[On January 21, 2026, Nonviolence International held a webinar on “Beyond Political Illusions: What This Moment Demands of Us”. The following is our summary of key takeaways and is not intended as a transcript. The program was hosted by Nonviolence International co-director Sami Awad. To watch the entire program click here.]
Sami Awad. Those who hold power today are completely ignoring the Palestinians. Where are we now and where might we go next?
Jonathan Kuttab, Director, Friends of Sabeel. We are in a dangerous new situation that goes far beyond Palestine-Israel. The United States is led by a man who openly declares that the only restraint on him is his “own morality.” With the apparent collapse of the international order, comes the collapse of the traditional wisdom as to what works, what is allowed, what is reasonable. We are being invited to think outside of the box. That is a wonderful opportunity. Another positive development is a transformation of information networks. People are now talking about genocide, apartheid, and what does Zionism really mean. The trap we fell into to try to find a formulaic solution has also collapsed and we must be more humble. Our task is not to solve the problem but to be faithful to our principles and trust in God to bring about the best solution. I stress nonviolence because violence will not provide the Israelis with security nor the Palestinians with freedom. Nonviolence, at least, does no harm. Our commitment must be to nonviolence, human rights, and International Law.
Jeff Halper, s. We do have to be political actors because we are in a political struggle. We must end Zionist colonialism and apartheid. It hard to talk of political solutions, organizations, and actions at a time of genocide, but the world will not wait for us to find a “right time” for political action. Settler-colonialism must be our conceptual framework. The Judaization of Palestine, which is the essence of the Zionist project, is over. It has succeeded. That is the reality. It ends only through normalization, by accepting Israel as a reality. The danger in this is that Israeli apartheid will be normalized in the process. The opportunity lies in the necessity for Israel to break all Palestinian resistance. That is what the genocide seeks to accomplish. We must stop the normalization of apartheid and focus on creating one democratic state, but we have no organization, no organization, no strategy to achieve that end. Palestinians together with anti-Zionist, or at least non-Zionist allies, must give direction and a political program.
Huwaida Arraf, . The language that has been used for years is an anesthetic used to numb us to the reality that a nuclear-armed state has with impunity acted to destroy an indigenous population. The so-called peace process only managed the pace of colonization. The two-state solution has long been dead. Before any political program we must insist on a rights-based framework. Politics can be negotiated, rights cannot. In UN Res0lution 2303, we are told that Palestinians must “earn the right to negotiate for self-determination,” but self-determination is a natural right and the occupier can place no conditions upon it. Palestinians are aware that the Palestinian Authority has been a failure. We do have a Palestinian civil society that has a program to put pressure on Israel to force it to abide by International Law. Policies that have been tested on the Palestinians are coming to the U.S. Recent ICE actions reflect policies Israel has used against the Palestinians.
Kuttab. All our work is political. The task before us now is to transform the call for justice in Palestine into something concrete. The siege of Gaza needs to be broken. That’s where nonviolence has a role. BDS is not just a slogan. It is a mechanism to end genocide and apartheid.
Halper. When we got involved with Free Gaza in 2008 it was to end the siege. There is a problematic relationship between humanitarian and political action. There are hundreds of organizations, but no connection to the real political world, no urgency. We need at least an international coordinating campaign. We need a Palestinian-led center.
Question from Jim Fine: How can we effectuate Palestinian leadership?
Kuttab. Palestinian civil society is hampered by dependence on outside agencies for funding. We are lacking a political strategy of nonviolence towards specific ends as opposed to a simply spiritual commitment.
Awad. It’s not just a lack of leadership, there is also a dismantling of leadership by arrests.
Arraf. And by assassination. Local action is incredibly important to raising the costs on Israel and making what they are doing impossible. We are running activists as candidates for local and state positions to put pressure on the politicians.
Question from a student at LCC International University. Can you outline the problems with the proposed two-state solution?
Awad. We’ll put a link to Jonathan’s book Beyond the Two-State Solution.
Question from Alex McDonald. How does the latest Security Counsel resolution affect our language on International Law and what can be done about the criminal Board of Peace?
Halper. Use anti-colonial language. Many capable leaders exist among Palestinians. International communities, especially churches, need to provide space for them to meet in a way they can’t do under Israeli occupation, so they can come together on a political program.
[Awad took additional questions collectively for speakers to address in their closing comments.]
Kuttab. Our freedom is tied to the freedom of people everywhere. Nonviolence not only does no harm, it offers hope.
Halper. We need to organize an international coordinating committee on Palestine, campaign against normalization, create a political space for Palestinians to create a political program,
Arraf. Even though Security Council resolutions have the force of law, this one is invalid because it violates the fundamental mission of the United Nations. A flotilla now being organized to demonstrate a huge show of defiance to what Israel is doing now. We must dismantle Zionism.
Mubarak Awad, Founder of Nonviolence International. Christianity would not have spread without the twelve disciples. Islam would not have spread so much without without calling on people to become Muslims. We call on you to ask people for their continuing support for a just cause.
Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad
Minaret of Freedom Institute
www.minaret.org
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