News & opinions from a Palestinian-American
living & working in Ramallah/Al-Bireh, Palestine
Francesca Albanese is the most lucid voice against Israel’s apartheid policies in Gaza and the West Bank, a voice that has been heard around the world when it comes to speaking the truth about the Palestinian genocide. In the wake of October 7, 2023, and Israel’s retaliatory war, the renowned Italian jurist has become a lightning rod for her staunch defense of human rights.
The Foundations of Zionism
Sabri Jiryis author Fida Jiryis translator
![The Bible Is Not a Baton [Book Review]](https://epalestine.ps/sambahour/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/the-bible-is-not-a-baton-1790705007.png)
The opening line of Decolonizing Palestine: The Land, the People, the Bible says it all: “For Palestinians, including the Palestinian Christian community, Palestine is a real land with real people.” It seems self-evident, but in a time when more people are in love with some majestic idea of Israel/Palestine rather than the real Israel/Palestine, it needs to be reiterated. This short read debunks many falsehoods that have taken root in parts of the Christian community over time and have been kept alive by constant watering by the State of Israel and the Zionist movement.
![“They Called Me a Lioness: A Palestinian Girl’s Fight for Freedom” [Recommended]](https://epalestine.ps/sambahour/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/they-called-me-a-lloness.jpeg)
A Palestinian activist jailed at sixteen after a confrontation with Israeli soldiers illuminates the daily struggles of life under occupation in this moving, deeply personal memoir.
![“A Day in the Life of Abed Salama” [Recommended]](https://epalestine.ps/sambahour/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/A-Day-in-the-Life-of-Abed-Salama-by-Nathan-Thrall.jpg)
Nathan Thrall received the 2024 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction for A Day in the Life of Abed Salama. Five-year-old Milad Salama is excited for a school trip to a theme park on the outskirts of Jerusalem. On the way, his bus collides with a semitrailer. His father, Abed, gets word of the crash and rushes to the site. The scene is chaos—the children have been taken to different hospitals in Jerusalem and the West Bank; some are missing, others cannot be identified. Abed sets off on an odyssey to learn Milad’s fate. It is every parent’s worst nightmare, but for Abed it is compounded by the maze of physical, emotional, and bureaucratic obstacles he must navigate because he is Palestinian. He is on the wrong side of the separation wall, holds the wrong ID to pass the military checkpoints, and has the wrong papers to enter the city of Jerusalem. Abed’s quest to find Milad is interwoven with the stories of a cast of Jewish and Palestinian characters whose lives and histories unexpectedly converge. (Publisher’s description)
![From Wisconsin to Gaza to Jenin: An American Writer’s Lived Experience in Palestine [Book Review]](https://epalestine.ps/sambahour/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/from-wisconsin-to-gaza-to-jenin-1926401834.jpeg)
The memoir of an American daughter of a German immigrant raised under Nazi Germany, and the mother of three Palestinian Americans, who meets Palestine from the ground level. An eloquent read with nuanced explanations of a multitude of key points about the conflict, explained in depth in extensive endnotes.
![“Peacemakers in Israel-Palestine: Dialogues for a Just Peace” [Recommended]](https://epalestine.ps/sambahour/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Peacemakers-in-Israel-Palestine.jpg)
Featuring a chapter by Sam, “Peacemakers in Israel-Palestine aims to analyze the crucial roles and capacities of mid-level, nongovernmental peacemakers as they provide unique approaches to transforming the Israel-Palestinian conflict. It also aims to analyze and experience dialogue as the primary mode of peacemaking communication.
![Non-violently resisting Israeli military occupation, with a scalpel [Book Review]](https://epalestine.ps/sambahour/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/non-violently-resisting-israeli-military-occupation-with-a-scalpel-472741138.jpeg)
Through recounting his own spectacular life, Dr. Shawki Harb’s memoir, “A Surgeon Under Israeli Occupation,” depicts Palestinian reality from the British Mandate to today. Born a Christian and breastfed by a Muslim, Dr. Harb embodies the best of both traditions. If you are from my generation or older in Palestine, you know and respect the person even if you have never crossed paths with him.
![“Palestinian Walks: Forays into a Disappearing Landscape” by Raja Shehadeh [Book Review]](https://epalestine.ps/sambahour/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/palestinian-walks-raja-shehadeh.jpg)
Recent Books