On February 26, the Palestinian town of Huwara became the site of a violent attack by Israeli settlers, with the Israeli army watching on. Huwara is located on Highway 60, the main road connecting Palestinian towns in the military-occupied West Bank, and is one of the few remaining places where Israeli settlers and Palestinians drive on the same road. Settlers have frequently targeted the town in the hopes of forcing Palestinian residents to flee and take over the area. In this episode, Diana Buttu dives into the details of the attack, which saw Palestinian homes, cars, and land burned down, and resulted in the death of Sameh Aqtash, a man who had just returned from helping with earthquake relief in Turkey.

For International Women's Day, we are thrilled to highlight the voices of powerful Palestinian women who are breaking barriers and inspiring change. Join host Diana Buttu as she speaks with award-winning Palestinian American journalist Dena Takruri about her book, co-written by renowned Palestinian youth activist Ahed Tamimi, "They Called Me A Lioness: A Palestinian Girl's Fight for Freedom." In this compelling memoir, Ahed shares her courageous journey from growing up in the Palestinian town of Nabi Saleh to standing up against the Israeli military at just sixteen-years-old. With raw honesty and unwavering determination, Ahed's story serves as a testament to the strength and resilience of Palestinian women. Tune in to this episode to learn more about their incredible journey and how they're paving the way for the next generation of women activists.

In this episode, host Diana Buttu discusses Israel's extremist government and its efforts to weaken its Supreme Court. We explore the impact of this move on Palestinians, and the broader political landscape in Israel.

Benjamin Netanyahu is back as Israel's Prime Minister. He has formed a coalition with far-right, extremist, leaders like Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich. Host Diana Buttu breaks down Israel’s new right-wing, extremist government, and what this means for Palestinians.

On today’s episode, Diana Buttu speaks with Dr. Adila Laïdi-Hanieh, Director of the Palestinian Museum. Dr. Hanieh talks to us about the museum's latest exhibition “A People by the Sea." The exhibition looks at the Palestinians from the coastal region before and after the Nakba. It displays artwork and archival footage highlighting Palestinians' vibrant culture and traditions along the Mediterranean Sea. The exhibition is on display until May 2023. You can also visit the museum's digital archive at palarchive.org

On today’s episode, Diana Buttu speaks with the award-winning Jordanian-of-Palestinian-origin, film director and writer, Darin Sallam. We speak to Sallam about her film, Farha, which recently made its debut on Netflix. The powerful film tells the story of the Nakba when Israeli militias expelled over 750,000 Palestinians from their land to create Israel in 1948. Darin tells us why it is important to share this story today and how after 75 years the Nakba still impacts Palestinians all over the world.

Honey is one of Palestine’s first professional female soccer players and was the co-founder and captain of the Palestinian Women’s National Football Team. She speaks with us live from the World Cup. She tells us what it is like to witness Palestinian solidarity at the World Cup, how she began her soccer career, forming a national team, and her work with FIFA.

You can purchase Reem Assil's cookbook here

In today’s episode, host Diana Buttu, takes us on a deep dive into all things olives and their strong connection to Palestine. Diana speaks with olive expert, Dr. Osama Odeh, from the Palestinian village of Biddya, coincidentally meaning the ‘stone to crush olives.’ Dr.Osama is an electro-chemist but has spent his life learning about his first love- olives, olive oil, and their history in Palestine.

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Israel is going into their fifth round of elections since 2019. Host Diana Buttu breaks down what this means for Palestinians, how racist Israeli policies impact Palestinians both in Israel and the West Bank, and if we will see the return of Benjamin Netanyahu.

Diana Buttu speaks with Fida Jiryis about her new book ‘Stranger in my Own Land'. Fida is a writer and editor from Fassouta, in the upper Galilee, but currently resides in Ramallah. Fida writes about life as a Palestinian and the complexities within identity. She takes us on her unique and often tragic family journey, as Fida and her family were one of a few Palestinian families able to return to historic Palestine following the signing of the Oslo Accords in 1993.

In this episode, we hear from Mohamed Hamed, the executive director and founder of the Mariam Foundation based in Nazareth. The Mariam Foundation provides assistance to Palestinian cancer patients from the West Bank and Gaza Strip, treated in Israeli hospitals. The Mariam Foundation is named after Mohamed’s sister, Mariam, who passed away at nine years old from leukemia. Mohamed vowed to devote his life and time to Palestinian children treated in Israeli hospitals. We hear from Mohamed about the work of the Mariam Foundation, and how the Mariam Foundation works to ensure that Palestinians -from the river to the sea- are afforded medical care.

