Palestine This Week

In this episode, we mark Nakba Day with a special discussion on the historical roots and continuing reality of Palestinian dispossession. We place the Nakba within the wider settler-colonial project that shaped Palestine from the Balfour Declaration and the British Mandate through 1948, 1967, Oslo and the ongoing genocide in Gaza.The episode examines whether Gaza represents the final and most violent stage of a century-long project to erase the Palestinian people, or whether this moment marks the beginning of the end of Zionism as a settler-colonial system. It also looks at the crisis of Palestinian political leadership, the collapse of Israel’s claim to moral legitimacy and the regional fallout from Gaza, including Iran, Trump and the limits of US power in a changing Middle East.Get your copy of ‘Gaza Apocalypse’ by Mouin Rabbani: https://orbooks.com/catalog/gaza-apocalypse/Chapters:00:00 Introduction & Overview01:09 The Nakba in the historical context of the Palestinian question08:38 Gaza and the possible final stage of Israel’s century-long settler-colonial project11:16 The impact of 7 October and the Gaza genocide on global understanding of 194819:39 Zionism’s survival in a post-colonial world26:08 Zionism’s framing as Jewish self-determination, refuge and biblical return33:03 The Nakba and the fragmentation of Palestinian political life36:15 Palestinian leadership in the final stage of Israeli domination48:02 New York Times coverage of the rape of Palestinian detainees54:50 Iran, Trump and the strategic limits of US power

In this episode of Palestine This Week, we examine Israel’s expanding control over Gaza through the shifting “Yellow Line” and the emergence of a clandestine “voluntary migration” programme, before turning to the occupied West Bank, where the JNF is cutting funding to settler farm outposts as Israel’s wider strategy moves from “conflict management” towards annexation.We also discuss fresh allegations against ICC prosecutor Karim Khan, Israel’s application of the Gaza model in Lebanon and Barack Obama’s claim that Benjamin Netanyahu pushed him towards war with Iran before making the same case to Donald Trump. The episode ends by looking at the growing regional divide between Saudi Arabia and the UAE over Israel, Iran and the future of Gulf security.Chapters:00:00 Introduction & Overview01:20 Israel expands Gaza’s “Yellow Line” and undermines Trump’s ceasefire plan08:54 Israel’s clandestine ethnic cleansing programme under the guise of “voluntary migration”18:54 JNF cuts funding to West Bank settler farm outposts27:22 Israel’s West Bank policy shifts from “conflict management” to annexation33:14 Allegations against ICC prosecutor Karim Khan as pressure builds over the Netanyahu case41:21 Israel applies the Gaza model in Lebanon45:41 Obama says Netanyahu pushed him towards war with Iran before making the same case to Trump51:20 Saudi Arabia and the UAE split over Israel, Iran and regional security

In this episode, we assess Israel 78 years after its founding, examining whether the Zionist project has reached a point of crisis. We explore competing interpretations of what “went wrong,” from claims of ideological failure to arguments that the current reality reflects the logical outcome of a settler-colonial project. Drawing on historical evidence and contemporary developments, the discussion addresses Israel's genocide on Gaza, the erasure of Palestinian, ongoing patterns of dispossession and looting, and the wider regional and international dynamics shaping the conflict today.00:25 78 years on: has Zionism reached its breaking point?10:23 What went wrong: the collapse of Zionism’s founding promise23:07 Was genocide built into the Zionist project?26:08 From the Nakba to Lebanon: the looting that never ended31:05 The 2,700-year claim used to erase Palestinians36:13 Engineering collapse: is Israel undermining the Palestinian Authority?51:39 How the US justifies its war with Iran53:33 Israel, the Gulf and the new regional war map