Personal Info
- Country of residence: Palestine
Information
Tahseen Abdul Hamid Muhammad Al-Astal was born in Khan Yunis on March 15, 1972. He is married and has two sons and five daughters. He completed his primary education at Abdul Qader Al-Husseini Boys' School and his secondary education at Khan Yunis High School, graduating in the literary stream in 1990. He earned a bachelor's degree in journalism from the Faculty of Arts at the Islamic University in 1997, a master's degree in media from the Institute of Arab Studies Research in Cairo in 2003, and a doctorate in media from the same institute in 2009. He worked as a journalist between 1995 and 2000, then as a journalist and editor at Al-Hayat Al-Jadeeda newspaper between 2000 and 2007. Since 2014, he has been the managing editor of the same newspaper in the Gaza Strip. He has also been a part-time lecturer at the media faculties of three universities in the Gaza Strip since 2008: Al-Quds Open University, Al-Aqsa University, and Al-Azhar University.
Al-Astal joined the Fatah movement in 1993, participated in its national activities, and held positions in the institutions of the Palestine Liberation Organization. He became a member of the National Council in 2018 and a member of the Central Council in 2021. He was active in union work, especially in the field of journalism, where he became the deputy head of the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate in 2012, a member of the International Federation of Journalists in 1999, and a member of the permanent office of the General Union of Arab Journalists in 2010. He is also the rapporteur of the Media Studies Unit at the Global Institute for Arab Renewal in 2021, in addition to his activity in the field of supporting democracy and women’s rights.
Al-Astal participated in several academic conferences and presented research papers and studies, including: the Yasser Arafat: History and Memory Conference held at Al-Azhar University (2011), where he presented a research paper entitled “The Treatment of the Illness and Martyrdom of President Yasser Arafat in Palestinian Newspapers through Cartoons”; the Prisoners Conference held at Al-Quds Open University (2012), where he presented a research paper entitled “The Treatment of the Issue of Prisoners in Israeli Occupation Prisons through Cartoons in Palestinian Newspapers”; the Fourth Conference for the Defense of Islamic Endowments in Jerusalem held in Ramallah, where he presented a research paper entitled “The Role of Palestinian Diplomatic Media in Defending Islamic Holy Sites and Endowments in Jerusalem”; and the Fifth Jerusalem Conference on Islamic Finance, organized by the Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs in Ramallah, where he presented a research paper entitled “The Attitudes of Palestinian Employees in the Gaza Strip Towards Islamic Finance: An Applied Study.” He also participated in conferences outside Palestine, including the Conference of the Institute of Press and Information Sciences held in Tunisia (2014), where he presented a study entitled “The Role of Social Media in Political Awareness in Palestine: An Applied Study.” To the leaders of the Palestinian factions.”
Al-Astal believes that the Oslo Accords are an interim agreement and cannot be a permanent strategic option. He calls for working to find a suitable strategic solution to the Palestinian issue, especially in these current circumstances. He demands the necessity of ending the bitter division and that national partnership must be achieved among all Palestinian factions and this partnership must be protected as a democratic option that unites all Palestinians. He supports peaceful resistance and the two-state solution with the full return of refugees to their homes from which they were displaced . He believes that the future of the Palestinian cause is linked to the will of the Palestinians and their popular determination to continue on the path of liberation and the establishment of the Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, despite the reality of the Arab states' impotence. He also believes that the Palestinian cause needs media awareness at all levels and the implementation of practical steps that help in advancing it and reaching the desired goal of liberation.
Khalaf suffered under the occupation; the occupation prevented him from traveling for several years, and he was beaten more than once during the First Intifada.
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