In this episode, we hear from Ariel Koren, a former Google employee who resigned because of a hostile work environment due to her social activism. Ariel spoke out against Project Nimbus, Google’s $1 billion artificial intelligence and surveillance contract with the Israeli military because she knew it would undoubtedly be used to harm Palestinians.

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Host Diana Buttu speaks with award-winning director, writer, and actress, Cherien Dabis. Cherien could be the first woman of color to win an Emmy in the “Outstanding Directing For A Comedy Series” for Hulu's Only Murders in the Building, episode, “The Boy From 6B”. Cherien speaks about her Palestinian identity, how it has shaped her storytelling, and her experience in the new groundbreaking Netflix series 'MO' starring alongside Palestinian-American comedian Mo Amer as his sister.

This is the first in our 'Palestinian Who's Who' series, where we highlight Palestinians doing amazing things in their respective fields. To kick us off, host Diana Buttu, speaks with Palestinian-American Nujoud Fahoum Merancy, the current NASA Chief of Exploration Mission Planning. She worked on an ambitious new mission called Artemis 1. This mission will send the first woman of color to the moon.

On the 18th of August, Israelis conducted a raid in the middle of the night into Ramallah, breaking into the offices of Addameer, Al-Haq, Bisan Center for Research & Development, Defense for Children International-Palestine, the Union of Palestinian Women's Committees, Union of Agricultural Work Committee, and the Union of Health Workers Committees. Israelis confiscated and destroyed equipment and files, and upon leaving welded the offices shut with a military order duct-taped to the door declaring them “unlawful.” These 6 organizations work to expose Israel’s countless violations against Palestinians. They expose Israel’s crimes of Apartheid and numerous human rights abuses. The attack on the 6 is an attempt to silence and discredit the vital work they do for Palestinians and by Palestinians. Host Diana Buttu, speaks with Sahar Francis, General Director of Ramallah-based Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association. Addameer is a Palestinian NGO that provides legal and advocacy support to Palestinian political prisoners in Israeli and Palestinian prisons.

Today’s episode features a very special and very funny guest, Mo Amer. A Palestinian refugee and a successful comedian with two acclaimed Netflix stand-up specials under his belt, Mo Amer will become the first Palestinian-American to have their own scripted series, titled 'MO' now streaming on Netflix. Mohammed ‘Mo’ Amer was born to Palestinian refugee parents in Kuwait before coming to the United States as a refugee himself after his family fled the Gulf War. Sharing the experience of his parents, and of the Palestinian people, has always been a huge part of Amer’s comedy, and his own identity. At 9 years old Mo found himself in his new home in Texas and his experiences there would lead to comedy gold. He’s performed with some of the biggest names in comedy, co-stars in the Golden Globe-winning series “Ramy on Hulu, and will also be starring alongside The Rock in the upcoming DC film Black Adam and has been featured in over 100 major media outlets. Mo, thanks so much for talking with us.

In this week’s episode, host Diana Buttu, speaks with Issam Adwan, a Rafah-based journalist, researcher, and analyst. Two months ago, he became a father for the first time to a little girl named Sarah. Issam is 29 years old and, like 2 million Palestinians, he has endured the Israeli blockade on Gaza for the past 15 years. In Issam’s case, he’s lived more than half of his life under Israel’s blockade. Issam speaks about what daily life is like in Gaza, and what Palestinians experienced in the latest attack. And although there exists fear, pain, and the struggles of the occupation, he speaks to us about the love for life and happiness that exists in Gaza. To keep up to date with what is happening in Gaza, be sure to follow Issam on Twitter @Issam_Adwan.

Diana Buttu and Omar Baddar discuss Biden’s visit to Palestine and Israel: What was said, what was left unsaid, and what it all means.

With President Biden about to visit Palestine and Israel, we speak with Lina Abu Akleh, niece of slain Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh who was murdered by the Israeli army less than two months ago. We discuss Shireen’s life, her killing, and the Biden administration’s whitewashing of this murder.

