Rebel Matters Podcast

This week's guest on Rebel Matters is Turkish-American political commentator Hasan Piker. We discussed politics, the United States and Palestine solidarity during Hasan's brief visit to Ireland. This is our first full-length video episode recorded in the new Rebel Matters studio. You can find the full episode on our Youtube channel. Huge thanks to all our Patrons who have supported the show through thick and thin. We are working really hard to keep the show going and can't do it without the support we get on Patreon. If you would like to help us make more episodes please consider supporting the show on patreon.com/rebelmatters. 

This week's guest is Moana Maniapoto, Māori musician, songwriter, activist, documentary maker, journalist, and  TV presenter. Moana's music has been described as a politically charged Haka-funk-dub-fusion. She also hosts her own weekly current affairs show, Te Ao with Moana, which that examines local, national and international issues through a Māori lens, and screens on Whakaata Māori , Māori+ and NITV (Australia). Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is gratefully supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.

Our guests for this episode are Niamh Ní Bhrian, Fionn Wallace, and Rory Rowan. This conversation was recorded in December 2025 after our guests had presented the Neutrality Roadshow in the Cultúalnn here in West Belfast. During this chat we discussed the current threats to Irish neutrality, the prospect of a united Ireland and what that might look like in terms of Irish neutrality, and the seemingly threats to Irish sovereignty through an intentional remilitarization of the country both north and south by the British government.  Subscribe on YouTube @rebelmatters Follow us on Instagram @rebel_matters  Follow us on UpScrolled @rebel_matters  Follow us on TikTok @rebel_matters  The Rebel Matters Podcast is a completely independent show produced in Belfast, and 100% supported by our Patrons. To join our community, support our work and get early access to episodes visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters 

This week we speak to American political sportswriter Dave Zirin about the overlap between sports and politics. Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is gratefully supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.          

This episode is a conversation with Palestine Action prisoner Amu Gib, and was recorded on the 18th day of their hunger strike in HMP Bronzefield.  Demands of the strike are: an end to the censorship of letters and books, and freedom of expression; immediate bail; the right to a fair trial; the deproscription of Palestine Action; and the closure of all Elbit weapons factories in Britain. Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is gratefully supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.               

This week we hear from Hazem Jamjoum, a Palestinian cultural historian, educator, editor, and translator. He has recently launched Safarjal Press, a publishing house with a focus on publications for communities in struggle, which we discuss during the conversation.  His translation of Ghassan Kanafani's The Revolution of 1936-1939 in Palestine was published by 1804 Press in 2023, and his translation of Maya Abu al-Hayyat's No One Knows their Blood Type was released by the CSU Poetry Center in October 2024. Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is gratefully supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.                

This week's guest is Irish Presidential Election Candidate Catherine Connolly. Massive thanks to Catherine for taking time out of her schedule at this busy lead up to the election, which will be held on Friday 24th of October 2025. Tá an t-eagrán seo ar fáil as Gaeilge freisin ar do rogha ardáin phodchraolta.  Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is gratefully supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.

This episode is also available in English wherever you listen to podcasts. An tseachtain seo labhair muid leis an Iarrthóir Uachtarántachta Catherine Connolly. Míle buíochas léi as am a chur ar leataobh don chomhrá seo le linn tréimhse gnóthach feachtasaíochta agus an toghchán le titim amach ar an 24 November 2025. Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is gratefully supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.

This week's guest is Mansoor Ahmad Adayfi, whose memoir Don't Forget Us Here recounts his experiences during 15 years spent in the prison at Guantanamo Bay. In this first part of the conversation he explains how he came to be detained and the treatment of prisoners in the camp.  Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is gratefully supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.

An update from Ainle who has been working in the Lajee Centre in the Aida Redugee Camp in Bethlemhem for the past seven weeks with the Aclaí Paelstine Project. You can learn more about Aclaí, the work that's being done on the ground, and how you can support or volunteer at aclai.ie. Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is gratefully supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.

In this episode we hear from Greg Stoker. Greg is an anti-imperialist left wing activist and US veteran with a strong presence on social media since October 2023. We speak about the state of play in Palestine since begining of the genocide, with a focus on US involvement, and also touch on other aspects of activism out likely outcomes of the current situation in Gaza and for the rest of the world. You can find Greg online at  @greg.j.stoker on Instagram, X, and TikTok and he is also the host of the Colonial Outcast Podcast, which is on YouTube and other podcasting platforms.  Thanks to all out patrons over on Patreon where you can support the podcast: Rebel Matters Podcast | creating Podcasts | Patreon

This week's episode is with Mars Verrone, producer of the documentary Union which is a fatastic film about the Amazon workers labour union, which was featured at the Sundance Film Festival in 2024. We discussed the conditions that the people in Amazon factories are working under and their fight for better working conditions, making this film and the importance of independent filmmaking, as well as the difficulties that arise when distributing an independent film that seeks to disrupt the status quo.  Visit the website unionthefilm.com to view the trailer or to request a screening of the film near you, or follow their social media accouts @unionthefilm for more updates. Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is gratefully supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.

