Introduction

Today on the podcast, we continue our exploration ofidentity, conflict, and understanding — this time turning to the Israeli experience, and the complex interplay between faith, belonging, and the search for peace.

I’m joined by Yossi Klein HaLevi, a senior fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, and one of Israel’s most respected writers and thinkers on religion, society, and coexistence. Over the past several decades, Yossi’s work has sought to illuminate how Israelis and Palestinians see one another — and how, despite history and hardship, empathyand dialogue can still be possible.

He is the author of several acclaimed books, including LikeDreamers: The Story of the Israeli Paratroopers Who Reunited Jerusalem and Divided a Nation — which won the Jewish Book Council’s Everett Family Foundation Award for Jewish Book of the Year — and Letters to My PalestinianNeighbor, a deeply personal and courageous attempt to reach across the divide, inviting Palestinians into a conversation about narrative, identity and hope.

Through his writing, lectures, and engagement at the Hartman Institute, Yossi has become a leading voice in promoting religious and moral understanding, both within Israel’s deeply divided society and between Israelis and the wider region. His work consistently reminds us that peace isnot merely a political process, but a human and spiritual pursuit — one that requires listening, empathy, and the willingness to encounter the other in full.

In today’s episode……

In today’s episode, we discuss the responses his work has received, both from Palestinians and within Israeli society, and explore the emotional and moral boundaries of empathy — asking whether there are places where understanding must meet principle, and where compromise cannot go.

The conversation also turns to the power of narratives — howstories can both prolong conflict and open space for reconciliation — and the role of writers and public intellectuals in helping societies wrestle with history, memory, and the hope for a different future.

It’s a thoughtful and deeply human conversation aboutlistening across difference, confronting painful truths, and imagining the possibility of coexistence.

Closure

A special thank you to Yossi Klein HaLevi for joiningme and for sharing his insight, honesty, and openness in exploring such a complex and deeply human subject.

And to our listeners — thank you, as always, for tuning inand supporting these conversations. Your engagement helps us continue to bring together diverse voices and perspectives from across Israel and Palestine.

Her work, including her recent efforts in Gaza and her roleas a co-founder of Gaza Medic Voices, provides a profound understanding of the realities faced by healthcare professionals in such environments.

Until then, thank you for listening to Israel & Palestine Unpacked.

Yossi Klein HaLevi's Titles on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Letters-Palestinian-Neighbor-Yossi-Halevi/dp/006284492X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=8H8TFBP2YCV2&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Cvg2ctO_RafAvI5r4HCANmHPyKIm8ROZe79S8B9lHGbNFPTUwSXLDO2A1cPq7yte_x6aNAafXD6goydRD9gWKzdjSa4eIBcr7ChQTzbGHa6EnBO2MBcjUCqEKrBK1Cko5MzH4klCVKsvmgYNVVBaCshv8zUipyUXmA_2naKTaiZEPRQQkzToqnB3vvXY0PIwvbI-2HtZ3usXHRLhjQxw-sehn5Ksi5BHIkod0kAITqM.7EN_jaFx_fCrSc-W1BmsdwejWyUQ5Wf2MEDcmVlZPdY&dib_tag=se&keywords=yossi+klein+halevi&qid=1759845087&sprefix=Yossi+Klein%2Caps%2C106&sr=8-1

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Like-Dreamers-Paratroopers-Reunited-Jerusalem/dp/0060545771/ref=sr_1_2?crid=8H8TFBP2YCV2&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Cvg2ctO_RafAvI5r4HCANmHPyKIm8ROZe79S8B9lHGbNFPTUwSXLDO2A1cPq7yte_x6aNAafXD6goydRD9gWKzdjSa4eIBcr7ChQTzbGHa6EnBO2MBcjUCqEKrBK1Cko5MzH4klCVKsvmgYNVVBaCshv8zUipyUXmA_2naKTaiZEPRQQkzToqnB3vvXY0PIwvbI-2HtZ3usXHRLhjQxw-sehn5Ksi5BHIkod0kAITqM.7EN_jaFx_fCrSc-W1BmsdwejWyUQ5Wf2MEDcmVlZPdY&dib_tag=se&keywords=yossi+klein+halevi&qid=1759845087&sprefix=Yossi+Klein%2Caps%2C106&sr=8-2