In this week’s episode, Diana Buttu breaks down the collapse of the Israeli government which has prompted Knesset elections for the fifth time in three years. Diana describes how a so-called left leaning political party voted in favour of racist laws and what the past year has looked like for Palestinians.

The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement is a Palestinian-led movement for freedom, justice and equality inspired by the South African anti-apartheid movement. Since its formal launch in 2005, the BDS movement has had a major impact on ending international support for Israeli apartheid, with companies now divesting from or not investing in Israel including companies like Ben and Jerry’s. Owing to the strength of the BDS movement in the US and in Palestine, Israel has sought to break it. To date, 33 US States have passed anti-BDS laws - laws that aim to stop individuals and companies from securing contracts if they support the BDS movement. It is in this light that the Just Vision film, titled Boycott, is made. Boycott follows the attempts to challenge these anti-BDS laws in a number of US States including Texas, Arkansas and Arizona. Today we speak with the films director Julia Bacha and Bahia Amawi.

Shireen Abu Akleh was a trailblazing Palestinian journalist who spent decades covering Israel’s brutal military occupation of Palestine. On Wednesday, Israeli soldiers fatally shot her in the face while she was reporting on the Israeli military’s invasion of a home in the Palestinian city of Jenin. Shireen was wearing a clearly marked press vest and helmet, but Israeli soldiers shot her and fellow journalists anyway, killing Shireen and wounding others. As an Al Jazeera correspondent born in Jerusalem, Shireen amplified the stories of Palestinians who were subjected to Israel’s brutal military occupation, its war crimes, and its everyday injustices.

This is the story of Ahmad Manasra, a 13-year-old boy, from Jerusalem, Palestine who has spent one-third of his life in an Israeli prison cell often confined to solitary confinement.

Israeli police raided the Al-Aqsa mosque compound today as Palestinian worshippers gathered for morning prayer. At least 158 Palestinians have been injured, including journalists, medics, and the elderly. Israeli forces also arrested hundreds of Palestinians, including children. Israeli settlers are also planning to make an animal sacrifice on the Al-Aqsa compound, a holy site for Palestinian Muslims. Hosts Omar Baddar and Diana Buttu discuss this recent escalation of violence and what it means in the fuller context of Israel's military occupation.

This episode was originally published on July 14, 2021. In today’s episode, we will hear from journalist and activist Joharah Baker. She discusses the hardships of being with her husband and kids under Israel’s Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law. Enacted in 2003, the Citizenship and Entry into Israel law is aimed at making the process for non-Jews to acquire citizenship even more difficult than it already was. Under the 2003 law, any Israeli citizen or permanent resident who marries someone who holds a Palestinian ID - whether that person is from the West Bank or the Gaza Strip - cannot have their spouse reside in Jerusalem or in ’48 without first obtaining a permit and cannot obtain citizenship or permanent residency through their spouses.

On this week's episode Diana Buttu sits down with George Zeidan, co-founder of the Right to Movement Campaign. A running group was founded as a way to challenge the lack of freedom of movement in occupied Palestine. Diana and George discuss how the Right to Movement Campaign was started, the Palestine Marathon, a bi-product of the movement, and what the future holds for grassroots movements in continuing to challenge barriers created by the Israeli occupation.

In this week’s episode, Diana Buttu speaks to the matriarch of the Salem family, Fatima Salem. The Salem family has been fighting to keep their home in the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, where Israeli settler organizations have been pushing to have the Salem family, and others in Sheikh Jarrah, removed from their homes. We hear about Fatima’s strength and fight to keep her home against Israel’s systems of expulsion and dispossession.

Amnesty International's new report breaks down the legal case providing that Israel is breaking international law and committing the crime of apartheid. Host Omar Baddar and Diana Buttu discuss this new report and what it means.

Diana and Omar discuss the recent escalation of violence by Israeli occupation forces, including ethnic cleansing in Sheikh Jarrah and the killing of an 80-year-old Palestinian American.

In our last episode of the year, we look back at what 2021 meant for Palestine and what 2022 may hold. From the departure of Donald Trump and the new administration of President Biden to the ousting of Netanyahu and Israel's escalation of violence in May starting with the occupied Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. Hosts Diana Buttu and Omar Baddar discuss these challenges and some positive highlights that came out of 2021. Thanks for listening with us and see you in the new year!

