Scott Horton Show – Just the Interviews
Episode: 1/7/26 – Ramzy Baroud: The Genocide in Gaza Has Not Ended
Date: January 10, 2026
Guests: Scott Horton (Host), Ramzy Baroud (Academic, Author, Editor of Palestine Chronicle)

Brief Overview

In this compelling episode, Scott Horton interviews Ramzy Baroud, an academic fellow, author, and editor-in-chief of the Palestine Chronicle, to discuss the ongoing realities for the Palestinians in Gaza, the alleged "ceasefire," and broader Israeli-Palestinian dynamics. The conversation is rich with historical context, commentary on present suffering and displacement, Israel’s strategies, prospects for peace, and the wider neglect demonstrated by the international community. Baroud brings both analytical depth and personal experience to a situation he describes as hellish and unsustainable, offering both factual reporting and a passionate moral critique.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Humanitarian Crisis and Displacement in Gaza

• Ongoing Atrocities despite Ceasefire

  • Baroud details that over 400 Palestinians have been killed since the so-called ceasefire began. The violence has merely slowed, not stopped, and suffering is compounded by dire winter conditions and displacement.
    • "We cover the headlines... and people are still being killed. I believe over 400 Palestinians have been killed since the so called ceasefire began in October." – Scott Horton [01:49]
  • Basic shelter is a luxury: tents are scarce and unaffordable (up to $1500 each), many families live in destroyed buildings or makeshift structures.
    • "They are lucky if they get a tent... many of them just live in cardboard boxes, within destroyed buildings." – Ramzy Baroud [02:46]

• Personal Stories

  • Baroud shares the story of his own cousin, who considers herself "lucky" to live in half a building with makeshift coverings, underscoring the level of deprivation and shifting norms.
    • "She is grateful to God a thousand times that she's able to live in a house... half of the building is gone." – Ramzy Baroud [03:30]

• Manipulation & Non-compliance by Israel

  • Israel is accused of consistently breaking agreements about ceasefires and occupied boundaries. Baroud asserts the real “agreement” is one-sided, routinely flouted by Israel while Palestinians (and other Arabs) are held to standards Israel ignores.
    • "Israel... is very good at signing agreements that it does not respect, assigning certain lines... lines that they don't respect... I don't even know what is the term when you violate an agreement every single day so many times." – Ramzy Baroud [05:00]

2. The Strategic and Political Landscape

• Israel’s Failure to Achieve Objectives

  • Horton and Baroud argue that Israel agreed to the ceasefire out of military necessity—they could not eliminate Palestinian resistance or induce mass flight to other countries, despite open discussion in Israeli discourse of ethnic cleansing as a policy option.
    • "Israel agreed to [the ceasefire] because it could not defeat the Palestinians on the ground. Israel's ultimate aim was to push them out into Sinai... It could not achieve its objectives." – Ramzy Baroud [06:38]

• Resistance and Unbreakable Will

  • Baroud reflects on the unique character of Gazan resistance:
    • "Gaza has always been different. As if there has been a collective decision among Gazans that we would rather perish than surrender." – Ramzy Baroud [09:14]
  • Even historied Israeli leaders have failed to "subdue" Gaza, and new Israeli tactics such as blockades and psychological pressure have not broken the resistance.
  • The situation is portrayed as a “war of attrition,” where the main Israeli strategy is to inflict enough suffering that Palestinians will choose to leave. Yet, mass flight has not happened.

3. The “Soft Cleansing” Strategy & International Response

• Medical Evacuations as an Engine of Displacement

  • Some severely injured Palestinians are allowed out for treatment, but are then unable to return—contributing to a gradual depopulation known as "soft cleansing."
    • "People who get out in order to get medical care... they can't get back in. They don't really have much of a place to get back into." – Scott Horton [11:40]

• International Indifference & Political Experimentation

  • Neither regional powers nor the broader international community have intervened effectively, leaving Palestinians to their own fate. Outlandish "solutions," like Jared Kushner's vision of a rebuilt, futuristic Gaza, are seen as cover for expropriating land rather than genuine proposals for Palestinian welfare.
    • "The Palestinians are now the subject of a political experimentation, a grand political experimentation by crazy people in Washington who have no reason to stop because nobody is telling them otherwise." – Ramzy Baroud [19:21]

