Status/الوضع (Politics)

There is still talk here about the Intifada or what has become known as Lebanon. As we enter the third week of the economic collapse, we continue our narration of the events and chapters of the uprising, accompanied by new melodies, sounds and music that were specially prepared for these fast days. Loss is the title of this week that we present day by day through these seven episodes.

Direct download: day21_Qarqaa.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

There is still talk here about the Intifada or what has become known as Lebanon. As we enter the third week of the economic collapse, we continue our narration of the events and chapters of the uprising, accompanied by new melodies, sounds and music that were specially prepared for these fast days. Loss is the title of this week that we present day by day through these seven episodes.

Direct download: day20_Kan_Ma_Kan.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

There is still talk here about the Intifada or what has become known as Lebanon. As we enter the third week of the economic collapse, we continue our narration of the events and chapters of the uprising, accompanied by new melodies, sounds and music that were specially prepared for these fast days. Loss is the title of this week that we present day by day through these seven episodes.

Direct download: day19_She_Jdeed_.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

There is still talk here about the Intifada or what has become known as Lebanon. As we enter the third week of the economic collapse, we continue our narration of the events and chapters of the uprising, accompanied by new melodies, sounds and music that were specially prepared for these fast days. Loss is the title of this week that we present day by day through these seven episodes.

Direct download: day15_Mahlaka_Jadeeda.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

There is still talk here about the Intifada or what has become known as Lebanon. As we enter the third week of the economic collapse, we continue our narration of the events and chapters of the uprising, accompanied by new melodies, sounds and music that were specially prepared for these fast days. Loss is the title of this week that we present day by day through these seven episodes.

Direct download: day17_Kilo_Byarif_.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

There is still talk here about the Intifada or what has become known as Lebanon. As we enter the third week of the economic collapse, we continue our narration of the events and chapters of the uprising, accompanied by new melodies, sounds and music that were specially prepared for these fast days. Loss is the title of this week that we present day by day through these seven episodes.

Direct download: day16_mstr_Al_Waqi_Al_Laobnani.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

There is still talk here about the Intifada or what has become known as Lebanon. As we enter the third week of the economic collapse, we continue our narration of the events and chapters of the uprising, accompanied by new melodies, sounds and music that were specially prepared for these fast days. Loss is the title of this week that we present day by day through these seven episodes.

Direct download: day18_Malha_Jadeeda_.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

The intifada in its second week. With a new week and musical tunes specially prepared for these hot days, we will follow the course of events day by day through these seven episodes. This series of audio recordings takes place during the days of the uprising and the economic collapse that struck Lebanon in the Fall of 2019. At that time, Mohamad Ali-Nayel kept a diary in which he wrote down what was happening around him. Three years later, he recorded these episodes on a daily basis with the addition of a few voices and music composed to accompany the narration.

Direct download: day_10_Baher_Bashar.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

The intifada in its second week. With a new week and musical tunes specially prepared for these hot days, we will follow the course of events day by day through these seven episodes. This series of audio recordings takes place during the days of the uprising and the economic collapse that struck Lebanon in the Fall of 2019. At that time, Mohamad Ali-Nayel kept a diary in which he wrote down what was happening around him. Three years later, he recorded these episodes on a daily basis with the addition of a few voices and music composed to accompany the narration.

Direct download: day13_kawarith_Al-Tarikh.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

The intifada in its second week. With a new week and musical tunes specially prepared for these hot days, we will follow the course of events day by day through these seven episodes. This series of audio recordings takes place during the days of the uprising and the economic collapse that struck Lebanon in the Fall of 2019. At that time, Mohamad Ali-Nayel kept a diary in which he wrote down what was happening around him. Three years later, he recorded these episodes on a daily basis with the addition of a few voices and music composed to accompany the narration.

Direct download: day12_Sahat_Ataba.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

The intifada in its second week. With a new week and musical tunes specially prepared for these hot days, we will follow the course of events day by day through these seven episodes. This series of audio recordings takes place during the days of the uprising and the economic collapse that struck Lebanon in the Fall of 2019. At that time, Mohamad Ali-Nayel kept a diary in which he wrote down what was happening around him. Three years later, he recorded these episodes on a daily basis with the addition of a few voices and music composed to accompany the narration.

Direct download: day11_Asdaa.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

The intifada in its second week. With a new week and musical tunes specially prepared for these hot days, we will follow the course of events day by day through these seven episodes. This series of audio recordings takes place during the days of the uprising and the economic collapse that struck Lebanon in the Fall of 2019. At that time, Mohamad Ali-Nayel kept a diary in which he wrote down what was happening around him. Three years later, he recorded these episodes on a daily basis with the addition of a few voices and music composed to accompany the narration.

Direct download: day9_Al-Mashail_2.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 5:00pm EDT

The intifada in its second week. With a new week and musical tunes specially prepared for these hot days, we will follow the course of events day by day through these seven episodes. This series of audio recordings takes place during the days of the uprising and the economic collapse that struck Lebanon in the Fall of 2019. At that time, Mohamad Ali-Nayel kept a diary in which he wrote down what was happening around him. Three years later, he recorded these episodes on a daily basis with the addition of a few voices and music composed to accompany the narration.

Direct download: day8_Al-Qrabin_2.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In early April 2022, president Kais Saied dissolved the parliament after parliament members challenged the autocratic powers he exercised since his self-coup last July. Lawmakers held an online meeting, defying Saied’s warning that the session was illegal, and a majority voted against his power grab, which they said violated the country’s Constitution.

Elected in a landslide in 2019, the president has been ruling by decree since July, jailing opponents, suspending parts of the Constitution, dismissing the Supreme Judicial Council and restricting press freedom. 

Khalil Bendib spoke with Tunisian correspondent Mohammed-Dhia Hemmami about the current political situation in Tunis.

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East & North Africa (VOMENA).

Direct download: the_latest_developments_in_tunisa.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Georgetown University graduate student Nisrine Hilizah speaks to guests Houda Mzioudet and Amuna Ali about the ways in which social media is being used to call attention to anti-black racism in the Arab world.

Guest Bios

Houda Mzioudet is a Tunisian researcher, journalist, and anti-racist activist. She co-founded ADAM, the first black Tunisian association, and the Voice of Tunisian Black Women collective. Between 2011 and 2018, Mzioudet covered the uprisings and their aftermaths in Tunisia and Libya for international outlets, including Al Jazeera English, CBC, and BBC. Houda is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Toronto.

Amuna Ali is a Somali-Yemeni Anti-racist activist. Born and raised in the United Arab Emirates, Amuna is the founder of the social media page BlackArabsCollective, an Instagram page that serves as "a platform to share the stories and amplify the voices of Black Arabs." Amuna holds two master's degrees, one in Innovation and Change Management and another in Sports Management.

Direct download: AntiRacist_Final.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Georgetown University graduate student Nooran Alhamdan speaks with three Palestinian American students - Omar Zahzah, Rasha Anayah, and Yasmeen Mashayekh - who have been targets of rightwing Zionists blacklists and their affiliated websites to discuss this growing problem of free speech, digital rights, and academic freedom.
Direct download: Decolinize_Final.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

In this conversation, Mick Dumper and Maha Samman discuss the politics of holy cities with Connections Podcast host and Jadaliyya co-editor Mouin Rabbani. This episode of Connections Podcast examines the interaction between religion, political power, and conflict through the prism of such cities and other urban environments, in the Middle East and around the globe.
Direct download: Connections_Ep2.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In the inaugural episode of Connections, Jadaliyya co-editor Mouin Rabbani interviewed Noam Chomsky on March 17th, 2021 to discuss U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East under Biden. The interview examines the Biden administration’s Middle East policies, explores elements of continuity and change in US policy towards the region after the Trump years, and discusses what recent developments regarding Iran, Yemen, Palestine, and Saudi Arabia portend for the coming years.

