Palestinian political leadership is in a state of crisis. How did this come to be and what does the future hold? In this Focus On, we look back on several pieces authored by Al-Shabaka analysts which explore issues of Palestinian leadership in the past and present, and which propose concrete possibilities for future models that specifically engage youth.  

Progressive political analysts often critique Arab states for abandoning the Palestinian struggle for liberation. This roundtable, facilitated by Al-Shabaka Policy Analyst Nadine Naber and with contributions from Al-Shabaka Policy Analysts Ibrahim Fraihat, Loubna Qutami, and Sherene Seikaly, interrogates this critique, offering nuanced perspectives on whether and to what extent Arab states have abandoned or compromised the Palestinian cause.

The US Palestine solidarity movement is returning to a joint struggle approach, a strategy that faded after the Oslo Accords when dominant solidarity activists focused on Palestine as a single issue. Al-Shabaka Policy Analyst Loubna Qutami traces this development, assesses its benefits and challenges, and recommends ways to strengthen organizing for Palestinians in the US.

In this Roundtable, Al-Shabaka Policy Advisors Haidar Eid and Samah Sabawi as well as guest contributor Loubna Qutami discuss Noura Erakat’s policy brief Beyond Sterile Negotiations: Looking for a Leadership with a Strategy. They critique issues relating to the Boycott National Committee (BNC), the questions of representation and self-determination, the colonial condition, and the future of the struggle. In her response, Erakat expresses her concern over the fragmentation of the Palestinian national body and the failure to articulate a political vision for a solution. She argues that Palestinians should adopt a one-state solution as a political vision that aims for the equality of all persons irrespective of nationality, ethnicity, religion, or race.