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 has changed during that time, and his advice to those entering the field. Jon an ... Show More
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
May 2025
Dina Esfandiary: Will Iran Make a Deal with Trump?
This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Dina Esfandiary, the Middle East Geoeconomics Lead at Bloomberg. Previously, Dr. Esfandiary served as a senior adviser for the Middle East and North Africa at the International Crisis Group and was a fellow at The Century Foundation. H ... Show More
42m 27s
Oct 2024
Pins and Needles in the Middle East
CSIS's Jon Alterman, director of the CSIS Middle East Program, joins the podcast to discuss Iran's missile strikes in Israel, Israel's entry into Lebanon, attacks on Hezbollah, and more as the conflict in the Middle East continues to expand.
25m 26s
Dec 2023
Professor John Mearsheimer: 2023 - Lessons for Biden, Zelenskyy, and Netanyahu
Embarking on a compelling dialogue, we engage in a profound exploration of the geopolitical landscape in 2023 alongside esteemed guest Professor John J. Mearsheimer. With his wealth of expertise, we dissect the lessons pertinent to key global figures such as President Joe Biden, ... Show More
34m 44s
Jul 2025
Three Experts on Trump’s Foreign Policy
Today on the show, in a special edition of GPS from the Aspen Ideas Festival, Fareed speaks with two former national security advisers, John Bolton and Susan Rice, and former CIA Director/US Army retired Gen. David Petraeus about the Trump administration’s foreign policy, includi ... Show More
41m 10s
Jun 2025
Iran, Beyond the Headlines with Maziar Bahari
With the US now directly engaged in the Israel-Iran conflict, Jon is joined by Maziar Bahari, publisher of iranwire.com and author of “Then They Came for Me,” a memoir that served as the basis for Jon’s 2014 film “Rosewater.” Together, they explore the reality of life under Iran' ... Show More
1h 32m