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How Authoritarianism Came to One Istanbul Street
Journalist and author Suzy Hansen joins Faisal Al Yafai on the podcast to discuss what one Istanbul neighborhood reveals about Turkey under Erdoğan, and her new book, "From Life Itself."
Syria’s New Power Brokers
A year on from Assad's fall, the areas that formed the backbone of the armed revolution, above all Halfaya and rural Idlib, have become the primary recruiting ground for Syria's new ruling elite.
A Champions League Final the Gulf Can’t Lose
Qatar owns soccer club Paris Saint-Germain. Emirates Airlines' name is plastered on Arsenal’s shirt and stadium. Whoever wins the Champions League final, the Gulf can’t lose.
The Lost Consciousness of Pre-Islamic Arabic Poetry
A century ago, a vital debate was ignited over the authenticity of pre-Islamic Arabic poetry. Among the many reasons to accept the antiquity of much of this body of verse is the distinct mindset it reveals, in which humans stand fully within the natural world.
As Somalia Unravels, Its Elites Are Absorbed in Their Own Rivalries
Mogadishu's cafes are full, its skyline is changing and tourists are arriving — but it is in the midst of a constitutional crisis. Somalia's fragile revival is now hostage to an elite absorbed in its own rivalries.
Inside Hezbollah’s Two-Decade Project To Shape the Houthis
In 2007, two operatives, one Iranian, one from Hezbollah, sat down to dinner at a restaurant outside Damascus and started discussing Yemen. What followed was nearly two decades of military assistance, mediation, media training and political network-weaving that turned a marginal movement into the most powerful actor in Yemen.
The Surprising Reach of Pope Leo’s New Doctrine on AI
In his first encyclical, Pope Leo XIV framed AI as a moral test of the age. The document drew unusually broad reactions and underscored his emerging role as a surprising moral voice at a time of growing institutional mistrust and AI anxiety.