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PODCAST

Babel: Translating the Middle East

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Babel will take you beyond the headlines to discuss what’s really happening in the Middle East and North Africa. It features regional experts who explain what’s going on, provide context on pivotal developments, and highlight trends you may have missed. Jon Alterman, Zbigniew Brzezinski Chair in Global Security and Geostrategy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, hosts the podcast along with his colleagues from the Middle East Program. This podcast is made possible through the

government news commentary

All Episodes

37:11

Marsin Alshamary: Iraq's Political Crisis

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/08/23

This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Marsin Alshamary, a research fellow with the Middle East Initiative at Harvard’s Belfer Center. We talk about the ongoing crisis happening outside of Iraq’s parliament, why the current intra-Shi’a conflict is unique and how it echoes similar crises before, and where Iran and the United States stand. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Will Todman and Lubna Yousef about what a lighter U.S touch in Iraq might look like moving forward. Marsin Alshamary , "The

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3:59

A Mezze: Egypt's Killer Cuisine

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/08/16

Egypt doesn't have the most famous Middle Eastern cuisine, but few would call it deadly. That may be changing. A new Mezze from the Middle East Program at CSIS.

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36:29

Accountability in Syria

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/08/09

This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Ambassador Beth van Schaack, the State Department's ambassador-at-large for Global Criminal Justice. They talk about holding perpetrators of atrocities accountable in Syria, how accountability and justice fit into U.S. foreign policy, and the ways in which accountability looks different the for winners and losers of conflicts. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Natasha Hall and Lubna Yousef, the Middle East Program's new Research Associate. Beth van

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3:36

A Mezze: Taking the Heat

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/08/02

More and more people in the Middle East are accusing their governments of lying about the weather—falsely reporting lower temperatures to skirt UN regulations that prevent workers from laboring in searing conditions. Government weather reports may be off by a few degrees, but the critics are off by a mile. A new Mezze from the CSIS Middle East Program.

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28:28

Henry Rome: Nuclear Negotiations with Iran

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/07/26

This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Henry Rome, deputy head of research at the Eurasia Group and a longtime watcher of Israel and Iran. They talk about negotiations for a new nuclear deal with Iran and why they've stalled, scenarios for where negotiations and Iran's nuclear program might go from here, and how the region might change if Iran successfully develops a nuclear weapon. Then, Jon continued the conversation with Natasha Hall and Caleb Harper about what the lack of a deal would mean for the

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3:08

A Mezze: Lebanon's Brewing Crisis

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/07/19

Some Lebanese investors have turned to the beer and wine industry as the Lebanese economy tumbles and holding dollar deposits in banks becomes riskier. But a crisis is brewing, and alcohol may not be able to provide a pathway out of it. A New Mezze from the Middle East Program.

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36:45

Gregory Gause: President Biden's Trip to Saudi Arabia

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/07/12

This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Gregory Gause, professor of international affairs at Texas A&M University and a longstanding expert on Saudi Arabia. They talk about President Biden's upcoming trip to Saudi Arabia and what both sides hope to get out of the meeting, why Gause thinks that the United States should focus on order in the Middle East, and how the energy transition will impact U.S. engagement with the region. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Natasha Hall and Danny Sharp to

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2:31

A Mezze: No Milk, No Honey

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/07/05

Israel has more vegans per capita than any other country. Within that community is tremendous diversity.

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33:17

Frank Verrastro: The Middle East and Global Energy...

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/06/28

This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Frank Verrastro, a senior advisor with the Energy Security and Climate Change Program at CSIS. They talk about price volatility in the energy market, President Biden's trip to Saudi Arabia and its potential effect on the oil supply, and the current bottlenecks affecting the production of oil and natural gas. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Will Todman and Caleb Harper about how Middle Eastern oil producers are thinking about the near-term future of

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3:18

A Mezze: The DNA of Moroccan Society

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/06/21

Street children are an unfortunately common presence on Morocco’s city streets. Police in Agadir think they have an answer: DNA testing. A new Mezze from the CSIS Middle East Program.

