In this episode of “Occupied Thoughts,” FMEP’s non-resident fellow Dr. Maha Nassar is joined by Dr. Basil Farraj to discuss Palestinian political prisoners, which is a central issue for Palestinians living under Israeli occupation. Their discussion examines on how Israel’s “carceral regime” is a key component of Israel’s occupation, how arbitrary “administrative detention” is a key tool within that regime, how military courts system functions, and the effects all of this has on Palestinians and their struggle for liberation.
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Recorded September 21, 2022
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Dr. Basil Farraj received his doctorate in Anthropology and Sociology from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland. He is also a policy analyst at Al-Shabaka, the Palestinian policy network. Basil’s research centers on the Israeli prison system, the impact of Israeli torture and violence on Palestinian prisoners, and the ways in which prisons have come to reflect the broader colonial reality under which Palestinians live.
Dr. Maha Nassar is an associate professor in the School of Middle Eastern and North African Studies at the University of Arizona, where she specializes in the cultural and intellectual history of the modern Arab world. Her award-winning book, Brothers Apart: Palestinian Citizens of Israel and the Arab World (Stanford University Press, 2017), examines how Palestinian intellectuals connected to global decolonization movements during the mid-twentieth century. A 2018 Public Voices Fellow with the OpEd Project, Dr. Nassar’s analysis and opinion pieces have appeared in numerous publications, including The Washington Post, +972 Magazine, The Conversation, and The Hill. She lives in Tucson, Arizona, with her husband, son, and daughter, and she is working on her next book, a global history of Palestine’s people. Follow Dr. Nassar on Twitter here: @mtnassar
Resources & Further Reading
- Basil Farraj, “The Prison Intifada: Supporting Palestinian Administrative Detainees” (Al Shabaka)
- Basil’s essays in Mondoweiss on visiting his father: https://mondoweiss.net/author/basil-abdulrazeq-farraj/
- Addameer Report on Abdul Razeq Farraj: https://www.addameer.org/prisoner/abdul-razeq-farraj-0
- Basil Farraj, “Defying Carcerality: Prisoners Writing Behind Bars”\
- “New victory for Palestinian prisoners’ movement as occupation retreats from repressive measures” – Samidoun report
- “Deadly Exchange” campaign: https://deadlyexchange.org/
