On this week's episode of the podcast, Elham Fakhro of the Harvard Kennedy School joins Marc Lynch to discuss her new book, The Abraham Accords: The Gulf States, Israel, and the Limits of Normalization. In this book, Elham Fakhro demonstrates how shared security concerns, economic interests, and regional political shockwaves led to a surprising strategic con ... Show More
Feb 24
A Waning Crescent: Why the Era of Islamism is Coming to an End (S. 15, Ep. 6)
On this week's episode of the podcast, Mohammed M. Hafez of the Naval Postgraduate School joins Marc Lynch to discuss his new article, “A Waning Crescent: Why The Era of Islamism is Coming to an End.” In the episode, Hafez argues that "Islamism, in all its forms, has failed in ac ... Show More
39 m
Feb 10
Twilight of the Saints (S. 15, Ep. 5)
On this week's episode of the podcast, Stéphane Lacroix of Sciences Po joins Marc Lynch to discuss his new book, Twilight of the Saints: The History and Politics of Salafism in Contemporary Egypt. The book examines the history of Salafism in Egypt from its 1920s emergence in Cair ... Show More
49m 38s
Feb 3
Jordan: Politics in An Accidental Crucible (S. 15, Ep. 4)
On this week's episode of the podcast, Sean Yom of Temple University joins Marc Lynch to discuss his new book, Jordan: Politics in an Accidental Crucible. In the book, Yom provides a concise yet authoritative synthesis of the Hashemite Kingdom's development from its founding over ... Show More
41m 57s
Nov 2024
The Abraham Accords: The Gulf States, Israel, and the Limits of Normalization
In this talk, Dr Elham Fakhro, a Research Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, launches her new book ‘The Abraham Accords: The Gulf States, Israel, and the Limits of Normalization’ Elham Fakhro is a Research Fellow at the Middle East Initiative, Belfer Center, at the Harvard Ken ... Show More
38m 43s
Aug 2024
Is the Middle East heading for all-out war?
<p>Two assassinations carried out by Israel, one in Beirut and one in Tehran, have brought threats of retaliation from Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hizbollah. Andrew England, the FT’s Middle East editor, discusses whether the latest escalation can be contained with Emile ... Show More
26m 24s
Jul 2024
"Partition was about creating a settler colonial state" w/ Abdel Razzaq Takriti (pt.2)
<p>The second half of the conversation between the brothers and historian Abdel Razzaq Takriti <a href= "https://x.com/abedtakriti">(@abedtakriti)</a>. In this part, they do a deep dive into the Oslo negotiations, the effect of the Camp David Agreement, Yasser Arafat's leadership ... Show More
1h 4m
Nov 2023
Season 3, Episode 1: John Mearsheimer, How States Think: The Rationality of Foreign Policy
Send a textJoin Professor Jeffrey Sachs and political scientist John Mearsheimer as they discuss Professor Mearsheimer’s latest book, How States Think: The Rationality of Foreign Policy. Hailed as the most influential foreign policy realist of his generation, Mearsheimer and co-a ... Show More
51m 44s
Apr 2025
Nuclear diplomacy: Trump, Iran and a potential new deal
After years of stalled diplomacy, the US and Iran are back in high-level talks. Surprise meetings have taken place in Oman and Rome, with more expected soon. Could this be President Donald Trump’s long-awaited foreign policy win? Or will competing agendas, regional tensions and i ... Show More
32m 25s
<p class="" data-start="128" data-end="218"><em><strong data-start= "128" data-end="218">Note:</strong> We're excited to announce that 'Taking the Edge Off the Middle East' is moving to its own channel! Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts to c ... Show More