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35:03

Nadia Oweidat: Disinformation in the Arab World

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/06/14

This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Nadia Oweidat, a Middle East fellow at the Wilson Center and an assistant professor at Kansas State University. They talk about Russian disinformation efforts in Arabic media outlets, how authoritarian states in the region are amplifying those efforts, and how she thinks Western governments should respond. Then, Natasha Hall, Will Todman, and Caleb Harper continue the conversation about how populations and states in the region think about the United States as the

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3:14

A Mezze: Locals Be Dammed

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/06/07

Years after Iraq declared victory over the Islamic State group (ISG), locals in the territory it formerly controlled continue to complain of a campaign of retribution. Now, they believe the government has a new strategy to punish them: building a dam. A new Mezze from the Middle East Program.

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31:09

Frederic Hof: Lessons Learned from U.S. Negotiations...

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/05/31

This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Ambassador Fred Hof about his new book, Reaching for the Heights: The Inside Story of a Secret Attempt to Reach a Syrian-Israeli Peace. They talk about Ambassador Hof's effort to negotiate peace between Syria and Israel between 2009 and 2011, what complicated those efforts, what he thinks he could have done differently, and the qualities that make for a good mediator. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Natasha Hall and Caleb Harper, taking a closer look at

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3:05

A Mezze: Junked Food

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/05/24

In Bahrain, municipal authorities claim that seagulls are "too fat to fly," and they say that Bahrain's growing food waste is to blame. A new Mezze from the Middle East Program.

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32:07

Haider al-Abadi: Iraq and the Fight Against the...

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/05/17

This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Dr. Haider al-Abadi, an Iraqi politician who served as prime minister from 2014 to 2018, while the country was battling the Islamic State Group (ISG). They talk about his decision making as prime minister, the Iraqi government's response to the ISG, and the limits of decentralization in Iraq. Then, Jon, Natasha Hall, and Danny Sharp continue the conversation about the roots of systemic corruption in Iraq and the consequences of the country's sectarian political

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3:39

A Mezze: Dental Freelancers

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/05/10

Some find going to the dentist traumatic. In Morocco, the experience could be especially so, because the dentist may turn out never to have gone to dental school. A new Mezze from the Middle East Program.

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35:03

Tim Lenderking: Hope in Yemen?

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/05/03

This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Tim Lenderking, the U.S. special envoy to Yemen. They speak about the UN-negotiated ceasefire in Yemen, recent U.S. diplomatic efforts in the country, and what makes the current moment in Yemen different than other openings in the past. Then, Jon, Will Todman, and Caleb Harper continue the conversation about the interplay between U.S. and UN diplomatic engagement in Yemen, and in the rest of the region. Babel, "Peter Salisbury: Yemen's Civil War," CSIS, July 27,

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3:03

A Mezze: Algeria's Poorly Oiled Machine

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/04/26

Storing pallets of vegetable oil in your garage might earn you some strange looks; in Algeria, it can land you in prison. A new Mezze from the Middle East Program at CSIS.

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32:37

U.S. Power and Influence in the Middle East: Part Seven

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/04/19

In seven episodes, the Babel: U.S. Power and Influence in the Middle East podcast miniseries will take a closer look at two decades of heightened U.S. engagement in the region. Over seven weeks, Babel will cover how the United States has used its military, economic, diplomatic, and soft power tools in the Middle East—and how the Middle East has responded. In the seventh episode, Jon concludes the series by looking at views on how the Middle East should fit into U.S. global strategy. He talks with

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21:20

U.S. Power and Influence in the Middle East: Part Six

Babel: Translating the Middle East ·

2022/04/12

In seven episodes, the Babel: U.S. Power and Influence in the Middle East podcast miniseries will take a closer look at two decades of heightened U.S. engagement in the region. Over seven weeks, Babel will cover how the United States has used its military, economic, diplomatic, and soft power tools in the Middle East—and how the Middle East has responded. In part six, Jon explores how people and governments in the Middle East see the United States, what they want from the United States in the

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284 results

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