 


Huma Gupta and Camille Cole speak with Dr. Caterina Scaramelli about Turkey’s wetland ecosystems, which range from alluvial forests to fishing lagoons, salt marshes, and volcanic crater lakes. Scaramelli unpacks how these shallow water ecosystems are materially and discursively produced into a flattened category called 'wetlands' by conservationists, ornithologists, and government agencies engaged in swamp reclamation.

Direct download: Environment_in_Context_-_Caterina_Scaramelli_mixdown.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

In part 2, Chanelle and Isabella are joined by Jose Hamza Saldaña, the Director of Release Aging People in Prison, or RAPP. Mr. Saldana describes the unique health challenges of the aging incarcerated population, who often suffer from multiple chronic conditions that cannot be properly managed in prison. He challenges the racist and vengeful system of prolonged incarceration and advocates for compassionate release to allow for rehabilitation and re-entry into society. Chanelle and Isabella reflect on the accounts they heard of the inadequacies and injustices of prison health care and discuss some systemic changes to mediate these injustices. They end with recommendations to health care providers to ensure they are best meeting the needs of individuals with criminal justice involvement.

To learn more about RAPP: https://rappcampaign.com/about/

Direct download: BLines_Ep2_Part_2.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

In part 1, medical students Chanelle Simmons and Isabella Giunta explore the impact of mass incarceration on the health of individuals and communities. Through collected anecdotes, they illustrate the failures of prisons to provide their inmates with adequate health care, even in life-threatening situations. They also describe the history of racist policies and practices that allow for this inhumane treatment. They are joined by Jarrell E. Daniels, a prison reform activist, mentor to youth emerging from juvenile detention, and research assistant at the Center for Justice at Columbia University. Jarrell shares the obstacles he faced while trying to access health care in prison and discusses the necessary changes to be made to ensure people in prison receive the care they need.

Direct download: BLines_Ep2_Part_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 7:46pm EDT

More than two generations after the end of colonization in north Africa, France still suffers from the undigested legacy and aftereffects of a brutal empire that spanned over two centuries and whose perverse reverberations are still felt today. Khalil Bendib speaks with French Algerian Nacira Guenif Souilamas, Professor of sociology and anthropology at University Paris 8 of Vincennes in Saint-Denis about French president Emmanuel Macron’s policies to combat home-grown terrorism while simultaneously acknowledging some of his country’s legacy of racism and genocide and how the French state is responding to a new wave of terrorism on its soil by increasing repression and surveillance of French Muslims.

Direct download: the_new_law_in_france.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

Hossam el-Hamalawy, journalist, photographer and member of the Egyptian Revolutionary Socialists, reflects on the term 'Arab Spring' and the ten years that have passed since what he refers to as the regional revolutions and regional uprisings that took place in the Middle East and North Africa.

Interviewed by Khalil Bendib | English

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa (VOMENA).

Direct download: 11_am_Friday_Feb_5th_2021_Voices_of_the_Middle_East_and_North_Africa.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

Host Mouin Rabbani fills us in on the most recent and upcoming topics of Jadaliyya.com's Quick Thoughts interviews. Featuring guests Noura Erakat on the extra-judicial execution of Ahmad Erekat, Ardi Imseis on the ICC's ruling on February 9th on Palestine, Nazan Üstündağ on the protests at Turkey’s Boğaziçi University, and much more.

To read these interviews, visit: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Category/157

Direct download: QT_Mouin_Paola_Spring2021_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:17am EDT

Sardar Saadi, PhD candidate in Anthropology at the University of Toronto and host of the Kurdish Edition podcast, examines urban dynamics of the Kurdish struggle for self-determination in Iran, in comparison with their struggles in Turkey.

Interviewed by Shahram Aghamir | English

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa (VOMENA).

Direct download: The_Kurds_In_Iran.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In this special episode, Anooradha Iyer Siddiqi speaks with Alishine Osman, Anisa Salat, and Huma Gupta about their experiences of environmental scarcity and diaspora, as well as the refugee camps and urban environments that became the landscapes of that trajectory. These acts of ecological reclamation can take place on a local, international, planetary, or a historical level. The guests reflect upon their own experiences in practice and research, and how these have led them to their community-oriented, developmental, or scholarly practices of ecological reclamation in Somalia, Iraq and the United States. The questions posed in this episode were drafted and narrated by Barnard and Columbia students enrolled in Prof. Siddiqi's "Colonial Practices" Fall 2020 seminar and as part of the broader Building Solidarities: Racial Justice in the Built Environment lecture series.

Direct download: Building_Solidarities_Environmental_Reclamations_Barnard_Dec_2020.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In this episode of Environment in Context, Huma Gupta speaks with journalist Layli Foroudi. They explore how the story of phosphates can help us understand the political economy of environmental transformation in Tunisia from the late nineteenth to the twenty-first century. This episode discusses phosphate mining towns like Gafsa, railway networks that transport this important resource to coastal cities like Sfax for processing, phosphate trade with India, existing environmental policies, and public protests decrying the phosphate industry's environmental impacts, such as pollution, soil salinization, and water scarcity, in the decade following the Tunisian revolution.

Direct download: Environemnt_Faroudi_Final_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

On this edition of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa, Khalil Bendib speaks with international lawyer, activist and former PLO negotiator Diana Buttu about the state of the Palestinian cause at a time when an international conspiracy by colonialist and neocolonialist regimes worldwide is frantically busy rolling back a cause that has become an international rallying cry for struggles against injustice everywhere, whether the BLM movement, democracy movements in Middle East and North Africa regions or any liberation and fights against oppression and inequality in the world.

Direct download: 11_am_Oct_16_2020_Voices_of_the_Middle_East_and_North_Africa.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

عربي تحت
An untold story for most, the women's movement that headed and sustained the First Intifada was a source of tremendous popular power and useful lessons. Noah Black sat down with the director of the award-winning film Naila and the Uprising, Julia Bacha, to discuss this history and more. The film was produced by Rula Salameh and Rebekah Wingert-Jabi.

الجندر والاحتجاج وسياسة الفيلم: مناقشة مع جوليا باشا حول "نائلة والانتفاضة"

يتحدث نوح بلاك مع جوليا باشا مخرجة الفيلم الحائز على جوائز "نائلة والانتفاضة" ، لمناقشة التاريخ غير المروي عن الحركة النسائية التي قادت الانتفاضة الأولى وشكلت لها مصدر قوة شعبية هائل.

Direct download: Julia_Bacha_FINAL_CUT.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

عربي تحت
Max Ajl speaks on his recent article in The Journal of Peasant Studies with Omar Dahi. They cover the blind spots in and utility of agrarian studies. Ajl also touches on the need to include considerations of the national question and war in studying agro-ecology.

المنطقة العربية وسؤال الدراسات الزراعية: حوار مع ماكس عجل

يتحدث ماكس عجل عن مقالته الأخيرة في مجلة دراسات الفلاحين مع عمر ضاحي. ويتطرق اللقاء إلى الدراسات الزراعية من حيث فوائدها ونقاط قصورها وضرورة إدراج اعتبارات القضايا القومية والحرب في دراسة البيئة الزراعية.

Direct download: Max_Ajl_Interview_-_Agrarian_Studies.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

عربي تحت
On this episode of Quick Thoughts, co-founder and CEO of Kerning Cultures Network, Hebah Fisher speaks about how the first venture-funded podcast company in the Middle East came to be and is navigating the COVID-19 era, and how to incorporate current events into shows that are not focussed on breaking news.

Interviewed by Paola Cossermelli Messina
August 14, 2020 | English

حول " تقنين الثقافات" وصعود التدوين الصوتي في الشرق الأوسط

تتناول هذه الحلقة ظهور أول مشروع ممول لشركة تدوين صوتي في الشرق الأوسط خلال عصر COVID-19، وكيفية دمج الأحداث الجارية في البرامج التي لا تركز على الأخبار العاجلة.

Direct download: Fisher_Final_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Status Host and Jadaliyya co-editor Mouin Rabbani speaks on the question of the annexation of the West Bank based on what is happening currently.

