The COVID-19 pandemic has reached Palestine, and in doing so has brought to the surface latent power structures that render Palestinians particularly exposed to the virus.

In this policy lab, host Nur Arafeh will speak with analysts Yara Asi and Osama Tanous about the Palestinian health system's capacity to handle a pandemic, the myths of Gaza's exceptionalism, and the ways in which Israel's settler-colonial project has re-shaped Palestinian bodies, as well as their nutrition and surrounding environments, to render them most vulnerable to health crises such as this.

Yara Asi holds a PhD in Public Affairs from the University of Central Florida, with a concentration in Health Services Management and Research. Her work looks primarily at health, education, and development in war-affected populations.

Osama Tanous is a specialized pediatrician based in Haifa. He is currently pursuing a Master's in Public Health and serves as a researcher at the Galilee Society - The Arab National Society for Health, Research and Services. Osama is a 2020 candidate for the Fulbright Hubert Humphrey Fellowship in public health and health policies. His research interests center on structural violence and health disparities.

Nur Arafeh is a Rhodes Scholar, doing her PhD in Economic Development at the University of Oxford. She previously served as Al-Shabaka's Palestine Policy Fellow from 2015 - 2017.

About the Policy Lab Program: Al-Shabaka's Palestine Policy Lab is an online live-stream space, where audiences can engage directly with expert analysts from our nearly 200-member network as they craft policies and strategies related to Palestine. The labs are free and open for public participation, inviting viewers to join in on policy discussions.

Coronavirus in Palestine: Confronting the Vulnerability of Indigenous Bodies