October 7 jolted these Palestinian-Israeli peace activists into action

Amira Mohammed and Ibrahim Abu Ahmad had been exploring the idea of launching a podcast for months, when Israel was devastated by the October 7 terror attack and mobilized for war with Hamas.

The war made their decision for them, jolting these two Palestinian-Israeli peace activists into action. As days passed and the conflict unfolded, they increasingly felt that voices like theirs were missing in the national conversation – and soon it became clear that they weren't the only members of their community feeling this way.

"We felt a sense that there was a lack of understanding between the Palestinian and Israeli peace community over how to make sense of what was unfolding, and how to convey it to the public and talk about it in a way that incorporated all the layers of what was happening," says Abu Ahmad, 31.

Almost all of the Israeli peace organizations focusing on shared society and coexistence are Jewish-led, with Jewish co-founders or primary donors, he notes. "We had conversations with Palestinian peace activists who felt their voice was not being heard and not being represented even in the peace community."

"I called Amira and said 'We're doing the podcast,'" he recounts.

Six months later, their English-language podcast "Unapologetic" has thousands of listeners around the world hearing what the two podcasters describe as a "third narrative": the unique personal and political perspective of Palestinian citizens who live in Israeli society and are committed to seeking peace and reconciliation, and what they hope is the creation of a community.

"Our goal is to create a very clear, defined third narrative: To be a place for people who cannot find themselves in one of the two classic narratives of being either pro-Israeli or pro-Palestinian," he says. "These polarisations have gotten to the point where being pro-Israeli means you're also anti-Palestinian – and being pro-Palestinian means you're anti-Israeli."