This week's episode is with Belfast author Michael Magee who released his acclaimed debut novel Close To Home in 2023. We discussed West Belfast in the 90s and beyond, the challenged of authors from working class backgrounds to break through in the publishing world, Michael's process for writing Close To Home and his plans for future work.  Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is gratefully supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.

This week's episode is a conversation with the director of the Lajee Centre in the Aida refugee camp, Bethlehem Palestine. We discuss the situation in the West Bank, ongoing work at Lajee Centre, the western media portrayal of Palestine, the Palestinian Authority, and the international solidarity movement. Long -time listeners of the show may remember Mohammad from Episode 41 back in 2019.  It has been 3 weeks since our last episode, and we am currently working on getting the episodes out on a weekly basis. With Rebel Matters, we are determined to make a valuable contribution to the anti-colonial conversation and we can't do it without your help. Please consider becoming a Patron of the show if you would like to help us grow the podcast and to be able to keep on giving a platform to lesser heard voices and perspectives. Visit patreon.com/rebelmatters to see the various tiers of support.  Rebel Matters is available on all usual podcast platforms, including the Podcast App, Spotify and Youtube. It can also be found on www.rebelmatters.ie. 

This week's episode is with Eoghan McNeill from The Ditch. We discussed the recent Ditch reports on the use of Irish airports and airspace for the transport of weapons being used directly in the genocide in Palestine, and how these reports have been received by both the mainstream media and the government parties who have it within their power to end Ireland's complicity in genocide. Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is gratefully supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.

Salah Hamouri is a Palestinian lawer from West Jerusalem. In this episode we discuss the events that led to Salah's arrest and deportation, the currrent situation in Paletsine, and priorities for international Palestine solidarity.  Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is greatefully supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/rebelmatters see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.  

Ed Horgan is a founding member of the Shannon Watch campaign and has been monitoring the use of Shannon Airport and Irish airspace by the US military over the course of the last 25 years. Ed is a former Commandant and former UN Peacekeeper and has consistently highlighted the illegality and breaches of Irish and international law as the US continue to use Shannon airport for the transport of troops, munitions, and equipment.  In this episode we discuss Irish complicity in the genocide in Palestine on account of the Irish governments refusal to search or stop Shannon being used for the purposes of the US military. We also touch on Irish neutrality and the shift towards becoming a NATO country, as well the current situation in Lebanon with regards to the UNIFL and the steady escalation of hostilities of Israeli forces towards the presence of the UN Peacekeeping force. Rebel Matters is available on many of the usual podcast platforms and our website www.rebelmatters.ie. The show is supported in full by our followers over on Patreon. Link in bio to see our various tiers of support and find out how you can become a Patron.    

This is a special episode, and one that was a long time in the making. Síomha Brock and I sat down by the fireside and recoded this conversation while a storm raged outside. During this episode we talk through the process of the creation of Síomha's maiden album 'Infinite Space'. The chat navigates through the unique process in which the album was made, a discussion on the merits of community funded projects, lowering the environmental impact of creation, Síomha's time in Palestine, and her upcoming plans in the post release phase of the album.  Thank you very much to Síomha for coming on the show, and all the patrons of the show who have kept the Rebel Matters Podcast on the road through thick and thin. If you would like to back the show and help us to keep creating content like this episode you can visit our Patreon page to see teh various tiers of support.  www.patreon.com/rebelmatters   

This weeks episode is a solo run discussing strategies and routines to handle periods of high workload. I discuss the idea of checking in with ones-self when the going gets tough, actions that create maximal results in relation to the effort it takes to carry out the actions, the transience of stressful periods, and the importance of reminding ourselves that our self worth is more valuable than our work.   

We are back on the road! This is the first episode in a while after my 3 month spell living and working in the Aida refugee camp on @aclaipalestine Today's guest on the show is Echlas Al-Azza, a Palestinian refugee with muscular atrophy living in the Alazza camp. Echlas is also my Arabic teacher whom I visited twice per week to start my Arabic learning journey. The Alazza camp is less than a 10 minute walk from the Aida camp, and Echlas has an amazing story to tell. As with many of the personal stories of Paletinina's living under occupation, you might not even believe they are true unless you heard them straight from the source. In this episode Echlas talked about living with her disability, being intentionally hit by a settler in a car in 1995, her experience in hospital in the '48 lands, learning English and German, becoming a teacher, her volunteer program. Echlas takes volunteers at her home in the Alazza camp to help her around the house, and also provides a kind of cultural exchange for volunteers who are staying with her learning about the political situation in Palestine, food, culture, language, and meeting with other organisations groups and individuals around the west bank. if you are interested in finding out more about Echlas's volunteer program you can send her a message on Facebook (Echlas Al-Azza) drop her an email to echlas2010@yahoo.com  Massive thank you to the supports and Patrons of the show for your patience during this break from episodes. You are a bunch of legends. We have some great episodes planned for the coming weeks and months and cant wait to share them with you. As usual this episode and all the rest of them are available to listen to for free on our website www.rebelmatters.ie and all usual podcast platforms.