News & Information

Analysis

Documentary & Video

“Facts do not at all speak for themselves, but require a socially acceptable narrative to absorb, sustain, and circulate them.”

Permission to Narrate (1984) by Edward Said,
Palestinian-American professor at Columbia University, 1935-2003

Thanks to the Internet it is a new world of access to information and perspectives on Israel-Palestine which has traditionally been captive to the mainstream narrative and the voice of power.   Below is a number of recommended independent sites but no list can give the breadth and depth across many thousands of websites, channels and formats.  There is nothing more “in the moment” than to enter “key words” e.g. Palestine, Israel, Occupation, Zionism, Nakba, BDS, into a search engine and see what it finds – guaranteed to educate and shock.

News and Information

These sites offer reliable, contextual and diverse information not available in mainstream or corporate media.

Analysis and Perspective

These sites offer insight, perspective and analysis to contribute to true understanding.

Palestinesquare.com  PALESTINE SQUARE is the blog of the venerable and excellent Institute for Palestine Studies (IPS), an independent research and publishing nonprofit organization, dedicated exclusively to the study of Palestine, the Arab-Israeli conflict, and regional and international developments affecting Palestine.

Palestine-studies.org  The Institute for Palestine Studies (IPS) is the oldest institute in the world devoted exclusively to documentation, research, analysis, and publication on Palestinian affairs and the Arab-Israeli conflict. It was established in Beirut in 1963 and incorporated as a private, independent, non-profit unaffiliated with any political organization or government

al-shabaka.org   Al-Shabaka, The Palestinian Policy Network, is an independent, non-partisan, and non-profit organization whose mission is to educate and foster public debate on Palestinian human rights and self-determination within the framework of international law. Al-Shabaka, which means “The Network.”

Most sites have social media channels (facebook, twitter, etc.).  Almost all offer newsletters either daily, weekly or monthly – please subscribe.

Video

These and scores more video/documentaries are available online at YouTube or Vimeo or other Internet channels either in entirety or segments of 10-20 minutes.  Many can be seen for under $5 on streaming sites. Please search on these titles.

John Pilger and Tom Hayes, each directed a number of documentaries going back to 1970’s  to present tracking situation to present.  Palestine is Still the Issue (2002) by Pilger.  People of the Land (1997) and Native Sons, Palestinians In Exile (1985) by Hayes. His latest is Two Blue Lines (2014).

Occupation 101 is a hard-hitting award-winning documentary film from 2006 on the root causes of the Israel-Palestine conflict. It depicts Palestinian life under brutal military occupation and features interviews with Richard Falk, Chris Hedges and many others.

From the Media Education Foundation two landmark examinations of the Israel-Palestine conflict as it is portrayed in US media.  Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land (2004) and The Occupation of the American Mind (2015). Each film features a dozen excellent journalists, academics, activists and analysts.

The Land Speaks Arabic (2007) examines the period in Palestine before 1948 juxtaposed with historical research, eyewitness accounts, stunning choreography, moving testimonials, and historical documents. Brings together rarely seen footage.

The Zionist Story explores the ideology of Zionism – ethnic cleansing, colonialism and apartheid to produce a demographically Jewish State. Combines archival footage with commentary from Ilan Pappe, Terry Boullata, Alan Hart and Jeff Halper.

Palestine Remix on aljazeera  Interactive site with dozens of documentary films and video shorts profiling Palestinian history, culture, resistance movements and Israeli occupation.

Palestine For Beginners in 3 parts by Ed Mast from Seattle (1-hour total) – excellent no-nonsense look expressed in refreshing plain language. Also, download extensive discussion guide.

Occupied Palestine (David Koff) Remarkable footage and candid interviews. Met with bomb threats and censorship on US release in 1981.  Recently rediscovered, one of the first full-length documentaries uncovers the strategic and ideological motors of Israeli rule in Palestine.

Selected film or video titles: Budrus (2009), Defamation (2009), 5 Broken Cameras  (2011) among dozens and hundreds of titles.

The most comprehensive film/video resource on Palestinian film – www.palestinedocs.net visit to learn more about film and many can be purchased at www.arabfilm.com.

Video browsing: YouTube or Vimeo or topdocumentaryfilms.com search on same words as quoted above.

For comprehensive 2-page resource sheet of above links (pdf)