Interviewed by Bassam Haddad
September 17, 2020 | English

Direct download: Mouin_Rabbani_Quick_Thoughts_Final.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

عربي تحت
In the wake of the Israel normalization deal with Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, Ilan Pappé speaks about where this new development leaves the question of Palestine as well as the general state of human rights and civil rights in the region.

Interviewed by Khalil Bendib
September 18th, 2020 | English

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa (VOMENA)

فلسطين في أعقاب صفقة التطبيع الإسرائيلية مع البحرين والإمارات

في أعقاب صفقة التطبيع الإسرائيلية مع البحرين والإمارات العربية المتحدة، يتحدث إيلان بابيه عن هذا التطور الجديد في قضية فلسطين وآثاره على الحالة العامة لحقوق الإنسان والحقوق المدنية في المنطقة.

Direct download: 11_am_friday_sept_18_2020_voices_of_the_middle_east.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

عربي تحت
Malihe Razazan spoke to Human Rights Watch (HRW) Iran Researcher Tara Sepehri Far about Nasrin Sotoudeh's hunger strike and the criminalization of peaceful protests in Iran. Sotoudeh is an Iranian human rights lawyer, who was arrested in 2010 and started her second hunger strike this year in August to protest the inhumane treatment of Iranian political prisoners during the COVID pandemic.

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa (VOMENA).

أسباب إضراب نسرين ستوده عن الطعام احتجاجاً على ظروف السجن الرهيبة في إيران

تحدثت مليحة رزازان إلى الباحثة الإيرانية في منظمة هيومن رايتس ووتش تارا سبهري فار حول إضراب نسرين ستوده عن الطعام وتجريم الاحتجاجات السلمية في إيران. ونسرين ستوده محامية إيرانية في مجال حقوق الإنسان كانت قد اعتقلت في عام 2010 وبدأت إضرابها الثاني عن الطعام هذا العام في أغسطس احتجاجاً على المعاملة اللاإنسانية للسجناء السياسيين الإيرانيين خلال جائحة كورونا

Direct download: nasrin_sotoudeh.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

On this episode of Environment in Context, Huma Gupta and Danya al-Saleh speak to Nadia Christidi, a PhD candidate in History, Anthropology, and Science, Technology, and Society at MIT and an arts practitioner. Her dissertation research explores how cities that face water supply challenges, which are expected to intensify with climate change, are imagining, planning, and preparing for the future of water; the cities she focuses on are Los Angeles, Dubai, and Cape Town.

How do we imagine, think about, and represent environmental crises around water and climate change? Water management and climate change have previously been considered the exclusive purview of environmental scientists, engineers, economists, security analysts, or policymakers. However, Nadia Christidi explains how an anthropological approach can help us understand the political practices and economic rationalities of water governance based on her fieldwork in Dubai. Specifically, we discuss how these ecological imaginaries around water are conditioned by social and political forces, ranging from considering water to be an infinite resource, a commodity that is produced, or an extreme landscape that serves as a testbed for technological innovation.

References
1. Nadia Christidi's Website: Nadiaalissa.wordpress.com
2. Gökçe Günel. “The Infinity of Water: Climate Change Adaptation in the Arabian Peninsula.” Public Culture 28.2 (May 2016): 291-315.
3. Michael Christopher Low. “Desert Dreams of Drinking the Sea, Consumed by the Cold War: Transnational Flows of Desalination and Energy from the Pacific to the Persian Gulf.” Environment and History 26.2 (May 2020): 145-174.
4. Toby Craig Jones. Desert Kingdom: How Oil and Water Forged Modern Saudi Arabia. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2011.
5. Candis Callison. How Climate Change Comes to Matter: The Communal Life of Facts. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2014.

Direct download: Christidi_Interview_Final_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In the second episode of “1979 Generation,” Jadaliyya’s Iran Page co-editor, Manijeh Nasrabadi interviews Shahla Talebi on the liberation of political prisoners, the intersection of gender, class and revolution, and the emergence of “proletarian feminism.”

Shahla Talebi is Associate Professor of Religious Studies in the School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies at Arizona State University. Shahla was a student activist who participated in the 1979 Revolution, lived through the Iran-Iraq war, and left Iran for the U.S. in 1994. She is the author of the critically acclaimed memoir, "Ghosts of Revolution: Rekindled Memories of Imprisonment in Iran", published by Stanford University Press in 2011.

(Photo by Hengameh Golestan)

Direct download: Shahla_Talebi_.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

On Tuesday, August 4th, a massive explosion rocked Beirut and sent a giant mushroom cloud into the sky. The blast, which struck the city with a force comparable to a 3.5 magnitude earthquake, destroyed much of the country’s main port, flattened and damaged hundreds of buildings, including three hospitals, and a huge number of businesses and homes. So far, 135 fatalities have been counted, 300,000 have been displaced and over 5000 have been injured. Hundreds of people are still trying to know the whereabouts of their loved ones who went missing.

To get a better picture of what happened in Beirut and the economic and political crisis compounded by the covid-19 pandemic that is pushing the country to the brink of economic collapse, Shahram Aghamir spoke with Ziad Abu Rish the Co-Director of the MA Program in Human Rights and the Arts, and Visiting Associate Professor of Human Rights, at Bard College. Ziad is a 2020–21 Research Fellow in the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies at Georgetown University. His research explores state formation, economic development, and popular mobilizations in the Middle East, with a particular focus on Lebanon and Jordan. He serves as Co-Editor of Arab Studies Journal and Jadaliyya. He is also a Research Fellow at the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies (LCPS).

Photo by Hiba Al Kallas

Direct download: chemical_explosion_in_Beirut_Status.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Lebanese/American filmmaker Jude Chehab describes her experiences of the August 4th explosion in Beirut, recent protests in the city, and how these events lead her and others to organize grassroots rebuilding and transparent relief efforts in the Lebanese capital.

Donate now via PayPal to help support those impacted by the explosion in Beirut. paypal.me/judechehab

Interviewed by Paola C. Messina
August 9th, 2020 | English

Direct download: Chehab_Final_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In his brand-new book, "Genocide in Libya: Shar, a Hidden Colonial History" due out in two weeks, University of New England Professor Ali Ahmida meticulously documents the tragic story of a systematic genocide of the Libyan people by Italian colonial authorities a century ago, as well as the methodical cover up that ensued.

Despite a dearth of recorded materials, most of which were classified or destroyed, through painstaking interviews with genocide survivors and their descendants, Professor Ahmida manages to accomplish a seemingly impossible task by reconstructing bit by bit a shameful episode from the brief but devastating history of Italian colonialism in north Africa, thanks to the enduring memory and steadfastness of the martyred people of Libya.

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa (VOMENA).

Direct download: 11_am_Friday_July_24_2020_Voices_of_the_Middle_East_and_North_Africa_.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Renewable, clean sources such as solar and wind energy have become an important part combatting the climate crisis and its impacts, but can we divorce the environmentally friendly technologies from the conditions under which these are developed and implemented? And what happens when renewable energy development becomes synonymous with colonial expansion and political repression?

Israel’s feverish plans to build the largest onshore wind farm in the occupied Golan Heights are a good example of why the conversation about a decarbonized economy may not be abstracted from considering prevailing power structures and systems of oppression including colonialism.

Malihe Razazan spoke with Muna Dajani and Wael Tarabieh, an activist and co-founder of Al-Marsad | The Arab Centre for Human Rights in the Golan Heights, which is an independent, not-for-profit international human rights organization located in Majdal Shams, in the Occupied Syrian Golan. The center was founded in October 2003 by a group of lawyers and professionals in the fields of law, health, education, journalism and engineering, along with human rights defenders and other interested community members.

Muna Dajani holds a PhD from the Department of Geography and Environment at LSE. Her PhD research aimed to examine the distinctive livelihood practices by which water use and farming acquire political subjectivity in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights and Al Battuf Valley in the Galilee. She is now the Research Officer in a collaboration project between Birzeit University and LSE entitled ‘Mapping Memories of Resistance: the untold story of the occupation of the Golan Heights’

Wael Tarabieh, the co-founder of al-Marsad, The Arab Centre for Human Rights in the Golan Heights is an independent, not-for-profit international human rights organisation located in Majdal Shams, in the Occupied Syrian Golan. The centre was founded in October 2003 by a group of lawyers and professionals in the fields of law, health, education, journalism and engineering, along with human rights defenders and other interested community members.