Interviewee Intro

In this episode we speak with Omri, a 35-year-old Israeli whorecently returned to live in Israel after several years in Europe. It’s worth noting that this conversation was recorded while he was still living in the Netherlands. He frequently takes part in protests against his own government, yet he also believes that Israel’s military actions – in Gaza, Lebanon, and beyond – are justified. It’s a tension that many Israelis grapple with:opposing their government’s policies while still supporting what they see as the country’s right to defend itself.

Interview Buildup

In this episode, we explore that tension. We talk about whatit was like growing up in Ramat Gan in the 1990s — a childhood shaped by the aftermath of the Oslo Accords, the hope they inspired, and the disillusionment that followed. We reflect on what outsiders often misunderstand about Israelis, and how fear, trauma, and politics have shaped a country still wrestling with its identity, its security, and its future.

We also talk about what it means to be Jewish in Europe today — and how living abroad has given Omri new perspectives on his own country, as well as the broader global conversation surrounding the conflict.

This is a personal, thoughtful, and sometimes difficultconversation — one that doesn’t seek to provide easy answers, but instead offers insight into the lived reality of an Israeli who, like many others, is caught between protest and patriotism, grief and resolve, hope and heartbreak.

Twitter/X: @IAPUnpacked

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Email: ⁠israelpalestineunpacked@gmail.com

Coming Up Today & Biography
In today’s episode, we are joined by Dr John McMullen, an educational and child psychologist based in Northern Ireland. Dr McMullen has worked extensively with war-affected children in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo and currently supports refugee pupils in Northern Irish schools. He also lectures on trauma, conflict, and the refugee experience.

Episode Buildup

Our conversation begins with how prolonged exposure to violence shapes a child’s emotional and cognitive development and how trauma manifests differently across age groups. Drawing on his experiences in East Africa andBelfast, Dr McMullen offers a grounded psychological lens on how early trauma becomes embedded in the developing brain—shaping how children view themselves, others and the world.

While his research is rooted in specific regions, such as Uganda and the DRC, his insights reveal something universal: trauma transcends borders. Whether it’s a child in Gulu, Gaza, or East Belfast, the psychological effects of violence are strikingly similar. This generalisability opens up space to explore shared risks and opportunities—especially in long-standing conflict zones like Israel-Palestine, where children live in segregated societies often shaped by inherited fear and mistrust.

We also discuss resilience—what it looks like in children exposed to war, and whether it can be cultivated through education. From integrated schools in Northern Ireland to classroom interventions in Uganda, Dr McMullen shares lessons with relevance far beyond any one context.

Twitter/X: @IAPUnpacked

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558747507898

Email: israelpalestineunpacked@gmail.com

What happens when a person raised in one narrative suddenly sees the humanity of the other side?

In this powerful episode, I speak with Rav Hanan Schlesinger, an Orthodox rabbi and co-founder of Roots/Shorashim/Judur, a grassroots movement fostering understanding and nonviolence between Israelis and Palestinians.

Born in New York and now living in the the land, Hanan describes his early life immersed in Jewish identity but isolated from Palestinians, whom he admits he neither saw nor truly knew. A moral turning point—a moment of raw honesty while picking up a hitchhiker—set him on a path to meet the people living beside him. What followed was a profound personal transformation that led to deep relationships, painful reckonings, and the eventual co-founding of Roots alongside Palestinian partners.

We explore identity, the power of listening, the challenge of seeing the “enemy” as human, and how his Jewish faith both wrestles with and supports the work of reconciliation. This is a conversation about risk, empathy and what it means to hope—even when despair feels easier.

Tune in to hear a voice of courage from one of the most contested places on Earth.

Twitter/X: @IAPUnpacked

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558747507898

Email: israelpalestineunpacked@gmail.com

Additionally, if you know anyone who you feel would like to be interviewed or possibly fits the description, please do not hesitate to get in contact.

