Zaha Hassan

The PLO diplomatic corps is a main point of contact for Palestinian refugees and exiles. How can this help revive national aspirations? In the first study of its kind, Zaha Hassan, Nadia Hijab, Inès Abdel Razek, and Mona Younis review the corps’ legal foundations, days of glory, shifting roles, and interaction with the diaspora and solidarity groups. They present clear, doable recommendations to the PLO and to the diaspora.

A US bill being considered by the Senate Judiciary Committee puts at stake the ability of the Palestinian leadership to engage diplomatic and legal channels to support Palestinian national aspirations and to seek accountability through international mechanisms, as well as the future of the US-Palestinian bilateral relationship. Al-Shabaka Policy Analyst Zaha Hassan reports.  

Palestine recently submitted a complaint with the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination involving Israeli violations of the rights of the Palestinian people. Al-Shabaka Policy Analyst Zaha Hassan outlines why the complaint’s findings could build the factual and legal basis for prosecutions in international courts against Israeli officials as well as the state of Israel itself.

Senior Advisor to President Trump Jared Kushner’s latest attempt to restart the Israeli-Palestinian “peace process” will focus on “economic development” projects. Yet, as Al-Shabaka Analyst Zaha Hassan writes, such initiatives are not a substitute for real political change.

Once the US elections drama concludes, some believe Barack Obama will seize a final opportunity to act on Palestine-Israel. In this roundtable, Al-Shabaka policy analysts debate the probability of such a step, what form it could take, possible pitfalls, and what Palestinians should be doing to further their quest for freedom, equality, and self-determination.