Radio Palestine/Israel

“Israel is a colonial project that uses the Jewish identity as an excuse to commit the worst crimes.” — Yuval Gal, 2025Have you ever wondered what brings a person to reject their national identity? How it feels to renounce the state you were born into and start building a life someplace else?In this episode, we hear about the experience and life choices of Yuval Gal, a former Israeli citizen who moved to the Netherlands and started a community for like-minded anti-Zionists Jews.Gal is a prominent member of the Jewish community ‘Erev Rav’, where people come together to reconnect with their Jewish identity and share traditions, while actively taking part in Anti-Zionist demonstrations. In 2020, he joined the Dutch political party ‘Bij1’ . Join us in this episode for an eye-opening conversation about identity and belonging, and learn more about the perspective of a counter-hegemonic voice in the Israel-Palestine conflict.*Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the podcast producers.

“Deradicalizing is a process that most of the Palestinians should go through — and a lot of Israelis as well... we all need to go through deradicalization.” — Dr. Maya Sion Tzidkiyahu, 2025What does external influence look like in one of the world’s most entrenched conflicts — and who has the leverage to shape political realities on the ground? In this episode, we sit down with political scientist Dr. Maya Sion Tzidkiyahu to discuss her policy work on the role international actors can play in influencing Israeli decision-making. As Director of the Israel – Europe Relations Program at Mitvim institute in Israel, she examines how diplomacy, partnerships and regional frameworks can create incentives and pressure where needed. We focus on her recent policy papers exploring how the European Union — alongside what she describes as a potential Euro-Arab coalition — could coordinate political, economic and diplomatic tools to encourage shifts in Israeli policy and support conditions for conflict transformation.Join us for a conversation about leverage, responsibility and the complicated space where foreign policy meets lived conflict.*Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the podcast producers.

"I felt like I needed to scream. I don't want to scream on social media like everybody else does ... I felt I needed to find my way of screaming, my scream.' -- Yousef Sweid A Palestinian-Israeli who grew up in Haifa, Sweid premiered his solo play  Between the River and the Sea at the 2025 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Since then, he has performed it tosold-our audiences at Berlin’s Maxim Gorki Theater. Based on his life story, Sweid's deeply personal work explores identity, belonging, and cultural hybridity. Praised for its raw honesty, dark humor, and nuance, the performance illuminates the artist’s lived experience, a life suspended between languages, cultures, and conflicting historical narratives. In this episode, internationally acclaimed actor Yousef Sweid reflects on his play ‘Between the River and the Sea’ and dives into what it means to live and create art from an in-between position. The conversation asks how moderation and human relationships can provide concrete paths for the future, and explore hybridity and art as a means to embrace complexity. *Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the podcast producers.

“I don’t want to tell them what to think. I want them to have the information and make up their own opinion.” – Dr. Dina Zbeidy, 2026What does it mean to speak, when you are constantly asked to explain, defend and represent an entire people? In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Dina Zbeidy, a Dutch-Palestinian anthropologist, lecturer and public intellectual, who in the past few years has become a familiar face in the Dutch media landscape. Having grown up in Israel-Palestine and later studied in Jerusalem and New York, she now works in the Netherlands, where she combines applied research with teaching. Drawing on her academic work and lived experience, She reflects on teaching as a form of resistance and the challenge of addressing multiple audiences. Join us for this conversation with Dina about how she found her voice between expertise and emotion. *Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the podcast producers.

“It has always been more important for the Palestinians to ensure that the Jews don’t have a state in any part of the land, rather than them having a state for themselves.” – Einat Wilf, 2025 Dr. Einat Wilf, former Knesset member with the Israeli Labor Party, is a political thinker and author of works such as We should All Be Zionists and The War of Return. A former intelligence officer in the IDF and Foreign Policy Advisor to Shimon Peres, Wilf recently founded the Oz Party, promoting a new vision for peace based on replacing what she calls 'Palestinianism’ with ‘Arab Zionism’, that is “Arab recognition of the Jewish people’s equal right to self-determination in their historic homeland.” In this episode of Radio Palestine/Israel, we explore Dr. Wilf’s vision for the future of the conflict and how she proposes to realize it, and unpack what she means when she says: “Let's suck the oxygen out of ‘Palestinianism’!” Do you dare to listen? *Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the podcast producers.

"The job is not to be a Palestinian journalist. The job is to be on a mission to expose injustice and inequality and advocate for a different reality. I'm not on a mission of  becoming more Palestinian."What does it mean to be a journalist covering the Israeli-Palestinian conflict today? How does one maintain a critical outlook on both Israel's war on Gaza and Hamas' attacks on Israeli civilians on October 7th? How does one navigate the intertwining identities of being a woman, a Palestinian, and a journalist?  In this live episode of Radio Palestine/Israel, we explore the complex voice of Rajaa Natour, a journalist who has written for prominent news outlets such as Haaretz and NRC. We explore how to approach journalistic work within a polarizing conflict, aiming first to tell the truth, no matter who it inconveniences. We discuss the obstacles to sharing such truths and how Rajaa navigates the publishing of her unique perspective in news outlets. We then discuss how to keep a critical view of Hamas as a Palestinian engaged in achieving equality between Israelis and Palestinians and the difficulties of maintaining this crucial view as a journalist in the public eye. So dare to listen to this special live episode and discover the unique voice of journalist Rajaa Natour!*Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the podcast producers.

