Francesca Albanese, 49, is an Italian legal scholar and human rights expert. She has served as the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories since May 2022. Initially appointed for a three‑year term, she was confirmed for another three years in April 2025. She…

Rima Hassan, 33, was born in the Neirab Palestinian refugee camp near Aleppo, Syria. Her family hails from the village of al-Birwa—depopulated in 1948—located south of Acre. She immigrated to France with her mother and five siblings at the age of nine, and at eighteen she obtained French…

Last December, President Trump made disparaging comments in which he referred to Somali people in Minnesota as “garbage”—a vile and dangerous thing to say. Shortly after, Somalis across the country were harassed and threatened, fueled by rhetoric from President Trump and his MAGA supporters. Trump…

Four local groups — Baladna: Palestine Society of Columbus, Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at The Ohio State University, People’s Defense Committee (PDC), and the Columbus New Labor Committee — held an afternoon rally and march in Columbus, Ohio, for Lebanon,…