Episode 058 - Reclaiming the Narrative with Jamal Elshayyal

Lara and Michael have the pleasure of interviewing renowned journalist Jamal Elshayyal this week. Jamal began his field experience aboard the Mavi Marmara as part of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla. The first time he witnessed someone being killed in front of him. Jamal also highlights his colleague Shireen Abu Akleh’s career and her murder by Israeli forces, which still demands an investigation. He touches on the murder of a number of journalists, Ghufran Harun Warasneh being one of them. Many names have not received as much attention despite the ongoing targeting of journalists attempting to cover the Palestinian right to resistance.

Jamal also speaks of the BDS movement, specifically companies like General Mills and Ben & Jerry’s who have divested. Finally, he touches on what it was like to cover the news of the Arab Spring and Muammar Gaddafi’s death.

To consult the sources used in the preparation of this episode, please see:

• @jamalelshayyal (Instagram)

• @JamalsNews (X)

Books

• City on a Hilltop: American Jews and the Israeli Settler Movement (Sara Yael Hirschhorn, Harvard University Press)

Videos

• Pentagon pressed on Shireen Abu Akleh investigation

• The funeral procession of Palestinian journalist Ghufran Warasneh was interrupted in Hebron, where Israeli soldiers attempted to block the route. Minor clashes took place (New TR News Agency)

• KING DAVID HOTEL BLOWN UP (AP Archive)

Articles

• Israeli attack on Gaza flotilla sparks international outrage (The Guardian)

• Gaza flotilla raid draws furious response from Turkey's prime minister (The Guardian)

• Report of the international fact-finding mission to investigate violations of international law, including international humanitarian and human rights law, resulting from the Israeli attacks on the flotilla of ships carrying humanitarian assistance* (United Nations General Assembly)

• ICC prosecutor again refuses to investigate Gaza flotilla raid (Al Jazeera)

• UN officials call for probe into killing of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh (United Nations)

• Israel: Ghufran Harun Warasneh, Second Palestinian Woman Journalist Killed In West Bank In A Month (The Coalition for Women in Journalism)

• Israeli snipers kill disabled protester Fadi Abu Salah in Gaza massacre (The New Arab)

• Rain of Fire - Israel’s Unlawful Use of White Phosphorus in Gaza (Human Rights Watch)

• Israel/ OPT: Amnesty staff member faces punitive travel ban for human rights work (Amnesty International)

• In a Victory for BDS, Argentina’s National Soccer Team Cancels a Game in Israel (The Nation)

• BDS victory: General Mills says it will divest from Israel (Mondoweiss)

• Ben & Jerry’s Will End Sales of Our Ice Cream in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (Ben & Jerry’s)

• ‘They were shooting directly at the journalists’: New evidence suggests Shireen Abu Akleh was killed in targeted attack by Israeli forces (CNN)

• What is behind Israel’s targeting of prominent buildings in Gaza? (Al Jazeera)

• ‘Silence the story’: Israeli bombing of media offices condemned (Al Jazeera)

• Turkey and Israel’s Activities’ Investigation on Mavi Marmara Incident In Terms of International Law (TUIC Akademi)  

• Palestinians, Israeli troops clash after West Bank funeral (Associated Press)

• Palestinians vow to save Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood (Al Jazeera)

• Representative Carson Introduces Justice for Shireen Act  (Congressman André Carson)

• American journalist Brent Renaud shot and killed by Russian forces in Ukraine (CBS News) 

• Arab unions, parties, public figures condemn killing of Palestinian journalist (Anadolu Ajansi)

• What is the Arab Spring, and how did it start? (Al Jazeera)

• How Did Gaddafi Die? A Year Later, Unanswered Questions and Bad Blood (Time)

• Al Jazeera presenter Ahmed Taha condemns Egypt sentence (Al Jazeera)