Victor Kattan

Jerusalem is increasingly at the center of developments across colonized Palestine. Indeed, from forced expulsions to attacks on worshipers, the Israeli regime is determined to de-Palestinianize the city. In light of Israel’s ongoing ethnic cleansing campaign and Palestinian Jerusalemites’ resistance to it, Al-Shabaka revisits the topic of Jerusalem with a new selection of publications from our analysts.

Palestine has an abundance of natural resources, but in the decades since the establishment of the state of Israel they have been compromised and exploited. In this collection of analysis, Al-Shabaka experts provide insight into issues related to Palestinian natural resources, from their theft by Israel to the effects of climate change and its intersection with the Israeli occupation.

World attention has refocused on Gaza since the Palestinians imprisoned there for more than a decade began their peaceful “Great March of Return” on March 30. In this collection of publications, Al-Shabaka analysts review the conditions and developments of the past decade to address the most important political and economic issues informing the current situation.

Does Israel's treatment of the Palestinian people constitute apartheid? And is apartheid the best framework to apply to Palestine and the Palestinians to achieve freedom, justice, and equality? As 2018 marks 70 years since the Nakba - or catastrophe - began, this collection of Al-Shabaka analysis over the years helps shed light on the debate.

What does Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital mean for Palestine and the Palestinians? In a new roundtable, Al-Shabaka policy analysts weigh in and discuss ways in which Palestinians can safeguard their rights against this setback. 

Al-Shabaka Policy Advisor Victor Kattan secured the release of new documents under the United Kingdom’s Freedom of Information Act. One revelation is that Israel may already be exploiting oil in the occupied Palestinian territories. As one official noted, this will make it even harder for Britain to justify aid for a land that could be self-reliant if it were free – further evidence of the need to push for an end to Israel’s occupation not pay for it.

According to U.S. and Israeli intelligence, Iran is not building nuclear weapons, but cracking down on the country is a top U.S. policy goal. By contrast, Israel’s longstanding nuclear weapons program is rarely mentioned. In this policy brief produced in collaboration with American Muslims for Palistine, Al-Shabaka Policy Advisor Victor Kattan argues that if the U.S. is really serious about nuclear nonproliferation it must also tackle Israel’s massive nuclear arsenal.

The Egyptian-Israeli gas deal has come unstuck, partly due to the artificially low price Israel was paying for it. Will this help the Palestinians, whose gas fields off the coast of Gaza remain undeveloped and hostage to Israeli demands to be sold at ludicrously low prices?

The third session of the Russell Tribunal on Palestine recently convened in Cape Town, South Africa. Its perhaps most controversial finding was that Israel applies a system of apartheid to the entire Palestinian people, including its own citizens. What is the significance of this finding, and what does it mean for civil society in Palestine and the Diaspora -- and for Israel and its supporters? In this policy brief, Al-Shabaka Policy Advisor Victor Kattan describes what apartheid means under international law, highlights the Tribunal's findings, and explains its significance.

In this policy brief, Al-Shabaka Policy Advisor Victor Kattan examines the Palestinian Authority's strategy to achieve UN recognition and membership in September. He argues that if the initiative is successful, a State of Palestine would be a strategic asset to the Palestinian struggle for self-determination.