Cherished and hated by many, the Balfour Declaration is certainly considered one of the most controversial documents in recent history. In this first episode of a series dedicated to this document, I will discuss the origins of the Declaration and offer several explanations in the attempt to understand why the British promised a Jewish National Home for the Jewish people in Palestine, when in fact the British were just crossing the Suez Canal in their efforts to defeat the Ottoman Empire.

Bibliography suggested:

Lorenzo Kamel, Imperial Perceptions of Palestine (IB Tauris, 2020)

Gabriel Polley, Palestine in the Victorian Age (IB Tauris, 2022)

Lawrence Davidson, 'The past as prelude: Zionism and the Betrayal of 

American Democratic Principles, 1917-1948' (2002)

Jehuda Reinharz, 'Zionism in the USA on the eve of the Balfour Declaration' 

(1988)

James Renton, The Zionist Masquerade (Palgrave, 2004)

James Renton, 'Flawed Foundations: the Balfour Declaration and the 

Palestine Mandate' (2016)

Jonathan Schneer, The Balfour Declaration: the Origins of the Arab-Israeli 

Conflict (2010)

Avi Shlaim, 'The Balfour Declaration and its Consequences' (2005)

Leonard Stein, The Balfour Declaration (1961)

Originally published on 02/09/2024

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*Country of Words* taps into the power of Palestinian literature to defy conventional linear, chronological, and artificial national frames of representation. Despite the fact that an unprecedented number of the world's population live as refugees, exiles, or stateless people, the logic of the nation-state continues to loom large over literary studies. Delving into the decentralized and deterritorialized history of Palestinian literature, the story of an entire nation-in-exile living through repetitive cycles of occupation and in multiple diasporas can facilitate an understanding of extranational forms of literary production. Ultimately, *Country of Words* seeks to offer new perspectives and approaches that simultaneously include and transcend national literary frames.

https://countryofwords.org/ 

Originally published on 028/03/2024

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(Episodio in Italiano)

In questa puntata di Jerusalem Unplugged ho il piacere di pubblicare il mio intervento insieme a quello di Maria Chiara Rioli e Arturo Marzano come relatori del seminario Palestina - Israele Dal sionismo delle origini al 1948: eventi, documenti, interpretazioni che ha avuto luogo all'universita' di Bologna Dipartimento di Storia, il 22 Gennaio 2024 organizzato da Caterina Bori con la collaborazione di Francesca Biancani e Cigdem Oguz. 

Originally published on 01/25/2024

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American Jews began debating Palestinian rights issues even before Israel’s founding in 1948. Geoffrey Levin recovers the voices of American Jews who, in the early decades of Israel’s existence, called for an honest reckoning with the moral and political plight of Palestinians. These now‑forgotten voices, which include an aid‑worker‑turned‑academic with Palestinian Sephardic roots, a former Yiddish journalist, anti‑Zionist Reform rabbis, and young left‑wing Zionist activists, felt drawn to support Palestinian rights by their understanding of Jewish history, identity, and ethics. They sometimes worked with mainstream American Jewish leaders who feared that ignoring Palestinian rights could foster antisemitism, leading them to press Israeli officials for reform. But Israeli diplomats viewed any American Jewish interest in Palestinian affairs with deep suspicion, provoking a series of quiet confrontations that ultimately kept Palestinian rights off the American Jewish agenda up to the present era.  

Originally published on 01/13/2024

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This is an edited recast of the podcast I recorded with Oliver Webb-Carter, founder of Aspects of History home - Aspects of History. 

After the horrific attacks of 7th October our editor discussed the long running Israel Palestine conflict with historian and author Roberto Mazza. Covering the growing Zionist movement in the early 20th century, to the Balfour Declaration through to the British Mandate for Palestine, the 1948 war and the Six Day War in 1967 Roberto discusses how we got to where we are today and whether there is any prospect for peace.

