What the Islamic Republic Learned About Repression From Syria
Like the Assad regime that it assisted, the Islamic Republic has responded to mass protests by committing atrocities and claiming that protesters are foreign-backed “terrorists and spies.” The parallels indicate how far Iran is willing to go to ensure its survival.
The Limits of the UAE’s Push for Food Security
The UAE has spent billions of dollars on African farmland, supposedly to address its food insecurity. Now, with Iran blocking food shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, the strategy’s limits are being revealed.
Alawite Politics After Assad
After the fall of the Assad regime, Syria’s Alawites are navigating collective blame, political exclusion and existential fear. With no armed force, no institutions and no trusted leadership, their turn to religious protest reflects not sectarian ambition but a desperate search for survival.
The Academic Justification for Male Supremacy
Jeffrey Epstein funded academic research to the tune of around $20 million per year. As the names of academics started appearing in news headlines, I checked the Epstein files myself, which revealed the names of old associates and painted a picture of a cozy circle of mutually supporting elites.
What the Epstein Files Reveal About How Elites Operate
Sarah Chayes and Emran Feroz join Faisal Al Yafai on the podcast to discuss the Epstein files, transnational networks of kleptocracy from Afghanistan to Washington, and what elites do when they think we’re not watching.