Middle East
Hind Rajab and the Dying Light
If Hind’s voice is a reproach, then the humanity of her would-be rescuers is redemption, however inadequate. For the hours they spent with her — comforting and reassuring the child on one hand, berating and beseeching her tormentors on the other — they expiate our collective guilt.
Palestine 1936
The Great Arab Revolt of 1936 is one of the most important and least remembered events in the history of Arab-Zionist relations in Palestine. A newly released film and a recently published book provide thought-provoking insights and a new understanding of how events that occurred 90 years ago shaped the present.
Christmas Celebrations Are Returning to Bethlehem
Festivities have returned to the place of Jesus’ birth after a two-year pause, but the shadow of Gaza, occupation and genocide was never far from the muted celebrations.
While Israel’s Construction Industry Falters, Apartments Are Springing up Around Ramallah
Stripped of their permits since Oct. 7, 2023, 160,000 West Bank Palestinian construction workers are desperate to return to work in Israel. Meanwhile, as radical settlers terrorize Palestinians in one part of the West Bank, Palestinian citizens of Israel are finding peace of mind by purchasing apartments in another.
‘The Course of Empire’ Reimagined in Middle Eastern Graffiti
Through graffiti, political expression has slipped out of gilded frames and onto concrete and stone. Modern murals in Cairo, Bethlehem and Amman show how the measure of a civilization lies not in its monuments, but in people insisting on being seen, claiming space and painting themselves back into the landscape.
The Army Prosecutor, the Sexual Assault and the Videotape
Israel’s military advocate general has been arrested for illegally leaking a video that shows military prison guards carrying out a brutal sexual assault on a Palestinian prisoner. Liberal Israelis see her as a guardian of democracy, while the far right regard her as a traitor.
The Power Shifts Changing the Middle East
The Financial Times’ Raya Jalabi and writer Robin Yassin-Kassab join Faisal Al Yafai on the podcast to discuss elections in Iraq, and White House visits by the leaders of Syria and Saudi Arabia.