GAZA
Since October 7, Unsettled has featured the voices of different people affected by the devastating violence in Israel and Gaza, as well as expert context and analysis.
NEW RELEASES
‘Ayeka’: A new song from Aly Halpert
For this episode of Unsettled, we premiered a new song from musician Aly Halpert called ‘Ayeka': the first time she has used her music to directly respond to the violence in Israel-Palestine.
Rabbi Miriam Grossman: “we act and we do not wait for hope”
Since the start of the Israel’s war on Gaza, 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.
TALKING TO OUR FAMILIES
We asked listeners to call in and tell us about how they’re navigating conversations with their families, friends, and communities in this moment. This episode is a collaboration between Unsettled and On the Nose, the podcast from Jewish Currents magazine.
Voices From Gaza
An Update from Isam
Before October 7th, the population of Rafah was about 250,000. Now, it’s over a million, with many families living in tents and some on the streets. Isam lives in a three-story house with 46 other people. Recently, Isam Hamad was able to get a family reunification visa from Ireland, because one of his children was born there. But he’s still waiting for approval to leave.
Shahd Safi: "We need electricity, we need fuel, we need flour, we need bread"
On Friday, October 27th, Israel cut off internet in the Gaza Strip as it expanded its ground operations. This total internet blackout left Gaza without the ability to communicate, both internally and with the outside world. The internet was restored on Sunday October 29th. Unsettled spoke with writer, translator and human rights advocate, Shahd Safi, both before and after the internet blackout about the conditions inside Gaza.
Isam Hamad: “What sort of a life is this?”
Producer Ilana Levinson speaks to Isam Hamad: an organizer of 2018's Great March of Return, and manager of a medical equipment company in Gaza City.
Political Context
Matt Duss: “This is not a moment when people are making good policy”
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. To better understand the U.S. role in this war, Unsettled producer Max Freedman speaks to Matt Duss: former foreign policy adviser to Senator Bernie Sanders, and now Executive Vice President at the Center for International Policy.
Tareq Baconi: “There’s no going back”
Tareq Baconi is the author of Hamas Contained: The Rise and Pacification of Palestinian Resistance, billed as "the first history of the group on its own terms." Tareq gives his analysis of Hamas's recent moves. Why this kind of attack, and why now?
Personal Stories
A Painful Week for the AbuRakia-Einhorns
On Tuesday October 24th, Waseem AbuRakia-Einhorn — a Palestinian citizen of Israel married to an American Jew, living in the United States — received a note under his office door at American University with the words "death to all Palestinians." In this episode, we hear from Waseem’s wife Becca: she recalls how she met her husband and her fears for her children.
NOAM SHUSTER-ELIASSI: “WE ARE BROKEN”
Despite public pressure, some Israelis voice opposition to the war - even people who have deep personal connections to the victims of October 7. One of these dissenting voices has been the comedian Noam Shuster-Eliassi.
Arie Hasit: "Everybody has opened a situation room"
Producer Ilana Levinson speaks with Rabbi Arie Hasit in Israel. Ilana and Arie, who grew up going to the same synagogue and and summer camp, discuss what it was like to be in Israel on October 7th, and Israel's obligations toward its own citizens as well as the Palestinian people of the Gaza strip as the war continues.
A Note from Producers
A note from the Unsettled team following October 7th, 2023.
LEAVE UNSETTLED A VOICEMAIL
In this moment of fear, grief, and uncertainty, the Unsettled team wants to offer you the opportunity to tell your story. Whether you want to talk about a loved one you’ve lost, your fears about what will happen next, or your anger at those in power — call us and leave a voicemail at 347-878-1359 and we’ll include some of your messages as we report on the impact of these events.
You’re welcome to leave only your first name; please include in your message if you’d be interested in speaking more with the Unsettled team.
Gaza, a series from unsettled (2019):
Art by Marguerite Dabaie
In 2019, Unsettled released a four-part series about the Gaza Strip. We set out to dive into these questions: Why did thousands of people risk so much to take part in the Great March of Return? Why does a majority of the population identify as refugees, even many who were born in Gaza? How are Gazans innovating in order to survive?
The Great March (Gaza, ep. 1)
American and Israeli politicians, religious leaders, and dignitaries met in Jerusalem on May 14, 2018 to mark the United States moving its embassy there. While they celebrated with songs about peace, thousands of Palestinians assembled at the fence that separates Israel from the Gaza Strip for the Great March of Return. This mass demonstration was originally planned to last six weeks, but has continued to this day. How did it all begin, and who are the protestors that continue to risk their lives to participate?
Refugees (Gaza, ep. 2)
Hilmi Hammad was 18 years old in 1948 when Israeli forces entered his village. He became one of about 200,000 Palestinian refugees who ended up in the Gaza Strip at the end of the 1948 war. The site where Hilmi's village once stood is located today in the center of Israel, and though Hilmi has spent his life in Gaza, his home is still in that village, to which he hopes to return.
Hamas (Gaza, ep. 3)
Too many conversations about Gaza begin and end with one word: Hamas. And conversations about Hamas too often rely on reductive talking points.
Energy (Gaza, ep. 4)
Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip shapes people’s lives in many different ways. In this episode, we focus on the chronic energy shortage. Because energy is needed for much more than turning on the lights; water, sewage, and hospitals, schools, farms, and factories — they all depend on a steady supply of electricity.
POLITICIZED PAIN
When violence erupts in Israel-Palestine, talking in public about Palestinian suffering is often met automatically with an assertion of Israeli suffering — as if one somehow cancels out, or even justifies, the other. It feels like compassion has become a scarce commodity. How do we grieve publicly without negating the experience of the “other side"? This episode originally aired in 2021.
Politicized Pain
A conversation between two friends: one American, one Israeli. Unsettled producers Ilana Levinson and Asaf Calderon discuss empathy and anger, power, trauma, and responsibility.
CREDITS
Unsettled is made by Emily Bell, Max Freedman, and Ilana Levinson, with support from Asaf Calderon.
RESOURCES
Hamas Contained: The Rise and Pacification of Palestinian Resistance (Tareq Baconi)
Gaza’s shock attack has terrified Israelis. It should also unveil the context (Haggai Matar, +972 Magazine, 10/7/23)
“We cannot cross until we carry each other” (Arielle Angel, Jewish Currents, 10/12/23)