Direct download: Occupied_Golan_interview_status.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In recent decades, the six members of the GCC, which includes the Gulf Arab monarchies of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain, have lured millions of mostly low skilled and semi-skilled workers from South and Southeast Asia and Africa. For the past few months, the migrant workers in these monarchies have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact.

To understand the plight of these millions of migrant workers and the history of labor migration in this region, Shahram Aghamir spoke to Assistant Professor Andrea Wright, who is in the Department of Anthropology and the Program in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at William & Mary.

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa (VOMENA).

Direct download: VOMENA_Edit_AWhite2.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

The Environment in Context podcast discusses the role of Islamic Financing in the development of the global Green Bond industry. In June 2017, Malaysia was the first country in the world to issue a green sukuk in order to finance a solar power plant. Sukuk are asset-backed financial certificates that were developed over a millenia ago, which are compliant with the Islamic principle of Shari’ah.

http://www.statushour.com/en/Interview/3485

Guest: Aneil Tripathy
Interviewed by Huma Gupta and Bassam Haddad

Direct download: Tripathy_Final_2_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Another installment in the Security in Context series, this panel on the causes and consequences of Turkish invasion of northern Syria specifically on the future of Kurdish movements featuring Omar Dahi, Utku Baliban, Ahmet Tonak, and Zumray Kutlu.

Direct download: Kurdish_Movements_Podcast_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

The third installment in the Security in Context series, this critical discussion of US military plans for climate change features Michael Klare, Betsy Hartmann, and Anne Hendrixson.


This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by COVID-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Stats: Coronavirus and Anti-Asian Racism in the United States
- 100 hate crimes against Asian Americans on average according to reports.
- Over 2,000 incidents of xenophobia and racism against Asian Americans.
- In New York City, Chinese businesses have seen a drop of 30-80 percent in sales.
- 47% of incidents occurred in businesses.
- Over 30% of incidents occurred in public spaces.
- Asian women were disproportionately targeted by racist incidents, with 70% of victims being female.
- 40% of incidents directed towards people of Chinese descent.
- Over ⅔ of incidents involved verbal harassment.

Hosted by Noura Erakat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: 2020.04.17_Anti_Asian_Racism_Rough_AUDIO.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

On Germany: 11 April 2020

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by COVID-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Look out for upcoming episodes in the coming week(s). Listen to the previous episodes in the series on Gaza here, Dublin here, Cairo here, the first interview on Iran here, the second interview on Iran here, on San Francisco here, on Doha here, on Vancouver here, and on punishment in Palestine here.

Hosted by Noura Erakat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa
Stats: Germany

Total cases: 125,452
Total deaths: 2,871
Total recovered: 57,400
Total active cases: 65,181
Total in serious/critical condition: 4,895
Total cases per 1 million people: 1,497
Total deaths per 1 million people: 34
Total tests carried out: 1,317,887
Tests per 1 million people: 15,730
First recorded case was on January 27.
Placed an order for 10,000 ventilators.
40,000 intensive care units across the country.

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: 2020.04.13_Germany_AUDIO.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Statistics - As of March 2020
- 5,000 Palestinian prisoners currently in Israeli jails.
- 432 in administrative detention.
- 183 children.
- 43 female prisoners.
- Since 1967, over 800,000 Palestinians have been imprisoned.
- 4 Palestinian prisoners confirmed to be infected with coroanvirus.
- 50 Palestinian homes demolished
- Since 1967, 18,000 houses Palestinian homes have been demolished
- 6,000 homes were demolished immediately after the 1967 war.
- Home demolition as collective punishment: https://www.btselem.org/topic/punitive_demolitions

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: 2020.04.08_Punishment_and_Prison_audio.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

On Vancouver: 2 April 2020

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by COVID-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Canada
- Total cases: 12,924
- Total deaths: 214
- Total recovered: 2,322
- Total active cases: 10,388
- Total in serious/critical condition: 120
- Total cases per 1 million people: 342
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 6
- First recorded case was on February 23.
- Total tests carried out: 302,745
- Tests per 1 million people: 8,021

British Columbia specifically
- Total cases: 1,174
- Total cases in Greater Vancouver area: 541
- Total deaths: 35
- Total recovered: 673
- Total active cases: 466
- Total in serious/critical condition: 64
- First recorded case was on January 27.
- Total tests carried out: 47,352

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: PITOC_-_Vancouver_Audio_Only.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

US Statistics
- Total confirmed cases in the US: 133,146 (as of 2pm on 3/29)
- Total deaths in the US: 2,363 (as of 2pm on 3/29)
- Case fatality rate in the US: (#deaths/#confirmed cases): 1.6% (as of 11pm on 3/27)
- Total cases per 1 million people in the US: 402(as of 2pm on 3/29)
- Total deaths per 1 million people in the US: 7
- First case recorded in the US: January 20 (Snohomish, Washington)
- Total number of test kits available: I wish I knew!
- Total number of tests performed daily: 65,000 (as of 3/26)
- Total number of tests performed: ~685,000 (as of 11pm on 3/27)
- Tests per capita in the US as whole: 177 tests per 100k people.
- NY has the highest testing rate: 627 tests per 100k people.
- Total number of ventilators: ~172,700 (~160,000 available +12,700 in national stockpile)
- After Trump enacted the Defense Production Act on 3/27, factories like GM are mandated to begin manufacturing ventilators - as many as 10,000/month.
- Total number of ICU beds: ~925,000
- Total number of ICU beds per 1,000 people: 34.7
- Water security in places like Flint, Michigan. Under pressure the state issued a moratorium of water shutoffs.
- Nearly 3,000 households are without running water
- A number of states/communities are struggling as COVID-19 is spreading in homeless populations and among SRO/housing project residents.
- Homeless people are at double the risk of contracting the virus.
- Cramming 200-300 people in a single homeless shelter is the norm in many cities, increasing the likelihood of transmission.
- 30% of homeless people have chronic lung disease, according to a study published last year.
- The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness estimates that there are 567,700 homeless people in the country.
- While San Francisco Mayor London Breed announced a $5 million emergency fund and public health order to help vulnerable populations, including the homeless, many activists insist that is not enough.
- In Boston, 8 homeless people have already tested positive for the virus.
E.g. Population density is one of the factors in community spread in NYC
- New York City, Westchester, Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland, Orange, and Erie county are the hardest hit areas in New York State. They are also all the top 10 most densely populated counties in the state.

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: PITOC_-_SanFran_Audio_Only.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Data shown is as of April 1, unless stated otherwise.
Qatar
- Total cases: 781
- Total deaths: 2
- Total recovered: 62
- Total active cases: 717
- Total in serious/critical condition: 6
- Total cases per 1 million people: 271
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 0.7
- First recorded case was on February 28.
- Carried out almost 9,000 tests (as of March 18).

UAE
- Total cases: 664
- Total deaths: 6
- Total recovered: 61
- Total active cases: 597
- Total in serious/critical condition: 2
- Total cases per 1 million people: 67
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 0.6
- First recorded case was on January 28.
- Carried out more than 220,000 laboratory tests across the country (as of March 30).
- Evacuated over 1,700 nationals and "those accompanying them" from countries abroad.
- Opened drive-through testing facility that can service 600 people a day, with priority given to the elderly, the pregnant and those with underlying health problems.

Saudi Arabia
- Total cases: 1,720
- Total deaths: 16
- Total recovered: 264
- Total active cases: 1,440
- Total in serious/critical condition: 31
- Total cases per 1 million people: 49
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 0.5
- First recorded case was on March 1.
- State authorities seized over 5 million masks that were hoarded by businesses and people.
- Released 250 immigration detainees to help contain the spread of the virus.

Oman
- Total cases: 210
- Total deaths: 1
- Total recovered: 34
- Total active cases: 175
- Total in serious/critical condition: 3
- Total cases per 1 million people: 41
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 0.2
- First recorded case was on February 23.