Pádraig

In today’s episode, we explore the role of football in Israeland Palestine. Our guest discusses what drew them to this subject and shares surprising insights from their research. We dive into the origins of football during the British Mandate period, examining how it paralleled the developmentof political structures.

We discuss the influence of early Jewish Zionist and Palestinian expressions of nationalism through football and the experiences of rival football associations both nationally and internationally. The conversation also covers how football mirrored broader national and political divides and whether any teams have ongoing political allegiances.

Finally, we examine if football has played a role in bridging divides between Israelis and Palestinians and explore how it could promote a more positive future.

Twitter/X: @IAPUnpacked

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558747507898

Email: israelpalestineunpacked@gmail.com

Additionally, if you know anyone who you feel would like to be interviewed or possibly fits the description, please do not hesitate to get in contact.

Pádraig

On today’s episode of Israel & Palestine Unpacked, we speak with Khalil Sayegh, a Palestinian Christian political analyst and peace advocate, born into a refugee family in the Gaza Strip. Raised amid the Second Intifada and the 2008 Gaza War, Khalil’s early years were marked by deep fear and resentment. But his Christian faith led him on a transformative path toward empathy, dialogue, and mutual recognition.

Now based in the U.S., Khalil holds degrees from Bethlehem Bible College and American University, and is the co-founder of the Agora Initiative, which promotes liberal democratic values in the Middle East. In this conversation, he reflects on growing up as a Christian under Hamas rule, the power of humanizing the “other,” and his bold call for Palestinians to acknowledge Jewish peoplehood—and for Israelis to recognize Palestinian identity.

It’s a thought-provoking conversation on courage, change, and the future of peacebuilding.

Twitter/X: @IAPUnpacked

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558747507898

Email: israelpalestineunpacked@gmail.com

Additionally, if you know anyone who you feel would like to be interviewed or possibly fits the description, please do not hesitate to get in contact.

Pádraig

In this episode of Israel & Palestine Unpacked, host Pádraig speaks with Shachar Erez, an Israeli Marriage and Family Therapist who also trains therapists and leads workshops on love, communication, and conflict. Shachar explores the intersection between personal healing and societal polarization, drawing on his experiences during a year and a half of war and trauma in Israel. He discusses the mental health challenges faced by individuals and communities, how he stays grounded amid collective grief, and the importance of fostering resilience, nuance, and quiet hope even in the midst of ongoing conflict.Twitter/X: @IAPUnpacked

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558747507898

Email: israelpalestineunpacked@gmail.com

Additionally, if you know anyone who you feel would like to be interviewed or possibly fits the description, please do not hesitate to get in contact.

Pádraig

On today’s episode of Israel & Palestine Unpacked, we speak with Dr. Eleni Fotou, a forensic psychologist, about radicalisation and de-radicalisation.

Dr. Eleni Fotou received her BSc in Psychology from the University of Utah in 2002 and has spent the past ten years studying the criminal profiles of domestic homicide offenders in Greece. She has lived, worked, and studied in the US, the UK, and Greece, developing a research background that specialises in radicalisation, extremism, and terrorism studies.

In addition to this, she co-founded Bia-Stop in 2008, a programme based in Kavála, Greece, that focuses on the prevention and treatment of domestic violence. She works closely with the police and the prosecuting authorities on cases involving children who are victims of sexual assault and manages the penal mediation programme in Kavála for domestic violence offenders. Currently, she is creating the Hellenic Risk Assessment Tool under contract from the Ministry of Social Welfare. This tool is now being used by every national agency that handles domestic violence cases. She has presented her work on the management of perpetrators at the international level, including at the UN in New York (2019) and the European Committee of Experts on the Horizon 2020 programme in Brussels (2020), among other professional endeavours.

Today, we are speaking to her about understanding the processes of radicalisation and de-radicalisation. We’ll explore radicalisation within the Israeli-Palestinian context before concluding with a discussion on preventative measures and future outlooks.

Twitter/X: @IAPUnpacked

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558747507898

Email: israelpalestineunpacked@gmail.com

Additionally, if you know anyone who you feel would like to be interviewed or possibly fits the description, please do not hesitate to get in contact.

Pádraig