Palestinian twin activists named to Time’s 100 Most Influential People of 2021 list

AMMAN — Palestinian twin activists Mohammed and Muna Elkurd are on the list of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2021, which was released on Wednesday.

According to the magazine, the Elkurd twins “provided the world with a window into living under occupation in East Jerusalem this spring — helping to prompt an international shift in rhetoric in regard to Israel and Palestine”.

The Elkurd family is one of the many Palestinian families facing forced eviction from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah, located in rightful Palestinian territory in East Jerusalem. 

Under international law, the Israeli occupation has no legitimate jurisdiction over Palestinians’ homes in East Jerusalem.

The Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood, like all other West Bank cities, was under Jordanian authority until the Israeli occupation seized it in 1967 and annexed it in a decision not recognised by the international community.

According to Jordan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Jordan built housing in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood for Palestinians who were displaced in 1948. The ministry has the lease contracts that belong to the 28 families from Sheikh Jarrah who were displaced due to the 1948 war.

The TIME Magazine described Mohammed and Muna Elkurd as “charismatic and bold”, stating that they have “challenged existing narratives about Palestinian resistance through viral posts and interviews, humanising the experiences of their neighbours and pushing back against suggestions that violence was being predominantly carried out by Palestinians”.

Mohammed Elkurd, commenting on his recognition as one of the 100 Most Influential People of 2021, tweeted in Arabic: “Naming my sister and I among the 100 most influential people in the world is perhaps a positive sign of the Palestinian cause's centralisation in the global public sphere. Making symbols, however, is inadequate to support the Palestinian people, since it reduces the struggle of an entire nation.”