Kuwait
- Total cases: 317
- Total deaths: 0
- Total recovered: 80
- Total active cases: 237
- Total in serious/critical condition: 13
- Total cases per 1 million people: 74
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 0
- First recorded case was on February 23.
- Brought back more than 2,700 citizens from countries abroad.

Bahrain
- Total cases: 567
- Total deaths: 4
- Total recovered: 316
- Total active cases: 247
- Total in serious/critical condition: 2
- Total cases per 1 million people: 333
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 2
- First recorded case was on February 23.
- Carried out almost 19,000 tests (as of March 20).

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: PITOC_-_Doha_Audio_Only.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Statistics - as of March 29
- Total confirmed cases: 38,309
- Total confirmed deaths: 2,609
- Total confirmed recoveries: 12,391
- Total active cases: 23,278
- Total open critical or severe cases: 3,206 (14%)
- Average daily number of deaths in past week: 136/day

Some prominent figures who have died from the disease: Mohammad Mirmohammadi (Member of the Expediency Council), Nasser Shabani (Senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Commander), Fatemeh Rahbar (conservative politician and four-time Parliamentarian, died before the start of her fourth term)
Some prominent figures who have contracted the disease: Iraj Harirchi (Deputy Minister of Health), Ahmad Amirabadi Farahani (MP, Qom), Ali Akbar Velayati (Senior Advisor to Supreme Leader Khamenei for International Affairs)

Some important dates:
January 26th: Government claims COVID-19 has not and will not spread to Iran
On February 19, the Ministry of Health announced two confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the city of Qom, which is a center for religious learning in the country. The Ministry later announced that both individuals died. On February 21, new cases were reported in Tehran and the province of Gilan. Parliamentary elections were held to record low turnout despite the risk of spreading contagion.
On March 9, approx. 70,000 detainees are released on medical furlough
On March 13th, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei implies that the virus might be a "biological attack"
On March 19th, March 20th, and March 25th, there were revolts of incarcerated people in Tabriz and in two cities in the province of Lorestan in response to COVID-19 fears and to new lockdown measures introduced in wake of the spread of COVID-19.

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: PITOC_-_Iran_Audio_Only_Part_2.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Iran - data shown is as of March 29.
- Total confirmed cases: 38,309
- Total deaths: 2,640
- Total recovered: 12,391
- Total cases per 1 million people: 456
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 31
- First case recorded on February 19.
- About 6,000 people are being tested daily (This data is based on an article written on March 14).
- Estimates put the death toll at around 3.5 million by late May, when the outbreak is expected to peak.

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: PITOC_-_Iran_Audio_Only_Part_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Cairo
- Total confirmed cases: 442
- Total deaths: 21
- Total recovered: 95
- Total cases per 1 million people: 4
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 0.2
- First case recorded on February 14.
- At least 97 foreigners who visited Egypt since mid-February showed symptoms of, or tested positive for the virus.

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: PITOC_-_Cairo_Audio_Only.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Dublin Statistics - (numbers shown are in for the entirety of Ireland unless stated otherwise)
- Total confirmed cases: 539 (in Dublin)
- Total deaths: 7
- Total recovered: 5
- Total cases per 1 million people: 269
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 1
- First case recorded on February 19.
- 17,992 tests carried out so far, 93% returning as negative.
- Nearly half of all coronavirus cases in Ireland are in Dublin.
- It is estimated that there could be 15,000 cases in Ireland by the end of the month.

Hosted by Noura Erakat and Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez

Direct download: PITOC_-_Dublin_Audio_Only.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

UCLA Professor and Bernie Sanders surrogate challenges both Silicon Valley and the Ivory Tower of academia to find the the heart of technological emancipation from Egypt's Tahrir Square to US politics.

Direct download: Ramesh_Srinivasan_Interview_FINAL.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

The prominent Egyptian revolutionary socialist and host of popular online series "To Your Left" discusses his Marxist political literacy, the struggles faced by and future aspirations of leftists in post-revolutionary Egypt, the rise of Bernie Sanders in the United States, and the new ways to make political economic literacy fun for the country's youth with a new savvy show.

Direct download: tarek_a_shalaby_on_2020-02-12_at_01.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this interview, artist and filmmaker, Dima Yassin, discusses her long overdue visit to Iraq at the height of the country's revolution. She reflects on the sociopolitical transformations happening in the country, the role that women play in the uprising, and her new film shot from Baghdad's revolutionary epicentre, Tahrir Square.

Direct download: Dima_Yassine_Final_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

How are the politics of Islamic studies gendered, and what does this mean for the field? Professor Kecia Ali's keynote speech addressed this and other questions at the 17th Annual Duke-UNC Middle East and Islamic Studies Graduate Student Conference.

Courtesy of the Islamicate Graduate Student Association (IGSA) https://heellife.unc.edu/organization/igsa
https://islamicstudiesconf2020.web.unc.edu/

Direct download: Kecia_Ali_Talk_final.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this timely interview with Ziad Abu-Rish, VOMENA's Shahram Aghamir asks about Lebanon's economic crisis, it's worst in decades. Part 1 features discussion on the roots of the economic crisis and its connection to developmental failures. Part 2 centers on the protest movement and the implications of the coronavirus.

Direct download: Ziad__Lebanon_part_2.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this timely interview with Ziad Abu-Rish, VOMENA's Shahram Aghamir asks about Lebanon's economic crisis, it's worst in decades. Part 1 features discussion on the roots of the economic crisis and its connection to developmental failures. Part 2 centers on the protest movement and the implications of the coronavirus.

Direct download: ziad_interview_part_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

From Hong Kong to Chile, from Lebanon to India, from Iraq to Colombia, from Algeria to Argentina, from Iran to France, from Sudan to Haiti, from Ecuador to Guinea and beyond, “Protest is the new normal,” as Serge Halimi recently wrote in Le Monde diplomatique. Yet, we're confronted with a paradox: we are also living through another global wave - the rise of right-wing, authoritarian-populist forces, movements, and strong men around the world: Orbán in Hungary, Modi in India, Bolsonaro in Brazil, Erdoğan in Turkey, Salvini in Italy, Duterte in the Philippines, Sisi in Egypt, and lest we omit ourselves: Trump in the United States.

How do we make sense of this apparent paradox? How should we understand these momentous global developments? Are the various protest movements around the world connected somehow? If so, what are their common features or through lines? At the same time, what are specific dynamics and characteristics that make each case distinct? One can't address all of the aforementioned countries in a single panel discussion, but on January 20, 2020 (Martin Luther King Jr., Day) the Center for International and Area Studies at Northwestern University hosted a panel discussion that examined five of them - Lebanon, Hong Kong, Chile, India, and Iran.

Direct download: Global_Protests_Panel_2020.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Please Note: The City of Vancouver, where this interview was conducted, is on the unceded territories of three First Nations: the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh

This interview is about Istanbul’s Tarlabaşı neighborhood, where a decade-long urban transformation project continues to shape politics of the city, impacts the lives of residents, and reveals the political economy of Turkish construction businesses. Alize Arıcan tells us about her award-winning research on how delays shift power dynamics between builders and politicians, and how communities living around the construction site make use of these delays to remain in the neighborhood. She argues that delays should be understood not as failures of urban transformation, but as generating new forms of accumulation and dispossession, as well as resistance to these processes. As plans for residential luxury buildings and business complexes displace neighborhood residents including Kurdish and Roma communities, West African immigrants, Middle Eastern refugees, and trans sex workers, those who are still living in the neighborhood come up with strategies to remain resilient. We talk about a range of issues tied to urban transformation in Turkey’s cities, including: historical landmarking and property expropriation, displacement of marginalized communities who depend on informal economies, long-term relationships between companies and the government, the pervasive practice of subcontracting, and the effects of the current economic downturn.

