palestinian civil society organizations, namely that they must not deal with individuals or groups designated by the EU as “terrorist.” What effects will this have and what can Palestinians do about it? Al-Shabaka spoke with policy analyst Tariq Dana about these questions and international aid to Palestine more broadly. 

The practice of mapping in Palestine-Israel has long been an exercise in power, imperialism, and dispossession. Al-Shabaka Policy Analyst Zena Agha examines how Palestinians have been excluded from maps of their own land from the British Mandate to today, and explores ways that Palestinians can – and do – reclaim maps as a means of resistance. 

Since the establishment of Israel in 1948, the Israeli Security Agency has been torturing Palestinians. Al-Shabaka Senior Palestine Policy Fellow Yara Hawari argues that the use of torture in Israeli detention is systematic and legitimized through domestic law, and outlines steps for the international community to hold Israel to account and bring an end to these violations. 

Indigeneity has re-emerged within the discourse on Palestine and is becoming a facet of political mobilization. But what does this mean in practice and how can indigeneity be harnessed to further Palestinian rights? Al-Shabaka’s Ahmad Amara and Yara Hawari examine indigeneity in the context of international law and suggest ways to employ it in the Palestinian quest for liberation. 

For decades, political barriers have obstructed the Palestinian health system in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, impeding rights and protections. Al-Shabaka Policy Analyst Yara Asi examines how the Israeli occupation has decreased Palestinians’ ability to seek or practice health care, and offers recommendations that can support Palestinians’ right to health within the current constrained circumstances.

The number of online attacks against Palestinians by Israelis are on the rise. Al-Shabaka Policy Analyst Nadim Nashif of 7amleh – the Arab Center for the Advancement of Social Media analyzes the results of his organization’s latest report on racism on Israeli social media and recommends ways to protect Palestinians and their freedom of speech.

With so much to tackle in the struggle for Palestinian rights, some question why time and energy should be invested in developing the Palestinian narrative and discourse. Al-Shabaka analyst Amjad Iraqi argues that a unified narrative and discourse is essential to the struggle’s success and outlines its key elements and strategic potential.