Last week, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Washington D.C. to deliver a speech to a joint meeting of Congress. Leah Hickert speaks with Jon Alterman, director of the CSIS Middle East Program, about the implications of Netanyahu’s visit on U.S. foreign policy in the region. A new Analysis from the CSIS Middle East Program.
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
Jul 2024
Bibi in Washington - with Amit Segal
Prime Minister Netanyahu prepares to arrive in Washington, DC next week for an address to a joint session of Congress (his 4th), a meeting with President Biden (covid-permitting), all against the backdrop of the negotiations over hostages and a temporary (or phased) ceasefire.
To ... Show More
58m 40s
Oct 2024
Trump, Harris, and the Middle East
On this week’s episode, Israel Policy Forum Policy Advisor and Tel Aviv-based journalist Neri Zilber hosts Chief Policy Officer Michael Koplow and Diane and Guilford Glazer Foundation Senior Director of Policy Research Shira Efron. The trio discusses the upcoming U.S. election an ... Show More
58m 13s
Apr 2024
The Road From Riyadh to Jerusalem
Ali Khamenei, Iran’s longtime ruler, saw the possibility of normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia as a threat to his hegemonic ambitions. On Oct. 7, Hamas, one of Tehran’s proxies, invaded Israel and committed multiple acts of barbarism. That sparked a war and froze prosp ... Show More
47m 29s
Oct 4
Is peace in Gaza within reach?
The U.S. president tells Israel to stop bombing the strip. Now, negotiations will seek to implement the plan. So, are they likely to work? And can the war finally come to an end? In this episode: Mouin Rabbani - Researcher, Analyst and Co-Editor of Jadaliyya. Yossi Mekelberg - Po ... Show More
18m 21s