Claim OwnershipBabel: Translating the Middle East
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Description
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, senior vice president, Zbigniew Brzezinski Chair in Global Security and Geostrategy, and director of the Middle East Program 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 generous support of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates. All views, positions, and conclusions expressed here should be understood to be solely of those of the speaker(s).
260 Episodes
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Many countries have large trade deficits with oil producers in the Middle East, but Brazil is deep in surplus: it isn’t hungry for oil imports, but the region's consumers are hungry for its meat. A New Mezze from the CSIS Middle East Program.
One pillar of Saudi Arabia’s ambitious Vision 2030 development plan is NEOM, a land development, tourism, and model city project that is projected to cost at least a half a trillion dollars. Last week, NEOM’s CEO left suddenly. Asher Grant-Sasson speaks with Jon Alterman, director of the CSIS Middle East Program, about NEOM, its challenges, and Saudi Arabia’s economic future.
This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Mohammad Ali Shabani, editor of Amwaj.media, a London-based news site focusing on Iran, Iraq, and the Arabian Peninsula countries. Together, they discuss Iran’s regional strategy and the choices Iran has after a year of rising regional tensions. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Martin Pimentel and Will Todman to discuss what the new U.S. administration will mean for Iran, its conflict with Israel, and its relations with the United States.
Transcript, "Mohammad Ali Shabani: Iran After October 7," CSIS, November 12, 2024.
Just over a week ago, Israel conducted multiple waves of airstrikes against military sites in Iran. These strikes were in response to Iran launching a barrage of ballistic missiles against Israel a few weeks prior, which marked the second direct Iranian missile attack on Israel this year. Asher Grant-Sasson speaks with Jon Alterman, director of the CSIS Middle East Program, about the unprecedented back-and-forth between Israel and Iran, and its implications on regional geopolitics.
This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Amjad Iraqi, a senior editor at +972 Magazine and an associate fellow with Chatham House. He is also affiliated with Al-Shabaka, an online Palestinian policy network. Together, they discuss how Palestinian citizens of Israel have been experiencing the Gaza war, and the future of Palestinian communities in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Natasha Hall and Leah Hickert to discuss how virtual communities influence national political movements.
Transcript, "Amjad Iraqi: The Future of Palestinians in Israel," CSIS, October 29, 2024.
Last week, Israeli forces killed Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas and one of the main architects of the October 7th attack. Less than a month earlier, Israel assassinated Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah for the last three decades. Leah Hickert speaks with Jon Alterman, director of the CSIS Middle East Program, about how recent events have impacted Israel’s trajectory.
Jon Alterman, "What Does Yahya Sinwar’s Death Mean?" CSIS, October 17, 2024.
This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Dr. Lina Khatib, an associate fellow in the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Chatham House, which she led for seven years and where they first met. Together, they discuss the escalation between Israel and Hezbollah, its regional impacts, and the emerging vacuum in Lebanese politics. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Will Todman and Leah Hickert to discuss the challenges of creating a comprehensive U.S. strategy in the Middle East and the ways Great Power competition affects the region’s conflicts.
Transcript, "Lina Khatib: War Spreads to Lebanon," CSIS, October 15, 2024.
One year after the tragedy of October 7th, Israel has launched a ground invasion into southern Lebanon to counter Hezbollah. Although it remains unclear how far Israel intends to send troops into Lebanon, Israel has issued a new evacuation order that reaches farther north than previous orders. Leah Hickert speaks with Jon Alterman, director of the CSIS Middle East Program, about the invasion and the likelihood of escalation.
Jon Alterman, "Seizing Middle East Opportunities," CSIS, September 30, 2024.
This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Peter Schwartzstein, an environmental journalist who reports on water, food security, and the conflict-climate nexus in around 30 countries, mainly in the Middle East and Africa. Together, they discuss Mr. Schwartzstein's new book, The Heat and the Fury: On the Frontlines of Climate Violence, as well as the outlook for climate adaptation in the Middle East, and the ways in which environmental initiatives can build peace in the region. Then, Leah Hickert continues the conversation with Will Todman and Natasha Hall to discuss how international donors and local civil society groups help Middle Eastern governments adapt to climate change.
Transcript, "Peter Schwartzstein: Climate Violence in the Middle East," CSIS, October 1, 2024.
On September 23rd, Israeli airstrikes killed more than 180 Lebanese in the country’s deadliest day of conflict since the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war. This is one of the most recent developments in the ongoing escalation between Israel and Hezbollah. Leah Hickert speaks with Jon Alterman, director of the CSIS Middle East Program, about why this escalation is occurring and possible off-ramps for the violence. A new Analysis from the CSIS Middle East Program.
Jon Alterman, "Israel-Hezbollah Escalation," CSIS, September 24, 2024.
This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Hussein Ibish, a senior resident scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, a columnist for The National, and a regular contributor to The Atlantic. Together, they discuss popular mobilization across the Middle East since October 7th and what it indicates about regional politics. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Natasha Hall and Leah Hickert to discuss why some regimes chose to co-opt rather than suppress protest movements, and the ways in which the Arab world’s protests over Gaza differ from those in the past.