Host Omar Baddar sits down with Maya Berry, Executive Director of the Arab American Institute to discuss Biden's administration to include Israel in the US visa waiver program.

In this episode, host Diana Buttu speaks with human rights attorney Rabea Eghbariah, on how foraging wild herbs, like za’atar, within Israel became a punishable offense targeted at Palestinians. After the ethnic cleansing of Palestine in 1948, Palestinians have been forcibly removed and separated from their land, a primary food source for most. Foraging native herbs like, za’atar, akkoub (gundelia) and marimiyeh (sage), is criminalized by Israeli political authorities. Rabea and Diana discuss, from a legal perspective, the rationale behind this criminalization is an attempt to further alienate Palestinians from their land.

In this episode, host Diana Buttu will focus on Silwan, where Israel wants to build an Israeli religious theme park and cable car on Palestinian land, in the al-Bustan neighborhood of Silwan. She speaks with two individuals who have been impacted by Israel's ethnic cleansing of Silwan. We hear from the Governor of Jerusalem, Adnan Ghaith and Amal “Um Mahmoud '' Sumarin, who have stories that are sadly not unique to the Silwan neighborhood.

In today’s episode, Omar Baddar speaks with emerging Palestinian UFC star Belal Muhammad, a Palestinian-American mixed martial artist born and raised in Chicago. Belal talks about growing up Palestinian, the challenges inside and outside of the octagon, and the passion he has for spreading awareness on Palestine wherever he’s at.

You can watch the film The Mayor for free here  till August 27th.  You can follow the director, David Osit on Twitter here. 

In today’s episode, we will hear from journalist and activist Joharah Baker. She discusses the hardships of being with her husband and kids under Israel’s Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law. Enacted in 2003, the Citizenship and Entry into Israel law is aimed at making the process for non-Jews to acquire citizenship even more difficult than it already was. Under the 2003 law, any Israeli citizen or permanent resident who marries someone who holds a Palestinian ID - whether that person is from the West Bank or the Gaza Strip - cannot have their spouse reside in Jerusalem or in ’48 without first obtaining a permit and cannot obtain citizenship or permanent residency through their spouses.

As Palestinians continue to protests against the killing of Nizar Banat, they have highlighted the discontent with the Palestinian Authority (PA), the body ruling small parts of the occupied West Bank that is under the overall control of the Israeli army. Hosts Omar Baddar and Diana Buttu discuss the PA and how they function in coordination with the Israeli occupation.

Palestinians are increasingly turning to social media to highlight what life is like under Israeli military rule. For example, weeks before Israel’s bombing campaign on Gaza, Palestinian activists in Jerusalem used social media to shine a spotlight on Israel’s ethnic cleansing of the Sheikh Jarrah community using the hashtag #SaveSheikhJarrah. What happened next, was a global movement for Palestine never seen before across social media platforms. During Israel’s bombing campaign, social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok were removing, censoring, or deleting accounts that posted Palestinian content. 7amleh, a Palestinian non-profit focused on social media, has documented more than 500 reports of Palestinian digital rights violations in May alone, marking a significant increase in the censorship of Palestinian political speech and narrative online. To help us better understand what is happening, we are joined today by Marwa Fatafta, a policy analyst with Al-Shabaka. Host Diana Buttu spoke with MENA policy manager at Access Now and Policy Analyst at Al-Shabaka, Marwa Fatafta, about the digital oppression and censorship, Palestinians are facing in Israel and across social media platforms.

Diana Buttu explains to Omar Baddar what the political dynamics within Israel are with Naftali Bennet on the verge of replacing Netanyahu, and what it all means for the Palestinian struggle for liberation.

One week ago, Israel was ruthlessly bombing Gaza. President Biden made a stop in Michigan to give a speech at a Ford electric truck plant, near Palestinian-American Rep. Rashida Tlaib’s own district. When Biden was making his way to leave on the tarmac, Tlaib stopped him and told him how problematic the U.S. response to Israel’s devastation of Gaza was. Host Omar Baddar speaks with Congresswoman Tlaib about that moment and the growing tide of Democrats speaking up for Palestinian human rights. In the second part of our episode hosts Omar Baddar and Diana Buttu discuss the latest developments in Palestine, including the mass arrests taking place in Israel targeting Palestinians and the myth of coexistence in Israel.

