2024 Right Livelihood Laureate
Issa Amro / Youth Against Settlements
Issa Amro is a Palestinian human rights activist who has dedicated his life to peaceful resistance against Israeli occupation in the West Bank city of Hebron. Together with the activist group he founded, Youth Against Settlements (YAS), he has become a leading voice in the non-violent movement, striving to create a future where Palestinians live freely and with dignity.
Amro and YAS have successfully mobilised local communities and international allies to resist the ongoing Israeli occupation through peaceful means. YAS plays an essential role in documenting human rights violations, organising protests, and supporting local communities in Hebron who live under constant threats and attacks from Israeli settlers and military forces.
Despite having been detained, tortured, attacked on the streets, evicted from his home and subjected to judicial harassment, Amro has kept his unwavering commitment to non-violent resistance.
The city of Hebron is one of the most contested areas in the West Bank, with about 800 Israeli settlers living under heavy military protection amidst more than 200,000 Palestinian residents. The Israeli military and settlers occupy 20 per cent of the city, known as Area H2, leaving the Palestinian population in constant confrontation with settlers and soldiers.
“I have three choices: to use violence and I will be the hero of Palestine for one month; to accept to live under occupation and accept to be a slave; or to fight the occupation using non-violent resistance.”
Issa Amro, 2024 Right Livelihood Laureate
For Palestinians in Hebron, daily life is marked by checkpoints, curfews, restricted movement, and frequent violence, creating a climate of fear and uncertainty.
The situation has significantly worsened since the Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, and Israel’s year-long military offensive in Gaza. In the West Bank, more than 600 Palestinians have been killed and thousands detained as of September 2024, according to the UN. The Israeli military has been constantly increasing closures and limitations on movement.
Taking up activism
As a student, Issa Amro attended Palestine Polytechnic University, dreaming of becoming a professor of engineering. However, in 2003, the Israeli occupation suddenly closed the university. In response, Amro successfully mobilised students and, by using non-violent methods, pushed back against the decision. As a result, the university was re-opened.
"That was the milestone which changed my life track from working for only myself to working for everybody in my community and for every human being on Earth."
Amro's non-violent methods focus on documenting human rights violations, protecting the Palestinian narrative and training others to do the same.
Hear more about the non-violent methods he uses from Amro himself.
“What gives me hope is that I believe that the change is coming. I see more people supporting human rights in Palestine. I see more people in the world aware and know the reality of the Israeli occupation and apartheid.”
Issa Amro, 2024 Right Livelihood Laureate
Watch and read more
The Occupied West Bank:
The Other Front
This film highlights the struggles of Palestinians in the West Bank amid the ongoing Gaza conflict. Through personal stories, it reveals the violence and forced displacement they endure daily. It also explores the broader implications and potential long-term strategies for the West Bank, emphasising the urgent need to understand the complexities of this conflict.
Skies above Hebron
This film is a coming-of-age story depicting three boys coping, each in his own way, with physical and mental obstacles enclosing life in their Palestinian hometown of Hebron.
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