“People call me an activist. I do not like that word. I just live the way that I think I want to live.” - Umayya Abu-HannaWhat does it mean to be a “pro-Palestinian” advocate in the West today? In this episode, we sit down with Umayya Abu-Hanna, an award-winning Palestinian-Finnish journalist, writer, and activist. Born in Haifa and having lived for many years in Helsinki and Amsterdam, Umayya brings her unique perspective shaped by diverse lived experiences.In this episode of Radio Palestine/Israel, we explore how personal narrative and national heritage intertwine. Join us as we delve into a rich and complex human story behind the Palestinian narrative. We offer a space for introspection with a long-standing advocate for Palestinian rights in Europe. Are you ready to listen?*Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the podcast producers.

“When I was 15, I participated in a hunger strike in prison for 16 days. That was my introduction to non-violence, and it was my first time experiencing a potent energy.” –Sulaiman Khatib, 2024.Breaking the cycle of violence requires profound transformation. For Sulaiman Khatib, this transformation unfolded in an Israeli prison, where he spent a decade after being arrested for resisting oppression. Despite enduring torture, he emerged with a powerful idea: the principle of non-violent resistance. The prison, called “the university” by inmates, became a beacon of learning. They studied Hebrew, explored texts from the Israeli perspective, and learned about successful resistance movements. Upon his release, Sulaiman connected with like-minded individuals from both communities, fostering empathy for the other’s trauma and recognizing the power of non-violence. Together, they established ‘Combatants for Peace’, a pioneering organization transcending borders, language, prejudice, and hate. Find out more about their inspiring work here.*Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the podcast producers.

"I don't always have high hopes about changing theworld through photography or journalism, but I wake up in the morning and drive a few hours because I think it's important to be there, to stand with these people, to document it." -Oren Ziv, 2024.  In this episode, we sit down with Israeli photojournalistOren Ziv, a pioneer in conflict reporting who has spent nearly two decades capturing the realities of life in Palestine and Israel. As one of the first journalists on the scene of the October 7th attack, Oren brings a firsthand perspective on one of the region’s most harrowing events. A co-founder of Activestills Photography Collective and a writer and photographer for +972 Magazine, Oren has extensively documented resistance, house demolitions and the human cost of the occupation, with a commitment to amplifying voices on all sides of the divide. His work reveals not just the stories behind the headlines, but the deep challenges journalists face in conflict zones, where the risks are constant, and censorship looms large. Join us for an eye-opening conversation about the power of storytelling in the face of adversity, and the role of journalism in holding power to account, showing the world the realities most choose not to see. Find out more about Oren’s impactful photography in the West Bank’s village of Zanuta here*Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the podcast producers. 

"What kind of resistance leads to more loss of land, death, and destruction?” -Ahmed Fouad AlkhatibCould you imagine a voice from Gaza asking this provocative question? This week, we welcome Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib, a Palestinian-American activist and political analyst daring to propose pragmatic solutions to the Israel/Palestine conflict. In a landscape often defined by entrenched positions, Alkhatib is not afraid to break taboos: he offers a hand to anyone willing to seek peace, while challenging the narrative surrounding activism. Alkhatib is a Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council, a writer and analyst who grew up in Gaza City. Through his powerful writing and dynamic social media presence he reaches millions, urging them to reexamine their views about resistance, identity, and the possibility of peace.This episode explores how Alkhatib manages to create an audience that would hear him out, the challenges he faces within the pro-Palestine movement, his thinking about how to be a positive activist for the Palestinian cause, as well as his hopes and dreams for the future. *Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the podcast producers.

“I was radicalized in the archives” - Prof. Avi Shlaim. Have you ever wondered how an Oxford Professor of International Relations, pioneering scholar of Israel/Palestine and member of the Israeli ‘New Historians’, developed his complex political voice? In this episode, we explore the remarkable journey of Avi Shlaim, author of the seminal work The Iron Wall.We delve into Avi's identity as an Arab-Jew—born to a Jewish family in Iraq and later immigrating to Israel—and his groundbreaking critical analysis of archival documents that challenged long-held narratives about Israel.This episode unpacks pressing and provocative questions surrounding Israel/Palestine: • Can one be both Arab and Jewish in today's political climate?• What does the abrupt exodus of over 100,000 Iraqi Jews in 1951 reveal about centuries of coexistence?• Is Zionism inherently a European ideology, and what does this mean for non-European Jews?In this episode, Shlaim offers a thought-provoking viewpoint informed by his lived experience and decades of scholarship. He also shares a hopeful vision of how a past of Arab-Jewish coexistence might illuminate a path forward for the region.So dare to listen, and discover the voice of one of the mostinfluential scholars of Israel/Palestine!*Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the podcast producers.