In today’s episode, we will hear from Fadi Abushammala, a community organizer based in the Gaza Strip. Fadi is also a son, a husband, and a father to three young children, ranging in age from 3 to 11. In order to protect his family, Fadi took them to Khan Younis, in the center of the Gaza Strip, where he feels they will be safer, even though they do not have steady electricity. As they arrived to Khan Younis, the bombing started there too. In the middle of our conversation, Fadi receives two calls from his kids, who are calling to check up on him. He says to me “Fathers are supposed to ask about and worry about their kids; not the other way around.”

Amidst all the headlines and breaking news, it can be confusing to make sense of what’s happening in Palestine/Israel right now. Israel has been escalating tensions in Jerusalem for weeks, including placing new restrictions on Palestinians marking Ramadan, violently suppressing Palestinians protesting evictions of families in Sheikh Jarrah by settlers, and soldiers assaulting worshippers in Al Aqsa Mosque. On May 10, Israel fired missiles into Gaza killing 20 Palestinians, including 9 children. Hosts Omar Baddar and Diana Buttu make sense of all this and break it down.

We have a two-part episode today! In the first part hosts Diana Buttu and Omar Baddar, discuss the recent violence by Israeli mobs in occupied Jerusalem as well as settlers' attempts at erasing Palestinians from occupied Jerusalem. In the second part of the episode, we focus on the major new report, in which Human Rights Watch declared that Israel is committing the crime of apartheid, and calls on the world to impose sanctions on the Israeli officials responsible for upholding such a grotesque system of oppression. Diana Buttu and Omar Baddar speak with Palestine and Israel Human Rights Watch director, Omar Shakir, about the report and what it all means.

On Thursday, April 15, Rep. Betty McCollum introduced H.R. 2590 a groundbreaking Palestinian rights bill. Which aims to prohibit Israeli authorities from using U.S. funds to imprison Palestinian children, destroy Palestinian homes or steal Palestinian land. The bill is sponsored by 70+ organizations, including Justice Democrats, Movement for Black Lives, Working Families Party, Presbyterian Church USA and Jews for Racial & Economic Justice. The 13 co-sponsors of the bill include Rep. Bobby Rush, Rep. Danny Davis, Rep. Andre Carson, Rep. Marie Newman, Rep. Ilhan Omar, Rep. Mark Pocan, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Raul Grijalva, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Rep. Cori Bush, Rep. Jamaal Bowman, and Rep. Chuy Garcia. Host Omar Baddar speaks with Beth Miller, government relations manager at Jewish Voice for Peace - Action, and Brad Parker, senior adviser for policy and advocacy at Defense for Children International - Palestine. They discuss the significance of this bill and the growing power of Palestinian Grassroot movements in Congress.

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After years of being banned from Israeli politics for their embrace of terrorism and racist violence, followers of Rabbi Meir Kahane are making a comeback and joining the Israeli Knesset (parliament), thanks in part to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's embrace of the Kahanists for political gain. Host Diana Buttu speaks with investigative journalist David Sheen about who the Kahanists are and what the implications of their resurgence will be.

The Palestinian short film 'The Present' has been nominated for an academy award! Directed by Farah Nabulsi, the film powerfully shows the emotional and physical toll Palestinians endure at Israeli checkpoints. Host Diana Buttu speaks with film co-writer Hind Shoufani and young star Maryam Kanj. The film is currently available on Netflix.

In today's episode hosts Diana Buttu and Omar Baddar speak on the ongoing ethnic cleansing in East Jerusalem by Israel, particularly in the village of Sheikh Jarrah. These families will be displaced and left homeless. Diana speaks with Fayrouz Sharqawi of Grassroots Jerusalem, who provides background on why all this is happening. Omar speaks with Palestinian poet and writer Mohammed El-Kurd, whose family lives in Sheikh Jarrah and has been living with the possibility of being forcefully displaced by Israeli settler organizations.

The International Criminal Court announced it would investigate Israel for war crimes. Israel and the United States reacted strongly against the ICC’s decision. Hosts Diana Buttu and Omar Baddar discuss what this means for Palestinians, if Israel will be held accountable, and the U.S.’s reaction to the coming investigation.

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Israel is heading into its fourth election in the last two years. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is now courting Palestinian citizens of Israel voters. When just as recently in the last Israeli election, he used his platform to attack Palestinian voters to prevent them from forming a coalition. Why is this happening, what does it all mean, and how do these elections impact Palestinians?