This is the link of the original podcast: 

Aspects of History - Israel Palestine with Roberto Mazza | RSS.com 

Originally published on 12/07/2023

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In the Old City of Jerusalem, 80 kilometres from the war in Gaza, another religious conflict is taking place. An Australian property developer, aided by a group of armed Jewish settlers, has attempted to occupy a prized piece of land in the Armenian Christian quarter. Even though a deal to build a hotel was overturned, Armenian families are threatened with eviction from homes their community has held for centuries. Bedross tells us everything we need to know about the Armenians in Jerusalem and their struggle against armed settlers. 

Originally published on 11/22/2023

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What is settler colonialism? How does this concept relate to Israel and Palestine? What about other countries? These are all great questions which I discussed in this episode with Arnon Degani. Arnon is currently a Fellow at Molad – Center for the Renewal of Israeli Democracy, specializing in the history of Zionism, Palestinian nationalism, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He recently released the Hebrew podcast series ""Hesket Oslo,"" examining the Oslo Accords, and is currently working on the English adaptation, ""Still Processing."" His doctoral research focused on the integration of Palestinian Arabs into Israeli society from 1948 to 1967, as revealed through daily encounters with Israeli officials, and his upcoming manuscript titled 'Our Arabs"" explores this topic in depth. He is contributor to the scholarly and intellectual debate on if and how the settler-colonialism comparative framework benefits the study of Israel and Palestine. We hope you will enjoy this conversation.

Originally published on 11/16/2023

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I'm thrilled to bring you a thought-provoking talk by my good friend and friend of the podcast Louis Fishman. Our conversation today delves deep into the complex dynamics of the Middle East, focusing on "Israel, Palestine, Turkey in the post-Oct. 7th reality: A Historical Look Toward the Future." The talk was given at Northwestern University of Nov. 8. There's a twist to today's presentation. After the talk, I conducted a Q&A session with Professor Fishman, and although the questions were intriguing, a technical hiccup rendered the audience questions inaudible. However, fear not! We've preserved Professor Fishman's answers for your listening pleasure, ensuring you don't miss out on his invaluable wisdom.

So, stay tuned for a journey through history and geopolitics as we explore the past, present, and future of Israel, Palestine, and Turkey in the ever-shifting post-Oct. 7th reality.

Originally published on 11/09/2023

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As the war keeps raging in Palestine, thousands have been killed, thousands are living under threat of immediate death, hundreds of hostages are still held somewhere in Gaza, the West Bank is on the brink of exploding, Islamophobia and anti-Semitism are on the rise, polarized views leave no room for dialogue, I choose to publish an interview I recorded some time ago and I was hoping to upload later in the year. I choose not to look the other way, but to keep giving the listeners crumbs of the history of Palestine and all the people that live there. With my good friend Vincent Lemire we discussed his latest book which presents the history of the Mughrabi Quarter, the one you can no longer see as it was demolished right after the conquest of the Old City by Israeli troops in 1967. In this fascinating discussion we talk about the history of the quarter, its destruction and its 'resurrection' through contemporary archaeology. 

Originally published on 11/01/2023

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Dopo tante richieste personali, ho pensato di organizzare un webinar non-accadmeico dedicato alla questione israelo-palestinese e ad Hamas, un'occasione unica per esplorare il contesto storico che ha plasmato gli eventi contemporanei che hanno portato all'attacco del 7 Ottobre e la conseguente risposta di Israele. Durante questa sessione di 50 minuti, approfondiremo le origini del conflitto, i cambiamenti politici e sociali avvenuti nel corso degli anni e il ruolo chiave svolto da Hamas. Sono ansioso di condividere questa esperienza di apprendimento con voi e di esplorare insieme il contesto storico di questa complessa questione che in tanti modi diversi riguarda anche me e la mia famiglia direttamente. 

Originally published on 10/27/2023

Welcome to Jerusalem Unplugged Podcast. This is the new link and home of Jerusalem Unplugged, all old and new interviews will be published through the new link.

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