This is one of the most encouraging bits of conversation I’ve ever been part of. It’s with Mohammed El Kurd, a 14-year-old Palestinian boy whose story is chronicled in the new documentary My Neighbourhood. I explain his exact situation below the video player, but all you need to know before watching the video is that (1) in 2009 some Israeli settlers took over part of the property his family had lived on since the 1950s; and (2) some Israeli Jews (including the founders of this group) came out and demonstrated on his family’s behalf. 

As for the background: Mohammed lives in East Jerusalem, which under international law doesn’t belong to Israel because it’s outside the “green line”. (Israel unilaterally annexed East Jerusalem, but the annexation isn’t recognized as valid even by Israel’s closest ally, the United States.) In 2000 his father built an addition to the family’s home on property that had been his family’s since 1956. In 2009 settlers kicked the family out of the addition, and they’ve been living in it ever since. If you want more information, I recommend watching “My Neighbourhood,” or, failing that, this eight-minute Cliff’s Notes version of it—or, failing even that, this trailer for it:

You can watch the whole conversation on BhTV.

Follow Robert Wright on Twitter: @robertwrighter