Gaza and West Bank - How to Unite One People
How can authority and legitimacy be restored in the Palestinian territories and how will Palestinians find a common and realistic path forward to resolve the conflicts within their society and with Israel?
Geographically, Palestinian society is divided between the West Bank and the Gaza strip. Politically, the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and Hamas in the Gaza strip have been competing for authority, while living in the shadow of Israeli dominance. Nevertheless, as political elites, they are both responsible for the corruption and mismanagement that continuously exacerbates the effects of the Israeli occupation on the Palestinian economy and society. President Mahmoud Abbas was elected in 2005 for a four-year term, but new elections have yet to be held. Just below the surface, there are young generations of Palestinians for whom the two-state project is a faded dream and the Palestinian Authority is held in low esteem.
Speakers
Anders Persson. Senior Lecturer Department of Political Science at Linnaeus University
Yara Hawari: Dr Hawari is a Senior Palestine Policy Fellow of Al-Shabaka: The Palestinian Policy Network.
Muhammad Shehada: Manager at Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor
Marwa Fatafta: Policy Manager at Access Now and Policy Analyst and Al-Shabaka
Moderator: Dr Rouzbeh Parsi, Head of UI's MENA Programme