Resources:

From Home to Real Estate: Urban Redevelopment on the Axis of Speculation in Istanbul: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/31310/From-Home-to-Real-Estate-Urban-Redevelopment-on-the-Axis-of-Speculation-in-Istanbul

Ekümenopolis and Beyond (Podcast in Turkish with English translation of transcript): http://statushour.com/en/Interview/119

Networks of Disposession: https://burak-arikan.com/networks-of-dispossession/

It is About the Park: A Struggle For Turkey’s Cities: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/28789

Bio-Istanbul: A Speculative, Segregationist, and Sustainable Urbanism: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/31785/Bio-Istanbul-A-Speculative,-Segregationist,-and-Sustainable-Urbanism

Meydan Politics: Taksim in Flux After Gezi: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/32242

Direct download: Alize_Arican_Interview.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 5:02pm EDT

Courtesy of VOMENA.

The tension between the countries entered a dangerous phase when on January 3rd the US assassinated Maj. Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, in a drone strike at Baghdad International Airport. The assassination had been ordered by Donald Trump.

The killing of Maj. Qasem Soleimani put in motion a series of events that many people feared may lead to another devastating war in the Middle East - but for now there seems to be a worldwide sigh of relief as the U.S. and Iran both appear to signal a desire to avoid further conflict.

So, how did it all begin? Why did the US decide to assassinate Soleimani, and what are the ramifications of this move on Iranian domestic and regional policies as well as the future of any possible negotiations between the US and Iran?

To explore these issues, Shahram Aghamir spoke with Mohammad Ali Kadivar – an Assistant Professor of Sociology and International Studies at Boston College, whose work contributes to political and comparative-historical sociology by exploring the interaction between protest movements and democratization - and Mansour Farhang, Professor emeritus of international relations at Bennington College, who served as the Islamic Republic of Iran’s first ambassador to the U.N. from 1979 to 1980, stepping down in protest after Khomeini's government did not release the 52 Americans held during the embassy siege.

Direct download: The_US-_Iran_tension_status.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this conversation with Mezna Qato and Ala’a Shehabi, Bassam Haddad inquires about MERIP’s recent 'Paper Trail’ Issue. Mezna and Ala’a address the background, content, and details of the issue and some of the surrounding topics.


This issue of Middle East Report explores how the Middle East is on the cutting edge of struggles to hide or reveal secret or important documents and paper trails that shape the lives of those across the region. The issue explores how the powerful utilize secrecy or deception to hide their paper trails from publics and how others weaponize archives and documents to serve their interests. At the same, time the issue explores how citizens and activists can fight for transparency to uncover the secret documents that hold clues over how they are governed and what is being hidden behind closed doors. The issue also explores how paper trails can be created through activism that turns the tables on the powerful or can be mined to explore and revive the past.

SUBSCRIBE TO MERIP!

There has never been a better time to subscribe to MERIP. You will receive four copies of our quarterly magazine Middle East Report and have full access to all our new content, plus our entire 45-year archive of critical analysis of the region, as well as more perks for subscribers on social media and the MERIP website. Subscribe today to get instant access to cutting-edge analysis of the Middle East.

Direct download: MERIP_Issue_-_Paper_Trails.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 2:29pm EDT

يتناول هذا الحوار بين بسام حداد ووائل جمال عدة مواضيع في اقتصاد مصر السياسي منذ ٢٠١٣، مع تشديد على بنى السلطة المهيمنة، السياسات النيوليبرالية، إعادة التوزيع، والعدالة الاجتماعية

Direct download: Interview_with_Wael_Gamal_Conducted_by_Bassam_Haddad.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this interview, Jonathan Adler, the managing editor of Tadween Publishing, sits down with Adel Iskandar to revisit one of Tadween’s first books, Mediating the Arab Uprisings, and to discuss the continually contested arena of media politics in the Middle East.

Direct download: Jadaliyya_Talks_-_Jonathan_Adler__Adel_Iskander.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 11:29am EDT

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East & North Africa (VOMENA).

Shahram Aghamir spoke with Peyman Jafari, a historian at Princeton University about the latest wave of anti-government protests in Iran.

On Friday Nov 15, protests broke out in 30 cities across Iran after a surprise announcement by the government it would ration gasoline and raise prices by 50 percent to 300%. The protests swiftly turned into anti-government demonstrations targeting the theocratic regime as a whole.

And, as in previous protests, demonstrators utilized Twitter and other social media platforms to organize, to communicate with the outside world and document the typically heavy-handed response by the regime. In the first twenty four hours, hundreds of images and video clips showed security forces brutally attacking protesters.

Amnesty International Verified video footage as well as eyewitness testimony from people on the ground and information gathered by human rights activists outside Iran reveal a harrowing pattern of unlawful killings by Iranian security forces: At least 106 protesters in 21 cities had been killed as of Wednesday, and Amnesty International believes that the real death toll may be much higher, some reports suggesting as many as 200 fatalities. State media have reported only a handful of protester deaths, plus those of four members of the security forces.

Adding to lethal attacks on the protests, within twenty-four hours, the government has used other tool in their arsenal - The Iranian authorities shutdown the internet for 5 days to stop the flow of information to the outside world and to cut off communication among the Iranian people themselves.

NetBlocks, a non-governmental organization that monitors Internet accessibility around the world, has reported that “The ongoing disruption is the most severe recorded in Iran since President Rouhani came to power, and the most severe disconnection tracked by NetBlocks in any country in terms of its technical complexity and breadth."

Direct download: nov_uprising_in_Iran.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:49pm EDT

Courtesy of VOMENA.

Protesters took to the streets of Baghdad once again on October 25 calling for radical changes to the existing political and economic system.

Ever since a new wave of protests erupted in Baghdad on October 1 and quickly spread to several southern cities, Iraq has been rocked by demonstrations and acts of civil disobedience rooted in long-standing grievances over unemployment, inadequate services, economic mismanagement and corruption. The security forces have responded harshly; killing more than 260 protestors and injuring thousands more. Nevertheless, the unrest continues, and the protestors have expanded their demands to include an overhaul of Iraq’s political structure, which was established after the U.S. led invasion in 2003.

To get a better picture of what is happening in Iraq and the role of the U.S. and regional players in that country, VOMENA's Shahram Aghamir spoke with NY Professor Sinan Antoon.

Sinan Antoon is a celebrated poet, novelist, translator, and scholar of modern Arabic literature and contemporary Arab culture and politics at the Gallatin school at NYU. His latest novel is titled 'The Book Of Collateral Damage'.

Direct download: Interview_sinan_antoon_iraq.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

Jadaliyya’s Iran Page brings Iranian feminist experiences of the 1979 revolution and its aftermath together in a new audio interview series.

In the first episode, Jadaliyya’s Iran Page co-editor, Manijeh Nasrabadi, interviews Homa Hoodfar on revolutionary upheaval, the contested role of women in the national liberation project and to reflect on what feminism means to her.

Direct download: Hoodfar_Final_2_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

On 17 September 2019, Ismail Ziada, a Dutch national of Palestinian descent, brought a civil suit against Benny Gantz, head of Israel’s Blue and White Party and the Israeli Army General Chief of General Staff during the 2014 Gaza onslaught and Amir Eshel, Israeli Air Force Chief. The suit alleges war crimes for the killing of six of Ziada’s family members including his mother, three brothers, sister-in-law, and twelve-year old nephew when the family’s home in the Al-Bureij refugee camp was bombed in 2014. The hearing will determine whether the Dutch court has jurisdiction. In this interview, Noura Erakat speaks with Liesbeth Zegveld, Ziada’s attorney and renowned human rights attorney, scholar of international humanitarian law, and professor at Leiden University.

Interviewed by Noura Erakat | English

Direct download: lzgvld_Final_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

On 24 September 2019, Jadaliyya Co-Editor Noura Erakat joined Professor Duncan Kennedy to discuss her new book, Justice for Some: Law and the Question of Palestine at Harvard Law School. Erakat comments that the conversation was particularly significant because she uses Kennedy’s concept of “legal work” to shape her analytical framework regarding the relationship between international law and Palestine. The 50-minute discussion features a robust Q & A with the audience.

