May 2025
Babel Special: Jon Alterman's Next Chapter
This week on a special edition of Babel, Will Todman speaks with Jon Alterman, the creator of Babel and the show’s host since it began in 2019. They discuss Jon’s reflections on 22 years directing the CSIS Middle East Program, his analysis of how the Middle East policy ecosystem ... Show More
34m 59s
May 2025
Mohanad Hage Ali: Hezbollah and the Captagon Trade
This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Dr. Mohanad Hage Ali, deputy director for research at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut. Mohanad's latest paper for Carnegie investigates the rise of a new form of drug smuggling in Lebanon. Together, they discuss Hezbollah’s i ... Show More
50m 16s
May 2025
Analysis: Will Trump’s Houthi Deal Stick?
On Tuesday, May 6, President Trump declared that the United States would immediately halt its bombing of Houthi targets, bringing an end to months of intensified U.S. strikes across Yemen. The president linked the policy reversal to what he described as the Iran-backed Houthis’ c ... Show More
6m 13s
Oct 22
A new Giga Project for Mecca
After a whirlwind month of travel, Lucien and Dr. Hanaa are back on The TWENTY30 Podcast—and strap in, because they have a LOT of catching up to do. A lot has happened in the fast-paced, fast-changing Kingdom over the past few weeks. The hosts try to tackle as much of it as they ... Show More
1h 4m
Nov 2024
Reorienting the Middle East: Film and Digital Media Where the Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea, and Indian Ocean Meet | Alia Yunis
Discover cinema from the Gulf from its beginnings to the present day. Filmmaker Alia Yunis draws on her rich knowledge of the Arab Gulf’s cinema to give us a full picture of the scene's early days, its current state and what is anticipated for its future. Rejecting the widely hel ... Show More
58m 7s
Aug 2022
Souk El Tayeb | Kamal Mouzawak
In this Matbakh event, we talked to Kamal Mouzawak about how he founded the first farmers market in Lebanon, leading a social and environmental change and transformation. Kamal, through Souk El Tayeb, had the vision of celebrating food and traditions that unite communities and pr ... Show More
28m 53s
Mar 2025
My guest appearance on ‘Gems of Arabia’ about Arab Representation in Media with Becky Anderson, Faisal Abbas & host Hatem AlAkeel
I’m excited to share a special episode from the podcast, Gems of Arabia about Arab Representation in Media. The episode, hosted by WIDN alum Hatem Al Akeel, was recorded a few weeks ago at the CNN Academy in Abu Dhabi in front of a live audience of the Academy’s latest cohort of ... Show More
1h 14m
Oct 16
PWC's Basma Bushnaq on how education in Saudi Arabia has changed
Saudi Arabia is now a leading market for education investment. In this conversation, Basma Bushnaq, Partner at PWC, discusses the evolving landscape of schools, the demand for quality teachers, and the future of education in Saudi Arabia and globally. The significant reforms and ... Show More
49m 41s
In Morocco, the same industry that is helping to construct new tourism developments is also depleting the very coastline that those developments rely upon. A New Mezze from the Middle East Program.
This episode was adapted from our monthly Mezze series, shining a spotlight on under-discussed trends and debates shaping the Middle East. You can read past exam ... Show More
