Oct 8

Saudi Arabia's escalation against the Houthis is unlikely to deliver victory, says Danny Citrinowicz

Israeli analyst Danny Citrinowicz says that while the US blockade and sanctions on Iran have been effective, these don’t change Tehran’s calculations and there is a still a high risk of further escalation. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Not ... Show More

20m 39s

Sep 16

Straight from Putin's playbook: Turkey's Islamists are jailing LGBTQ activists in ‘morality’ drive

Leading Turkish LGBTQ activist Yildiz Tar explains why Turkey's authoritarian government is escalating repression of their community. The crackdown has less to do with public morals than an effort to divert public attention away from soaring inflation, poverty and joblessness, Ta ... Show More

25m 45s

Sep 8

Three million views in 24 hours: Turkey's curiosity about Syrian Kurdish leader Kobane explodes in first TV interview

Banu Guven, a widely respected TV presenter, became the first Turkish journalist to host Kurdish leader Mazlum Kobane on national TV in Turkey. Until recently, interviewing the former commander of the now dissolved Syrian Democratic Forces was a punishable offense. But with Kurdi ... Show More

33m 35s

Jun 2022

Iraq’s Political Paralysis Deconstructed

Analysts Muhammad Al-Waeli, Ali Al-Mawlawi and Hamzeh Hadad discuss the latest political developments in Iraq including the Sadrist withdrawal from parliament and the struggle over political and religious leadership.

37m 31s

May 2024

Intra-Kurdish Chaos in Northern Iraq

Today we speak to Kurdish politcal analyst Ariz Kader about the rising levels of internal chaos taking place in Northern Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region. It involves the government in Baghdad, Turkey, Iran, and Kurdish rebel group the PKK. Discounted internet privacy services ... Show More

52m 27s

Oct 2025

Iran is Down, Not Out

In this episode of MEnbar, Marc Owen Jones speaks with Sanam Vakil, Director of the Middle East and Africa Programme in Chatham House, about the Twelve Day War between Israel and Iran and its impacts on Iran’s nuclear program. Vakil discusses the implications of these attacks on ... Show More

33m 52s

Oct 2024

Breaking Down Israel's War Strategy

<p>In the second episode of MEnbar, host Marc Owen Jones welcomes Omar H. Rahman, a fellow at ME Council and the editor of Akfar, the council’s online publication providing insights and analysis on current events in the region. Rahman talks about Israel’s evolving strategy in Gaz ... Show More

52m 23s

Oct 2020

The Rise of Iraq's Shi'ite Militias

This week Jon is joined by Hassan Hassan, director of the program on non-state actors in geopolitics at the Center for Global Policy and the editor-in-chief of its new online journal, Newlines Magazine. Hassan talks to Jon about his late colleague, Hisham al-Hashimi, and the rese ... Show More

24m 7s

Feb 2024

The View From Iran

<p>To understand any country's foreign policy you need to understand domestic political dynamics. So what is driving Iranian decision making right now? Negar Mortazavi is a journalist, host of the Iran Podcast and senior fellow at the Center for International Policy. I reached ou ... Show More

25m 36s

May 2022

Haider al-Abadi: Iraq and the Fight Against the Islamic State

This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Dr. Haider al-Abadi, an Iraqi politician who served as prime minister from 2014 to 2018, while the country was battling the Islamic State Group (ISG). They talk about his decision making as prime minister, the Iraqi government's response to the ... Show More

32m 7s

Renad Mansour of Chatham House breaks do...