*From resistance to intifada to recognition: the origins of an independent Palestinian state – podcast

France, the UK and Canada are expected to become the first G7 countries to recognise the state of Palestine at the UN General Assembly in late September, where Australia will also announce its recognition. Mahmoud Abbas, the leader of the Palestinian Authority, will not be present as he is banned from travelling to New York for the event.

The US decision to deny Abbas a visa mirrors what happened in late 1988 to Yasser Arafat, then leader of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). A few weeks earlier, at a PLO meeting in Algiers, Arafat had read out the Palestinian Declaration of Independence. The US responded by denying Arafat permission to travel to New York. However, the UN temporarily moved its meeting to Geneva, so that he could speak.

In this episode of The Conversation Weekly podcast, Palestinian-American historian Maha Nassar from the University of Arizona  describes the events leading up to the original declaration of Palestinian independence in 1988, including the compromises made within the Palestinian liberation movement. “It’s this moment of unity among all the different fragmented parts of the Palestinian population,” she explains. “It was also a moment of tremendous hope.”

Nassar then traces how  we’ve got to the point where more than 150 countries will recognise an independent Palestinian state – a move that she believes is more of a symbolic gesture than a meaningful route to Palestinian sovereignty.

Listen to the conversation with Maha Nassar on The Conversation Weekly podcast. You can also dig deeper on the history of the Oslo Accords in our special three-part series from 2023, marking the 30th anniversary of the agreements.

This episode of The Conversation Weekly was written and produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware. Mixing and sound design by Eloise Stevens and theme music by Neeta Sarl.

Newsclips in this episode from ITN Archive, ThamesTV, AP Archive, Highlight Films Israel, Truther TV Archives, Academy for Cultural Diplomacy, Voice of America, AlJazeera English, BBC News, CNBC International Live, SABC News, CityNews and 7News Australia.

Listen to The Conversation Weekly via any of the apps listed above, download it directly via our RSS feed or find out how else to listen here. A transcript of this episode is available on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Text & Podcast source – The Conversation, September 18, 2025 5.02pm BST (Under Creative Commons Licence)