Why Empathy is Radical in a Time of War Ft. Sulaiman Khatib w/Anita Nowak - Purposeful Empathy

To mark the 250th milestone episode of my podcast, I’ve chosen a conversation that highlights how empathy can unite us in our common humanity.My guest, Sulaiman Khatib, is a co-founder of Combatants for Peace, twice nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. In our conversation, he describes personal transformation that isn’t neat or performative. Instead, he speaks of the slow, rigorous inner work of moving from rage and resistance to nonviolence and what he calls a “third narrative.” It’s a conversation about the dual political and spiritual dimensions of empathy - one that rejects dehumanization and understands that extending empathy is never a zero-sum game.I hope you’ll watch it with an open heart for what is possible.Next week’s episode continues my commitment to holding multiple truths with care, in a conversation with Rabbi Lisa Grushcow about the rise of antisemitism and the urgent need for moral courage and purposeful empathy across communities and different lived experiences.What does it take to see our common humanity in the middle of a conflict designed to divide? In this special series devoted to widening our circle of empathy for people who often feel marginalized or misunderstood, watch this rare and powerful conversation with Sulaiman Khatib, a Palestinian peacebuilder, co-founder of Combatants for Peace, and author of In This Place Together.Sulaiman shares his journey from being incarcerated as a teenager after an act of violence, to his inner transformation behind bars, shaped by hunger strikes and the spiritual teachings of Gandhi, Mandela and Dr. King. He describes how “humanizing the other” is a daily practice that takes discipline, and is tested again and again, especially in the middle of an ongoing crisis that’s marked by loss and trauma.Together, we discuss:The personal costs of changing one’s worldview when “sides” are deeply entrenchedWhy believing “there is no military solution” is seen as provocative (or even a betrayal)What shared humanity looks like when the stakes are life and deathWhy pain is not a contest and how empathy makes space for multiple truthsThis conversation is about refusing dehumanization—and daring to imagine a future where safety, freedom, and dignity belong to everyone.00:00 Preview00:56 Introduction 02:54 About Sulaiman Khatib06:09 Sulaiman’s backstory10:07 What does it mean to be detained as a minor?13:08 Sulaiman’s path to non-violence and moral repair18:13 How curiosity and language humanize conflict20:57 Why is there no military solution to the Palestinian-Israeli war?24:35 About Combatants for Peace, twice nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize28:50 What does shared humanity really mean?36:24 The need for humility in peace work42:06 The importance of third narratives (especially in conflicts)44:58 The role of inner transformation49:31 About Sulaiman’s book, In This Place Together56:37 What headlines miss about everyday Palestinian life01:0153    Why peace requires radical imagination01:06:37   Sulaiman Khatib’s Purposeful Empathy storyCONNECT WITH SULAIMAN✩ LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/sulaiman-khatib-904a4645/✩ Combatants for Peace https://www.cfpeace.org/✩ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/combatantsforpeace_english/ ✩ In This Place Together: A Palestinian’s Journey to Collective Liberation https://www.amazon.com/This-Place-Together-Palestinians-Collective/dp/0807046825✩ Disturbing the Peace https://www.disturbingthepeacefilm.com/✩ There Is Another Way https://thereisanotherwayfilm.com/CONNECT WITH ANITA✩ Email [email protected] ✩ Website https://www.anitanowak.com✩ Buy a copy of Purposeful Empathy http://tiny.cc/PurposefulEmpathyCA✩ LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/anitanowak/✩ Instagram https://tinyurl.com/anitanowakinstagram✩ Podcast Audio https://tinyurl.com/PurposefulEmpathyPodcast✩ Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/anitanowak.bsky.socialVideo edited by Jad Misri, Green Horizon Studio