Transcript, "Hussein Ibish: Popular Mobilization Since October 7," CSIS, September 17, 2024.
Last week, the Israeli military recovered the bodies of six hostages from a tunnel in Gaza. According to Israeli authorities, more than 60 living hostages, and the bodies of approximately 35 others taken captive during the Hamas-led attack on October 7th, are still in Gaza. Leah Hickert speaks with Jon Alterman, director of the CSIS Middle East Program and executive director of the CSIS Commission on Hostage Taking and Wrongful Detention, about the tactics and implications of the ongoing hostage crisis in Gaza.
This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Dr. Isabelle Werenfels, a senior fellow in the Middle East and Africa Division of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs in Berlin. Together, they discuss how North African states are asserting their newly found leverage over European states, and how European states are changing the ways they approach North Africa. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Will Todman and Leah Hickert to discuss how strategic competition is evolving in North Africa and what it means for Western interests in the region.
Transcript, "Isabelle Werenfels: North Africa's Relationship with Europe," CSIS, September 3, 2024.
Egyptians traditionally celebrate Sham Enessim, the country’s pharaonic spring holiday, by eating faseekh, a fermented mullet. But in the weeks prior to this year’s holiday, which fell on May 6, the price of seafood shot up 180 percent. In Port Said, where seafood is generally an affordable staple protein, the price hikes hit especially hard.
Salmah Elmasry, "A Fishy Business in Port Said," CSIS, July 30, 2024.
This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Michelle Nunn, the president and CEO of CARE. Michelle leads more than 8,000 people working around the world in crisis response, health and education access, gender equality, and climate change. Together, they discuss the unique challenges of Gaza's humanitarian crisis by contextualizing it among other global crises. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Natasha Hall and Leah Hickert to discuss how global attention on Gaza has affected the conflict and the humanitarian response, and whether sustained humanitarian engagement will translate into the “day after.”
Transcript, "Michelle Nunn: The Challenges of Gaza's Humanitarian Crisis," CSIS, August 20, 2024.
On July 31, Ismail Haniyeh, a senior leader of Hamas, was killed in Tehran. Just a day earlier, an Israeli airstrike killed a Hezbollah commander in the suburbs of Beirut. Leah Hickert speaks with Jon Alterman, director of the CSIS Middle East Program, about how these events may continue to escalate, and their potential impact on the Israel-Hamas war. A new Analysis from the CSIS Middle East Program.
Jon Alterman, "Do Leaders Want Gaza Negotiations to Succeed?" CSIS, August 9, 2024.
1Last week, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Washington D.C. to deliver a speech to a joint meeting of Congress. Leah Hickert speaks with Jon Alterman, director of the CSIS Middle East Program, about the implications of Netanyahu’s visit on U.S. foreign policy in the region. A new Analysis from the CSIS Middle East Program.
This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Dr. Hasan Alhasan, a research fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) based in Manama, Bahrain. Prior to joining IISS, he served for five years on the staff of the Crown Prince of Bahrain as a senior analyst on foreign policy and national security. Together, they compare Gulf states’ foreign policies and their underlying strategies. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Will Todman and Leah Hickert to discuss how Gulf states handle shifts in U.S. strategies and what the Gulf expects from its Great Power partners.
Transcript, "Hasan Alhasan: The Strategies of Gulf States," CSIS, July 23, 2024.
Masoud Pezeshkian recently won the runoff election to replace Iran's late president, Ebrahim Raisi. This week, Leah Hickert speaks with Jon Alterman, director of the Middle East Program at CSIS, about Pezeshkian and the election's impact on regional politics. A new Analysis from the CSIS Middle East Program.
Jon Alterman, "The Impacts of Raisi's Death," CSIS, May 20, 2024.
This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Ambassador Karim Haggag. After an Egyptian diplomatic career that spanned more than 25 years, Amb. Haggag is now a professor of practice at the American University in Cairo's School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, the director of the university’s Middle East Studies Center, and a non-resident visiting scholar with Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. Together, they compare the war in Gaza to other crises in Egypt’s history, discuss Egypt's complicated relationships with Israel and Hamas, and anticipate Egypt's role in the "day after" in Gaza. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Natasha Hall and Leah Hickert to discuss U.S. diplomatic leverage in the Middle East.
Transcript, "Karim Haggag: Egypt's Balancing Act," CSIS, July 9, 2024.
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At 20:30 he basically says that Americans who support Palestinians support murderers who want to kill the Jewish people. If Palestinian= murderer no wonder he doesn't care that Israelis are killing so many of them. And the host doesn't challenge him on this? Also says Palestinians should have just left Gaza, and if they didn't it's their fault or Hamas' for not letting them leave. But if Israeli Egypt and the sea weren't options then where were they supposed to go? Again the host doesn't call BS
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The Iranians like the Americans and eqger to resumed plotical, economocal and cultural relationships the disconnected since 1978. You may also to consider people's views are quite different with the governments.
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very insightful conversations