Last Wednesday on July 31st, Hamas’s top political leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in Iran. Haniyeh came to the capital city of Tehran for the presidential inauguration when an explosive device went off in the guest house where he was staying. Just hours before, Haniyeh had met with Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Israel hasn’t take…

On Tuesday April 30th, Columbia University President Minouche Shafik called the New York Police Department to clear the campus of students who had erected an encampment in solidarity with Palestine. Columbia's encampment was one of hundreds of similar campus demonstrations across the United States, many of which were also removed by the police. Uns…

For this episode of Unsettled, we’re doing something we’ve never done before: premiering a new song. Aly Halpert makes music used in synagogues and Jewish song circles. If you listened to our last episode featuring Rabbi Miriam Grossman, you heard Aly’s tune for the prayer 'Ashrei' as part of a service led by Rabbis for Ceasefire. Today, Aly is rel…

Since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, grief and rage have brought thousands of people to the streets to demand a ceasefire. One of the many groups that have mobilized in the U.S. is Rabbis for Ceasefire. One of these rabbis is Miriam Grossman, who led until recently the congregation Kolot Chayeinu in Brooklyn, New York. Unsettled producer Ilana …

The last time we featured Isam Hamad on Unsettled was a few days after the October 7th attacks, when Israel had just begun its bombardment of the Gaza Strip. At the time, Isam and his family — including his 93-year old father and a son with cerebral palsy — were still in their home in Gaza City. But a few days later, they were forced to evacuate so…

Just before Thanksgiving, we asked listeners to call in and tell us about how they’re navigating conversations with their families, friends, and communities in this moment—as Israel responds to the October 7th attacks with unprecedented destruction in Gaza. What has worked in getting through to loved ones, and what hasn’t? How are people are managi…

As of Thursday, November 30th, a temporary ceasefire is in place between Israel and Hamas. The truce allows for an exchange of hostages who have been held in Gaza by Hamas since October 7th for Palestinian prisoners detained by Israel, and for desperately needed humanitarian aid to enter the Gaza Strip. At this point, 69 hostages have been released…

It's hard to find anyone in Israel who isn't shaken to the core by the magnitude of Hamas' attack on October 7. For many in Israel, their pain and shock has translated into support for bombing Gaza. But despite public pressure, some Israelis do voice opposition to the war - even people who have deep personal connections to the victims of October 7.…

It’s been a month since October 7, when Hamas fighters killed 1,400 Israelis and captured more than 200 hostages. It’s also been a month of Israel's retaliation: air raids and ground operations in the Gaza Strip that have killed almost 10,000 Palestinians, destroyed infrastructure, and limited access to basic necessities. For the past month, Palest…

On Friday, October 27th, Israel cut off internet in the Gaza Strip for 36-hours, as it expanded its ground operations. This total internet blackout left Gaza without the ability to communicate, both internally and with the outside world. Human rights groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch warned that without the internet, their ability…

Last week, Producer Ilana Levinson talked to Arie Hasit at his home in Israel, in the midst of a deadly war. Arie and his family, including two small kids, have been spending much of their time in bomb shelters. After Hamas militants launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing more than 1,300 Israelis, mostly civilians, and taking 199 Israeli hos…

The United States has always been Israel’s strongest ally, and President Biden has pledged his steadfast support for Israel since Hamas's surprise attack over the Gaza border on October 7. Many American supporters of Israel and even Israeli officials have celebrated President Biden for his “moral clarity” in this moment. But others have heard somet…

On Saturday, October 7, Hamas launched a surprise attack across the Gaza border, killing more than 1,300 Israelis, mostly civilians, and taking at least 150 Israeli hostages, most of whom are still captive in the Gaza Strip. Israel responded to the attack by declaring war and cutting off food, water, and electricity to the Gaza Strip. On Friday, Oc…

Over the next few days, Unsettled is going to bring you the voices of many different people who have been affected by this week's devastating escalation of violence in Israel and Gaza. We’re starting with an episode about Hamas, whose surprise attack across the Gaza border on October 7th "completely ruptured the reality we thought we were operating…

Earlier today Hamas launched an attack on Israeli towns near the Gaza border, and has also been launching rockets towards Israeli population centers as north as Tel Aviv. Hundreds of Israeli soldiers and civilians are dead and dozens have been taken captive. The fact that Hamas has been able to breach Israeli defenses and launch an attack of this m…

For more resources on the topics discussed in this episode: Women Wage Peace Women of the Sun AChord Abraham Initiatives To hear more from Groundwork: https://groundworkpodcast.com/. Credits Groundwork is hosted by Sally Abed and Dina Kraft and produced by Yoshi Fields. Today’s story is by Maria Rashed and scored by Joel Shupack. Art and design by …

Israel is often called "the only Democracy in the Middle East,” with activists, politicians, and even journalists pointing to Israel's Supreme Court as a prime example. But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to weaken the Israeli judiciary, sending Israeli Jews into the streets en masse to protest. For months, Israelis have been engaged in mar…

Awdah Hathaleen lives in the village of Umm al-Khair, in the South Hebron Hills: a region of the West Bank where Israel has full civil and military control. At the start of 2023, the Israeli military announced plans to forcibly evacuate more than a thousand people from eight villages in the South Hebron Hills. Even though Umm al-Khair is not one of…

Musa Abdullah Ali Awad lives in the village of Isfey al-Fauqa. Isfey is located in a part of the West Bank called Masafer Yatta, where Israel has total civil and military control. While the Israeli military has claimed for decades that much of the area is a “firing zone,” they were prevented from forcibly evacuating the villages because of an ongoi…

Masafer Yatta is in Area C of the West Bank, where Israel has total civil and military control. For decades, the Israeli military has claimed much of the area as a “firing zone.” They were prevented from forcibly evacuating the villages by an ongoing legal case. But last spring, Israel’s High Court of Justice issued its final ruling — in favor of t…

To commemorate five years of Unsettled, we’re closing out 2022 by diving into our archive. Each member of the team has picked a favorite past episode to republish. For this episode, producer Asaf Calderon shares Politicized Pain, a conversation between two friends processing what it means to grieve when pain is public and political, originally rele…

To commemorate five years of Unsettled, we’re closing out 2022 by diving into our archive. Each member of the team has picked a favorite past episode to republish. For this episode, producer Emily Bell shares a documentary produced in collaboration with the +972 podcast. The documentary tells the story of Amal Sumarin, who lives with her family in …

To commemorate five years of Unsettled, we’re closing out 2022 by diving into our archive. Each member of the team has picked a favorite past episode to republish. For this episode, producer Ilana Levinson shares The Great March, a report originally released in 2019, on a mass demonstration in the Gaza Strip attended by thousands. The Great March o…

To commemorate five years of Unsettled, we’re closing out 2022 by diving into our archive. Each member of the team has picked a favorite past episode to republish. First up, producer Max Freedman shares his interview with two theater artists: playwright/musician Dan Fishback, and actor Motaz Malhees. Dan and Motaz joined us in 2017 to discuss two p…

Unsettled is currently on a break from releasing new content, but we’ll be back on your feed in the Fall. While we’re gone, make sure to catch up on some of our latest episodes. This past Spring, we released a four-part series, ‘The Birthday Party,’ about a growing movement of Palestinians and Jews working together to oppose the occupation in the S…