A History of Settlements

The Israeli government recently approved a new settlement project in the occupied West Bank that would effectively cut it in half. The plan is illegal under international law and has been widely condemned. To get a sense of why settlements continue to be such a big issue for both Palestinians and Israelis, we wanted to bring you this episode about their history that’s part of our series, "The Cycle." This episode originally published in October 2024.Guests:Khaled El-Gindy, senior fellow at the Middle East Institute in Washington, D.C.Sara Yael Hirschhorn, author of City on a Hilltop, American Jews and the Israeli Settler MovementGideon Aran, former anthropology and sociology professor at the Hebrew University in JerusalemAvi Shlaim, author of The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab WorldDiana Buttu, former spokesperson for the Palestine Liberation OrganizationTo access bonus episodes and listen to Throughline sponsor-free, subscribe to Throughline+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/throughline.To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

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A History of Settlements

August 28, 20259:45 AM ET

[Image: Ramtin Arablouei, co-host and co-producer of Throughline.]

Ramtin Arablouei

[Image: Rund Abdelfatah headshot]

Rund Abdelfatah

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Julie Caine

Casey Miner

Cristina Kim

Anya Steinberg

Lawrence Wu

Devin Katayama

Linah Mohammad

Sarah Wyman

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Irene Noguchi

A History of Settlements

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[Original source](https://www.npr.org/2025/08/28/nx-s1-5517983/a-history-of-settlements)