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He’s Interviewed More Israelis and Palestinians Than Anyone on Earth | Corey Gil-Shuster

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News and Commentary

Corey Gil-Shuster’s Central Argument

Corey Gil-Shuster (interviewed) argues that understanding the Israel–Palestine conflict requires extensive, direct exposure to both Israelis’ and Palestinians’ viewpoints—not just one side’s narrative. He says his channel helps viewers understand how each society explains why peace has failed, while stressing that perspective matters even if it isn’t “absolute truth.”

Competing Narratives and Why Peace Fails

Israeli narrative (as he describes it)

  • Palestinians/Arab Muslims are portrayed (by many Israelis) as inherently violent and hostile to Jews.
  • The claim is that their aim is to remove or destroy Jews from the land.

Palestinian narrative (as he describes it)

  • Jews/Zionists are framed as foreign European colonists.
  • They are described as needing to be rejected/removed from “Palestine,” comparable to an anti-colonial struggle.

Core causes he highlights

  • Fear
  • Distrust
  • Projection
  • Incompatible goals

He summarizes priorities as:

  • Israelis: security
  • Palestinians: justice

Yet he argues each side often believes the other’s demands would require undoing the other side’s existence or legitimacy.

His Moral Framework and Claim of Asymmetric “Rightness”

Gil-Shuster pushes back against the idea that “both sides are equally right.” Based on what he claims from interviewing thousands of hours of people:

  • Israelis, in his view, tend to be more pragmatic and potentially compromise-oriented.
  • Palestinians, in his view, tend to be more dogmatic and uncompromising.

He admits he could be wrong, but says his overall conclusion is that Palestinians are “more wrong” (in his view).

Identity and the Obstacle to Compromise

He argues that Palestinian identity is tightly bound to opposition to Israel/Zionism. As a result, compromise can feel like identity erasure.

He further claims that without Israel and Zionism, Palestinians as a distinct national identity might not exist in the same form—suggesting Israel’s existence helped shape Palestinian politics and self-definition.

Shifts in Attitudes Over Time

Palestinian side

  • He claims older Palestinians are more open to a two-state solution (influenced by hopes during the Oslo era).
  • He says younger people are “almost always” against it.

Israeli side

  • He argues Israeli willingness for a Palestinian state has declined sharply due to violence, including:
    • earlier uprisings
    • the Oct. 7 attacks
  • He says these events increased distrust of Muslims generally.

Arab Israelis’ Identity (as he describes it)

Gil-Shuster says most Arab Israelis in his interviews report feeling “fine” being Israeli—working, living, and interacting with Jews.

At the same time:

  • some reportedly believe Jews are invaders
  • some reportedly expect Israel to eventually collapse into Palestine

He frames this as a minority “identity collapse” expectation versus a majority day-to-day orientation.

Critique of Anti-Zionism Rhetoric

He argues that “we don’t hate Jews, we hate Zionists” can be a rhetorical dodge:

  • Many people, he says, do not fully understand Zionism (which he defines as nationalism/self-determination).
  • He argues anti-Zionism can operate as code for opposing Jews’ equal rights or self-determination.
  • He connects this framing to political influence, mentioning:
    • historical Soviet-era labeling of Zionism as racism
    • later adoption of similar slogans by pro-Palestinian movements

While condemning Palestinian civilian suffering, he rejects the term “genocide” on the grounds that it implies intent to eliminate Palestinians. He claims he does not see widespread calls to “get rid of Palestinians” out loud, though he says he sees such intent more clearly on the other side.

Gaza/West Bank Depiction and “Occupation”

He uses “occupation” to mean Israel’s control of Palestinians’ lives more broadly, not only formal territorial occupation. He emphasizes that, in his view, Palestinian complaints often focus on Israel’s continued existence and control rather than narrowly on issues like checkpoints.

Western Influence and the “Oppressed/Oppressor” Lens

He critiques what he sees as dominant Western left-wing discourse that interprets the conflict only through an oppressed/oppressor framework. In his view, this produces poor analysis and one-sided moral conclusions.

“Structural Injustice” Claim and His Proposed Remedy

When asked what systemic injustice Israel’s government imposes, he distinguishes it from Gaza’s war conditions. He argues that key issues in the West Bank are lack of infrastructure and services, including:

  • limited water access (as he describes it)
  • severe traffic
  • Palestinian Authority refusal/unability to negotiate fixes with Israel
  • Israel’s failure to provide infrastructure that would improve daily life

He says that if he were “king,” he would invest heavily in transport, communication, and other infrastructure for Palestinian benefit.

Two-State Solution and Future Trajectory

  • He says the two-state solution is still the “least worst” option because it’s familiar and has existed for a century.
  • He also proposes considering some federated or overarching governance structure, though he acknowledges complexity.
  • He does not express optimism that a solution is near, saying he sees no clear pathway to compromise because too many people on both sides want to destroy the other’s alternative future—especially, in his telling, on the Palestinian side.
  • He attributes changes in regional support partly to normalization agreements, but says Oct. 7 further polarized opinions.

Presenters / Contributors

  • Corey Gil-Shuster
  • Interviewer (unnamed; the host/questioner in the transcript)
  • Translator/recurring behind-the-scenes contributor (unnamed)

Original video