Muna El-Kurd is a young Palestinian activist. Using social media and giving media interviews, Muna and her twin brother Mohammed showed the world an unvarnished view of the realities of living under Israeli occupation in East Jerusalem in 2021. The siblings’ accounts prompted an international shift in discourse on Palestinian human rights.
Residents of the generations-old Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, El-Kurd and her neighbors have been fighting against the relentless possibility of forced eviction from their homes by Israeli settlers. Tensions rose in the spring of 2021 when Israeli occupation forces attacked worshippers at the al-Aqsa mosque in the neighboring Old City. The siblings were arrested and temporarily detained by Israeli authorities in an attempt to silence Sheikh Jarrah.
El-Kurd uses viral videos and social media platforms to challenge the existing narratives about the Palestinian resistance. Humanizing the experiences of their neighbors and pushing back against claims that violence was being predominantly carried out by Palestinians, El-Kurd and her brother became the most recognizable voices of those threatened with eviction.
Their grassroots organizing helped inspire the Palestinian Diaspora around the world to renew protests, with polls in the U.S. showing growing support for Palestinians.