World News
Palestinian author Raja Shehadeh moves personal archives from West Bank to Scotland
Shehadeh relocated his historical diaries to protect them from potential Israeli military damage, NPR reports.
The short version
- Author Raja Shehadeh relocated decades of personal diaries and records from Ramallah to the University of Edinburgh across a two-year effort.[NPR]
- Shehadeh moved the documents over concerns they could face destruction during Israeli military operations in the West Bank.[NPR]
- The preserved materials encompass documentation of life under occupation since 1967 and records regarding the 1985 killing of his father.[NPR]
- Thousands of pages from the collection are now published online by the University of Exeter.[NPR]
Key facts
- Raja Shehadeh documented decades of Palestinian life starting at the onset of Israel's West Bank occupation in 1967.[NPR]
- Shehadeh carried out a two-year effort to relocate his personal papers from his Ramallah garage to Scotland.[NPR]
- The archives are stored at the University of Edinburgh, and the University of Exeter published thousands of pages online.[NPR]
- The collection includes Israeli police files obtained in 2025 regarding a 40-year investigation into the 1985 killing of Shehadeh's father.[NPR]
What remains uncertain
- The Israeli foreign ministry did not respond to inquiries regarding Shehadeh's concerns over potential destruction of his archives.[NPR]
Sources
Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.