Direct download: Noura_at_Harvard.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

With the protestors successful in ousting Bouteflika, those who take to the streets are hoping to keep this revolutionary spirit alive. Khalil Bendib of VOMENA speaks with Algerian scholar and activist Hamza Hamouchene about the ongoing movement, its endurance, and its promise for the future of Algeria.

Direct download: the_uprising_in_Algeria.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Last May, Donald Trump unilaterally violated the 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran, the United States, and 5 other world powers, and followed this up by reimposing harsh economic, trade and financial sanctions against Iran- Back in July of 2015 Iran, the US, along with Russia, China, and the European Union had agreed to a Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA.) Under this agreement, Iran would be protected from economic sanctions in exchange for accepting to subject its nuclear research program to international inspections. This agreement was widely seen as a crowning achievement of former President Barack Obama’s foreign policy but was vociferously opposed by Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Zionist forces and their allies in the US. Once in power, the Trump administration decided to violate and terminate this hard-won accord, calling it a “bad deal” and it has since ramped up a new “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran, a maneuver aiming to strangulate Iran’s economy which now extends as far as bribing Iranian tanker captains to surrender control of their ships to the US. With so much attention given to the war of nerves between Iran and the US, how are the US’s back-breaking sanctions impacting the Iranian population and the Iranian economy in general? To get some clarity on these issues, Malihe Razazan spoke with Iran expert and journalist at the NY Times, Farnaz Fassihi.

Direct download: Sanctions_on_Iran.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This interview is on the recent waves of deportations, detentions and relocations of migrants and refugees in Turkey, the majority of whom are Syrians. This wave is accompanied by rising xenophobia, systematic harassment of and discrimation against the Syrian population in Turkey, who are blamed for the increasingly complex political and economic problems of the country. We discussed the precarious legal category of “the temporary protection status,” which in part allowed for the recent shift in Turkey’s official refugee/migrant policy to an explicitly national security-oriented one, as well as the repercussions of internal relocations for Syrian families who have been rebuilding their lives in Istanbul since 2011. We also discussed local efforts to build solidarity with all refugee and migrant communities in the country against the backdrop of an increasingly hostile environment, and the aspirations of the new generation of Syrians who have been growing roots in Istanbul.

Note: Shortly after this interview was recorded, the governor of Istanbul extended the relocation deadline for refugees registered in other cities to from 20 August to 30 October.

Further reading/resources:
Jadaliyya article:
https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/39957/Racism-and-Syrians-in-Turkey-The-Political-Economy-of-Discrimination

We Want to Live Together Initiative:
https://www.facebook.com/birlikteyasamakistiyoruz/
https://twitter.com/biraradayasamak?lang=en

Direct download: Tekay__Ozer_on_Turkeys_Refugee_Policy.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Ilana Feldman discusses the geography of near displacement—Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip, the five fields of UNRWA operations in the Middle East. This talk explores the intersecting, but not identical, experiences of both providers and recipients while looking critically at the politics of humanitarianism.

Direct download: Ilana_Feldman.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Malihe Razazan of VOMENA speaks with attorney Zoha Khalili from Palestine Legal about Congresswoman Ilhan Omar's proposed resolution to protect the right to boycott. This comes after the US House of Representatives passed a non-binding resolution condemning the BDS movement.

Direct download: Zoha_Khalili_Interview_Final_Cut.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Jadaliyya's managing editor, Kylie Broderick, interviews Arash Davari and Sina Rahmani on their article, "Divorce, Iran-America Style". In it, Arash and Sina talk about the historical evolution of the relationship between Iran and America, recent tensions between the two states, and why Iran occupies a unique position in the mindset of American politics.

Their article can be found here: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/38779/Divorce,-Iran-America-Style

Direct download: Broderick_Davari_Rahman_force_mono.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Almost nine years after its Jasmine revolution, Tunisia is now poised for its third round of presidential elections since the 2010-2011 revolution. Khalil Bendib spoke with scholar Mohammed Hammami about the upcoming elections, including the increasing unrest rising from serious socio-economic problems and the effects of Tunisia's unstable neighbors.

Direct download: Tunisian_Elections_w_Hammami.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:17pm EDT

In this interview, Foley describes the history of the Black Power movement in Australia and historical legacies with Palestinian solidarity. The interview ends with an emphasis on current efforts to convene an Aboriginal-Palestinian solidarity conference in Australia in the Fall 2019.

Direct download: FOLEY_Clean_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Since the overthrow of long-time dictator Muammar Al Qadafi in 2011, with the support of NATO, Libya was thrown into chaos with no foreseen end. Khalil Bendib speaks with Ali Ahmida about those fueling the conflict, as well as its latest chapter: the battle for Tripoli.

Direct download: Ali_Ehmida_Status_Final_Cut.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Mira Nabulsi interviews Loubna Qutami in a deep discussion of the historical relationship between race, ethnicity, and the census in order to discuss the Trump administration's omitting of the "Middle East and North Africa" category from the upcoming census in 2020.

Direct download: CensusWithLoubnaQ_StatusMP3_final.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In an interview with Rashid Khalidi, Noura Erakat speaks about her new book "Justice for Some: Law and the Question of Palestine".

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Justice for Some offers a new approach to understanding the Palestinian struggle for freedom, told through the power and control of international law. Focusing on key junctures--from the Balfour Declaration in 1917 to present-day wars in Gaza--Noura Erakat shows how the strategic deployment of law has shaped current conditions. Over the past century, the law has done more to advance Israel's interests than the Palestinians'. But, Erakat argues, this outcome was never inevitable.

https://www.sup.org/books/title/?id=26507

Direct download: justiceforsome_Final.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 1:41pm EDT

Nearly three decades after Omar Al Bashir came to power, the regime faced a formidable challenge posed by a fresh wave of unrest that started in the northeastern city of Atbara on December 19th of last year!

On April 6th, on the anniversary of the non-violent uprising that removed the dictator Jaafar Nimeiri in 1985, the protests in Sudan reached a watershed moment. The protesters turned up the heat on the regime by camping outside of the army headquarters in Khartoum, which also houses al-Bashir's residence - calling on the army to help them oust the country’s long time dictator

On Wednesday, April 11, the defense minister Awad Ibn Ouf announced that Omar al-Bashir had been ousted and arrested by the military. He added that the army would oversee a two-year transitional period followed by elections, and that a three-months state of emergency was being put in place, with a night time curfew starting immediately.

Within 24 hours General Ouf announced his resignation and named General Abdel-Fattah Burhan, general inspector of the armed forces, as his successor.

In a statement issued shortly after the Armed Forces televised address, the opposition call the military transitional council “a military coup” that “reproduces the same faces and institutions that the people revolted against.” it also called on the people to maintain their sit-in outside the military headquarters until power is handed to a transitional civilian group.

So what’s next for Sudan?

To get some clarity on the rapidly changing situation in Sudan, Shahram Aghamir spoke with Khalid Medani, an associate professor of Political Science and Islamic Studies at McGill University in Canada.

Direct download: sudan_final.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

Omar Shanti, who won the Young Writer’s Prize sponsored by the MedReset Project, which is primarily funded by the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 Programmem speaks about MedReset, the lessons of his own research, and the implications for further exploration into the topic of Maghrebi migration into Europe and the European Union.

This interview is in partnership with the MedReset Project (http://www.medreset.eu/)

Direct download: OmarShanti_Final.m4a
Category:Politics -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

In this interview recorded on 1 April 2019, Jadaliyya Co-editor Mouin Rabbani interviews Hugh Roberts, Professor of North African and Middle Eastern History at Tufts University, as Algerian mass protests extend into their eighth week. Roberts is a leading commentator and scholar of Algeria. His most recent works include The Battlefield: Algerian 1988-2002. Studies In A Broken Polity (Verso 2003).

The interview covers a wide range of issues, including the most recent developments in the protest movement, the context of their emergence and the various actors involved, and a prognosis on where things may be heading.