• The Numbers Game of Casualties

  • Both speakers discuss the grim calculus by which a “tolerable” number of Palestinian deaths per day seems to be pursued to avoid further international outcry, with Baroud describing detailed day-to-day casualty counts.
    • "It was something like between high 80s and, and like 120 or whatever every day. Like, somebody must have told the Israelis that you can kill about 100 a day, okay, and keep it like on that tempo." – Scott Horton [19:46]
    • "If it's a day in which 57 were killed, it was like, well, that's a good day for the Palestinians... as if the Israelis have reached some sort of a conclusion that maybe we can kind of balance the global rage regarding what's happening in Gaza." – Ramzy Baroud [22:47]

4. Political Leadership and Intra-Palestinian Dynamics

• Marwan Barghouti – The Imprisoned Leader

  • Baroud provides insight into Marwan Barghouti’s significance:
    • He is more than the "strongman" the West seeks; he was a unifying figure and mobilizer, central to both intifadas and widely respected by all political factions.
      • "The Marwan Barghouti that matters is... who is a mobilizer, an organizer, an intellectual, the founder of the Shabiba movement... he is liked by all ideological groups." – Ramzy Baroud [29:04]
    • Both Israel and some elements of the Palestinian Authority fear his potential release as a threat to established (and for some, self-serving) leadership structures.
      • "Mahmoud Abbas... called on Israel not to release him... they fear that his freedom could end up jeopardizing the entire political system upon which the Palestinian Authority is structured." – Ramzy Baroud [31:43]

• Self-interested Political Leadership

  • Horton ties domestic (US) public choice theory to the PA and Israeli leadership:
    • "The guys in charge, they make their decisions based on what's good for them... Just like here, just like everywhere." – Scott Horton [31:51]

5. The West Bank: The Overlooked Front

• Ethnic Cleansing and Settlement Expansion

  • While Gaza dominates headlines for humanitarian reasons, Baroud argues that Israel’s ultimate aim is control over the West Bank, with ongoing displacement, home demolitions, and settlement growth receiving far less attention.
    • "Two days ago, UNRWA... said there are 12,000 Palestinian children who are displaced in the northern West [Bank]... Jenin, Ain Shams, Balata... have been pushed out under the cover of the Gaza genocide... more Israeli settlements to be built." – Ramzy Baroud [32:59]

• Gaza's Broader Strategic Importance

  • Maintaining resistance in Gaza is perceived as essential for Palestinian resistance elsewhere, particularly in the West Bank.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• On the Ceasefire Reality:
  • "Is it really still an agreement? In my opinion, there's no agreement to begin with." – Ramzy Baroud [05:00]
• On Gazan Steadfastness:
  • "As if there has been a collective decision among Gazans that we would rather perish than surrender." – Ramzy Baroud [09:14]
• On International Hypocrisy:
  • "Nobody is saying, no, this is ridiculous. It needs to stop... None of this. This is why the likes of Jared Kushner is a daily character on Middle Eastern news." – Ramzy Baroud [15:53]
• On Israel’s Numbers Game:
  • "Who is keeping track of these numbers to the point that if it's a day in which 57 were killed, it was like, well, that's a good day for the Palestinians." – Ramzy Baroud [22:47]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:49] – Current conditions: Ceasefire, ongoing deaths, shelter crisis
• [03:30] – Personal account: Living in destroyed buildings
• [05:00] – Israeli manipulation and ceasefire violations
• [06:38] – Israel’s military failures and displacement objectives
• [09:14] – Historical perspective: Gaza’s unbreakable resistance
• [11:40] – Medical evacuations as “soft cleansing”
• [15:53] – Kushner and “futuristic Gaza” proposals
• [19:46] – Numbers game of daily Palestinian deaths
• [22:47] – International inaction and waiting game for Palestinians
• [29:04] – Marwan Barghouti’s impact and the fear his freedom would spark unity
• [32:59] – Situation in the West Bank: Displacement and settlements

Tone

The conversation is sobering, at times indignant, deeply empathetic, and frequently laced with both the dark humor and skepticism characteristic of Scott Horton’s style. Baroud speaks with measured passion—combining analytical clarity, historical awareness, and personal anecdotes—to highlight the urgency and moral gravity of the crisis.

Conclusion

Baroud paints a bleak but necessary picture: Gaza endures under a slow-motion genocide, Israeli and US policy remain unchanged by world opinion, and the “peace process” is either a façade or an active means of prolonging suffering. The conversation ends with a reminder that the West Bank’s fate hangs in the balance, its ongoing tragedy often hidden by the greater humanitarian calamity in Gaza.

Listeners are encouraged to seek further analysis at Palestine Chronicle and the Scott Horton Academy, and to remain vigilant as the international community continues to look away from a crisis in need of urgent attention.