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Read here her most recent op-ed on Palestinians and the coronavirus vaccine that appeared in the Washington Post. 

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From Pompeo's attack on BDS to the battle for free speech on college campuses, anti-Semitism is being weaponized to silence criticism of Israel and stifle advocacy for Palestinian rights. Omar Baddar speaks with Diana Buttu, Lara Friedman, and Roua Daas about this crisis of free expression and political speech.

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Palestinian-American organizer Linda Sarsour and USCPR Executive Director Ahmad Abuznaid discuss the upcoming U.S. presidential election, including its impact on progressive organizing, the Palestinian-American community and policy towards Palestine, with host Omar Baddar. Sarsour has been active on a wide range of progressive issues and is the author of a new book: We Are Not Here To Be Bystanders. Prior to heading the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights, Abuznaid was the co-founder of Dream Defenders, which organizes black and brown youth to build power in communities of color.

This month marks the 20th anniversary of the start of the Second Palestinian intifada or uprising, an uprising sparked when Likud Party leader Ariel Sharon visited the Haram al-Sharif in Jerusalem under heavy guard to assert Jewish claims to the site. Party members and 1,000 Israeli riot police accompanied him. To crush protests, Israeli forces used live fire, killing 50 Palestinians in the first week alone, including 13 Palestinian citizens of Israel. Some were shot in the back. Under the guise of the intifada, Israel ramped up its policy of home destruction, it tightened its closure regime, cutting off the Gaza Strip from the West Bank, and Israel resumed its assassination policy. Israeli forces invaded Palestinian cities and towns, carrying out mass arrests and using Palestinian as human shields. To discuss the intifada, host Diana Buttu speaks with colleague Amanda Saadeh and veteran Palestinian journalist Nidal Rafa. Nidal was a freelance journalist who worked for a number of US news media outlets during the second intifada. We will hear from Nidal about her experiences during the intifada, her memories and her feelings about it. Amanda also turns the mic on me, asking me about my experiences during the intifada.

Host Diana Buttu speaks with Bahraini human rights activist Maryam Al-Khawaja about her pro-democracy work in Bahrain, her country’s normalization deal with Israel, and Bahraini solidarity with the Palestinian struggle.

COVID-19 is spreading quickly in the West Bank as Gaza goes on a tight lockdown. With Israel having one of the highest infection rates in the world, the impact on Palestine is devastating and the disparity in resources between occupier and occupied is impacting policy. Hosts Omar Baddar and Diana Buttu, along with Ramallah-based Amanda Arraf-Saadeh from the IMEU team, discuss the reality on the ground in Palestine and what life is like.

Hosts Diana Buttu and Omar Baddar break down what the recent normalization of relations between the United Arab Emirates and Israel means and specifically how it impacts Palestinians.

For more information and to purchase these hand-made masks, please visit www.ramikashou.com. You can also follow him on Instagram at @ramikashou.

Diana Buttu speaks with Sawsan Zaher, an attorney at Adalah, a Haifa-based organization that promotes the rights of Palestinian citizens of Israel, about the July 22 Israeli Supreme Court hearing in which she sought the release of Ahmad Erakat's body. Ahmad Erekat was killed by Israeli soldiers over a month ago at a checkpoint. Israel continues to hold onto the body of Ahmad, denying his family their right to bury him and say their final goodbyes. Israel has a long history of post mortem punishment of Palestinians. Whether by holding onto Palestinian bodies, burying them in unmarked graves, or degrading handling of their remains. Over the decades, we’ve seen that Israel has enacted various policies of withholding Palestinian bodies and imposing restrictions on funerals, as a means of punishment and control, even in death.

On June 23, Israeli soldiers shot Ahmad Erekat after he got into a car accident at a checkpoint. It was his sister’s wedding day. The soldiers denied Ahmad medical assistance for over an hour, leaving him to bleed to death on the street. Host Omar Baddar is joined by Ahmad Erekat’s cousin and Palestinian American human rights attorney and scholar Noura Erakat, and by Ahmad's older brother, Faisal Erekat. Noura discusses the context of Ahmad's killing and Israel's 'shoot to kill policy' and Israel's practice of holding onto the bodies of Palestinians they have slain and keeping them from their families. Faisal talks about who Ahmad was, and about the impact of his loss on the family.