Direct download: Untitled.m4a
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00am EDT

Kristian Davis Bailey has been a critical node in the renewals of Black-Palestinian solidarity well before the Ferguson-Gaza moment in summer 2014. First in his capacity as a student journalist and activist at Stanford and later as an independent journalist as well as an organizer globally. In this interview with Noura Erakat, he discusses a few of his recent projects including Blacks 4 Palestine, organizing delegations from Palestine to the United States as well as to Palestinian refugees camps in Lebanon, and his ordeal in Israeli detention. This is part of a series curated by ASI’s Black Palestinian Transnational Solidarities Project.

Direct download: KristianBailey_Final.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00am EDT

[Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa, VOMENA]

In the second part of the conversation with VOMENA, Khalid Medani of McGill University goes into greater detail about regional and international response to the protests in Sudan, the role of women and the future of the uprising.

Direct download: Part_2_of_Sudan_Interview.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00am EDT

[Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa, VOMENA]

Nearly three decades after Omar Al Bashir came to power, the Sudanese regime is facing a formidable challenge posed by a fresh wave of unrest, which started in the northeastern city of Atbara on December 19. Protests which first erupted over a government decision to triple the price of bread have swiftly escalated into anti-government rallies, marches and work stoppages that have rocked several cities and towns.

Who are the protestors? What are their demands? What role do the civil society groups play in these protests? What has been the regime’s response to the protests? And what is the genesis of the economic crisis that the country is experiencing? Kalid Medani of McGill University tackles these and other questions.

Direct download: 11_am_January_18_2019_voices_of_the_Middle_East_and_North_Africa.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00am EDT

This conference was organized by CNES faculty affiliates James Gelvin, Aomar Boum and Kevan Harris together with CNES faculty director, Aslı Bâli. The conference was conceived to assess the changes in the Middle East from the Iraq invasion through the Arab uprisings that have altered the regional balance of power, called into question the viability of some existing states and led to the emergence and proliferation of both violent non-state actors and new civil society movements and organizations.

Courtesy of the UCLA Center for Near Eastern Studies

Direct download: CNES_Understanding_the_New_Middle_East-_Day_2_Panel_5.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00am EDT

This conference was organized by CNES faculty affiliates James Gelvin, Aomar Boum and Kevan Harris together with CNES faculty director, Aslı Bâli. The conference was conceived to assess the changes in the Middle East from the Iraq invasion through the Arab uprisings that have altered the regional balance of power, called into question the viability of some existing states and led to the emergence and proliferation of both violent non-state actors and new civil society movements and organizations.

Courtesy of the UCLA Center for Near Eastern Studies

Direct download: CNES_Understanding_the_New_Middle_East-_Day_2_Panel_4.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

This conference was organized by CNES faculty affiliates James Gelvin, Aomar Boum and Kevan Harris together with CNES faculty director, Aslı Bâli. The conference was conceived to assess the changes in the Middle East from the Iraq invasion through the Arab uprisings that have altered the regional balance of power, called into question the viability of some existing states and led to the emergence and proliferation of both violent non-state actors and new civil society movements and organizations.

Courtesy of the UCLA Center for Near Eastern Studies

Direct download: CNES_Understanding_the_New_Middle_East-_Day_1_Panel_3.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00am EDT

In 2017, Dr. Ahmad Dallal published a primer on ISIS, entitled The Political Theology of ISIS: Prophets, Messiahs, and the "Extinction of the Grayzone." In August 2018, Tadween Publishing's managing editor, Kylie Broderick, spoke to him about the ongoing significance of the book, the study of ISIS and its animating principles, whether such studies remain relevant given ISIS' loss of territoriality, what interested Dr. Dallal in pursuing an understanding of this group, and more.

This interview is part of the "Tadween Talks" series, which explores the books published by Tadween, catches them up to the present, connects them to ongoing challenges in the region, and asks the authors to opine directly on the meaning of their books.

For more information, visit https://tadweenpublishing.com/

Direct download: Tadween_Episode2_Final_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

Bassam Haddad spoke with Omar Shakir, Israel and Palestine Director at Human Rights Watch, about Israel’s deportation order against him and the challenge HRW mounted in Israeli courts to this decision and the draconian law it is based on. The two also discussed Israel’s passage of the Nation State Law, enshrining Jewish supremacy over Palestinians as a constitutional mandate, and how shifting regional dynamics may impact the human rights situation on the ground.

Direct download: Omar_Final_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00am EDT

Fighting for freedom and justice in Syria, Jihad Abdo and Fadia Affash had to flee their country and start from scratch in the United States. Jihad, a well-known actor in Syria, began as a pizza delivery man, but was soon recognized for his talents as an actor and landed leading roles in films such as "The Queen of the Desert" and "A Hologram for the King".

Fadia Affash, a painter and activist, recounts the challenges of their journey together, while recognizing the important impact those experiences have had on her work as an artist.

Interviewed by Raghad Al Makhlouf
June 2nd, 2018 | Arabic

Direct download: Raghad_Jihad_Final.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Award-winning journalist Rania Abu Zeid has made countless trips inside Syria, Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon, Washington, and several European towns and cities to cover the Syrian uprising and the deadly civil and proxy war that ensued and destroyed tens of millions of lives.

Rania Abouzeid joins Status and VOMENA host Malihe Razazan to talk about her new book, "No Turning Back: Life, Loss, and Hope in Wartime Syria".

Interviewed by Malihe Razazan | June 22nd, 2018

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East & North Africa.

Direct download: Rania_Abouzeid.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

The interview is a dialogue with Ahmad Kiki, a Syrian young actor, who graduated from the Higher Institute of Dramatic Arts in Damascus, Syria. Two years after his graduation, Kiki found himself in a prison, arrested because he stood up for freedom and justice in Syria. In this interview, Kiki recounts a painful story about fleeing from Syria to Turkey in a dangerous trip he had to make by sea. Even so, this journey of fear and suffering fortunately has a happy ending.

Direct download: Raghad_Kiki_Interview1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00am EDT

What were the primary concerns of Iraqis in the run up to the election and who were the main protagonists contending for power? What does the outcome mean to both regional and international actors? To answer these questions, Vomena’s Shahram Aghamir spoke with Loulouwa Al Rachid, who has been conducting research on Iraq and the Gulf region for the past 20 years. She argues that the elections highlighted the wide and dangerous gap between rulers and the ruled in Iraq by reflecting massive popular rejection of the post-Baath political order.

Direct download: elections_in_Iraq_Status.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 10:31pm EDT

Jadaliyya Co-Editor and Status Host Noura Erakat spoke to British Radio about Israel's violent and lethal response to demonstrations and protests by Palestinians in Gaza, as the US Embassy in Jerusalem opens.

"We are 70 years ongoing of this same cyclical story and, in order to break that cycle, we need to take an unequivocal and brave stance that everybody deserves freedom. Everybody deserves equality... It is unfortunate Palestinians pay the price for lessons we don't learn," said Erakat.

This Monday, May 14th, at least 58 Palestinians were killed and more than 2,700 others wounded by live ammunition, tear gas and firebombs.

Direct download: F0nawXX0SgcU.128.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 1:18pm EDT

In the third and final installment of the panel on Authoritarian Leaders in Asia and the Middle East, the speakers discuss the relationships that the leaders have with their military. They then take questions from the audience.

Direct download: Authoritarian_GU_Part3_Clean_Master.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

A conversation with Gaza based writer Rawan Yaghi about daily life in Gaza.

In her recent op-ed in the New York Times, titled “Gaza Screams for Life,” Gaza-based writer Rawan Yaghi describes her visit to the site of the Great March of Return protest at the border two days after Friday’s massacre. She writes, “I left the protest thinking of the rest of Gaza — shellshocked for years, its borders closed and its United Nations-funded infrastructure in decay. I thought of the kids in my neighborhood who play football in what used to be the ground floor of a tall residential building, with bare concrete columns and poking iron rods as their only audience. And I thought: Once again, Gaza the Injured has come out to protest, and to scream for life.”

April 5th, 2018 | English
Interviewed by Malihe Razazan
Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa (VOMENA)

Direct download: VOMENA_LifeGaza.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 7:00am EDT