Having discussed the disorder in the caliphate’s civil bureaucracy we’ll turn our attention to the state of its military. The sharp contrast between the state of the two is in large part thanks to the figure of Mu’nis, the general who led Abbasid armies to one victory after another. His heroic efforts preserved the caliph’s authority over lands that would ha ... Show More
Aug 2024
Episode 87: Al Radi the irrelevant
We’ve reached the end of the road as far as Abbasid authority is concerned. Although it had waxed and waned before, there would be no recovering from the lows it had fell to this time. The caliph had no independent authority, helpful counselors, loyal generals, powerful armies, n ... Show More
31m 12s
Apr 2019
Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar
<p>As Libya edges towards civil war, Becky Milligan looks at the life of the man behind the most recent conflict, which began with his military assault on the city of Tripoli.</p><p>Known as "The Strongman", Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar comes from a family of soldiers and as a yo ... Show More
13m 48s