Eyad Hallaq, 32, was on his way to a school for special needs students in the historic Old City of Jerusalem on May 30 when Israeli soldiers shot and killed him. Hallaq's killing has sparked protests across the West Bank because the victim had autism. The eyewitness, his school counselor Warda Abu Hadid, told local media she shouted to the Israeli officers, "he's disabled," as the wounded Hallaq shouted, "I'm with her." Host Diana Buttu sits down with the family of Eyad Hallaq and learns about who he was, how he lived, and ultimately how he was killed.

Host Omar Baddar speaks with Dr. James Zogby, co-founder and President of the Arab American Institute. Zogby has served on the Democratic National Committee since 1992 and was a member of the DNC's Executive Committee for 16 years. Omar also speaks with Matt Duss, foreign policy advisor to Senator and former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. They discuss the emerging change in the Democratic Party towards Israel and Palestine, including what policy might look like in light of impending annexation.

View transcript here. 

In this episode of 'This Is Palestine,' we shift our focus to the protests that have swept the nation, sparked by the tragic murder of George Floyd by police officers on May 25. We hear from three distinct Black American voices as they discuss systemic racism and what it means to be Black in America. First, we hear from Mychal Denzel Smith, author of the forthcoming Stakes is High: Life After the American Dream and New York Times bestseller Invisible Man, Got the Whole World Watching. His work has appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, New Republic, The Nation, and more. In 2014 and 2016, TheRoot.com named him one of the 100 Most Influential African-Americans in their annual The Root 100 list. Mychal navigates us through this moment and what it means, what's different about it now, and why defunding the police is vital to gaining justice. Next, we hear from Kinjo Kiema and Khury Petersen-Smith, who speak in conversation with one another about this moment and connections to global solidarity. Kinjo Kiema is an organizer with BYP100, a Black queer feminist organization working to create justice and freedom for all Black people. She is also a leader in the reproductive justice movement, and has organized within the labor and student movements, including with Students for Justice in Palestine. Khury Petersen-Smith is the Michael Ratner Middle East Fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, D.C. Petersen-Smith has been a leading activist for internationalist solidarity, economic justice, and racial and gender equality since he was a high school student. He traveled to Iraq in 2004 on a United for Peace and Justice delegation where he represented the Campus Anti-War Network.

With Israel's plan to formally annex parts of the West Bank expected only a few weeks from now, we speak with Palestinian American political analyst Yousef Munayyer about the significance of this moment, and the road forward for the Palestinian struggle for justice.

Host Diana Buttu speaks with Salman Abu Sitta. A Palestinian researcher most known for his ground-breaking project mapping historic Palestine and developing a practical plan for implementing the right of return of Palestinian refugees. Salman Abu Sitta shares his family's Nakba story and what moving forward looks like.

Host Omar Baddar speaks with Khaled Elgindy, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, adjunct professor at Georgetown University and author of "Blind Spot: America and the Palestinians, from Balfour to Trump". Omar and Khaled discuss Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas's recent announcement that Palestinians would no longer be bound by all agreements signed between the Palestine Liberation Organization and both Israel and the US, including an end to information sharing with the CIA. Khaled tells us what all this means and if it really means anything at all.

This week marks the 72 anniversary of what is known to Palestinians as the 1948 'Nakba' or the 'catastrophe'. Where 750,00 Palestinians were forcibly displaced from their homeland for the creation of Israel. In this special episode, host Diana Buttu speaks with her father, Mohamad Buttu, a survivor of the Nakba. Mohamad speaks on what happened to his family during the Nakba, from having to flee his home, being separated from his mother and siblings, and being smuggled back into Palestine.

Hosts Omar Baddar and Diana Buttu discuss the formation of a new Israeli coalition government after the chaotic roller coaster of 3 Israeli elections over the last year. What does this mean for Palestinians? Where does Israel's illegal annexation plan go from here? And what's the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the ground? For answers, check out this bonus episode.

Diana Buttu speaks with Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, a physician, human rights advocate, and member of the Palestinian parliament based in the occupied West Bank. Dr. Barghouti heads the Palestine Medical Relief Committee. Along with a team of hundreds of volunteers, Dr. Barghouti has been on the front lines providing assistance to Palestinians during the COVID-19 pandemic.