Grounding the Current Moment: An Al-Shabaka Syllabus
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.
The Dangerous Exceptionalism of Christian Zionism
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 24418 and 24484 examine the sinister synergy between Christian Zionism and white supremacy, unpacking the exceptionalism upon which Christian Zionist racist ideologies, discourses, and politics are based.
Focus On: Visions for Political Futures
With the demise of the so-called two-state solution and the entrenchment of Israeli settler colonialism and apartheid across Palestine, the possibility of a sovereign Palestinian state is further from reality than ever before. What does a Palestinian political future beyond partition look like? What would this entail for Palestinians within colonized Palestine and across the diaspora? Given their forced fragmentation, how might Palestinians forge collective visions for their political future? In our latest Focus On, Al-Shabaka’s policy analysts imagine Palestinian political futures within the context of historical and ongoing realities.
The PA’s Revolving Door: A Key Policy in Security Coordination
Last month, Israeli forces violently raided the West Bank city of Jenin. PA President Mahmoud Abbas visited the area shortly thereafter, accompanied by a slew of Palestinian security forces. Days later, the PA began an arrest campaign of its own, detaining members of various factions throughout the West Bank. Such a cycle encompasses a critical component of PA-Israeli security coordination: the revolving door/al-bab al-dawaar. In our latest policy memo, Al-Shabaka analyst Alaa Tartir examines the protocol and offers recommendations to both Palestinian leadership and civil society for ways forward.
Israel’s National Guard: A Tool for Palestinian Erasure
Benjamin Netanyahu has given far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir the go-ahead to establish Israel’s first national guard. Distinct from other Israeli forces, the national guard is designed primarily to target Palestinian citizens of Israel. In this policy memo, guest contributor 24352 looks at the emergence of the new force in order to understand its implications for Palestinian citizens of Israel and proposes recommendations to relevant stakeholders for how to challenge it and protect Palestinians.
Liberal Zionism: A Pillar of Israel’s Settler Colonial Project
Despite the Israeli regime’s increasingly right-wing policies, liberal Zionism still plays a dominant role in Zionist ideology. It fulfills the specific and critical function of providing the settler colonial project with the veneer of enlightened, Western civilization and democratic, progressive politics. In our latest policy brief, Al Shabaka analyst M. Muhannad Ayyash exposes this veneer and proposes a guiding framework for how to confront and invalidate the notion of liberal Zionism.
Dismantling Abbas’s Rule over the Palestinian Judiciary
In October 2022, PA President Mahmoud Abbas issued a decree ordering the establishment of the Supreme Council of Judicial Bodies and Authorities that he would head. Through this and other decrees, Abbas and the ruling elite entrench the domination of the executive authority over the judiciary. Al-Shabaka policy analyst 24398 examines these decrees and offers recommendations for confronting them.
The Legacy of Mahmoud Abbas
As of 2023, Mahmoud Abbas surpasses his democratic mandate as President of the Palestinian Authority by 14 years. And as speculation mounts about his successor, the question of his legacy lingers. In a new Al-Shabaka roundtable, policy analysts Tareq Baconi, 24588, Alaa Tartir, and Tariq Kenney-Shawa reflect on Abbas’s impact on Palestinian leadership and the Palestinian struggle for liberation.
Arab Normalization and the Palestinian Struggle for Liberation
While normalization deals between the Israeli and Arab regimes continue to spread and deepen, they have historical precedent across the region. In our latest commentary, Al-Shabaka’s senior analyst, 24588, situates contemporary normalization maneuvers in historical and geopolitical contexts, and describes the implications of these worrying policies on Palestinian liberation and the future of the region.
