Babel: Translating the Middle East

Latest Episodes:

Marsin Alshamary: Iraq's Political Crisis Aug 23, 2022

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This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Marsin Alshamary, a research fellow with the Middle East Initiative at Harvard’s Belfer Center. We talk about the ongoing crisis happening outside of Iraq’s parliament, why the current intra-Shi’a conflict is unique and how it echoes similar crises before, and where Iran and the United States stand. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Will Todman and Lubna Yousef about what a lighter U.S touch in Iraq might look like moving forward.

Marsin Alshamary , "The Sadrist Gamble: A Make-or-Break Moment for Iraq?," Italian Institute for International and Political Studies, August 4, 2022.
Marsin Alshamary, “The protester paradox: Why do anti-Islamist activists look toward clerical leadership?” Brookings, April 2022.
Jane Arraf and Jon Alterman, " Not Your Mother's Iraq," CSIS, March 1, 2022.
Transcript, "Iraq's Political Crisis," CSIS, August 23, 2022.

A Mezze: Egypt's Killer Cuisine Aug 16, 2022

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Egypt doesn't have the most famous Middle Eastern cuisine, but few would call it deadly. That may be changing. A new Mezze from the Middle East Program at CSIS.

Accountability in Syria Aug 09, 2022

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This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Ambassador Beth van Schaack, the State Department's ambassador-at-large for Global Criminal Justice. They talk about holding perpetrators of atrocities accountable in Syria, how accountability and justice fit into U.S. foreign policy, and the ways in which accountability looks different the for winners and losers of conflicts. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Natasha Hall and Lubna Yousef, the Middle East Program's new Research Associate.

Beth van Schaack, Imagining Justice for Syria (UK: Oxford University Press, 2020).
Natasha Hall and Will Todman, "Lessons Learned from a Decade of Humanitarian Operations in Syria," CSIS, April 22, 2021.
Beth van Schaack, “Good Governance Paper No. 13: Atrocities Prevention and Response,” Just Security, October 29, 2020.
Transcript, "Accountability in Syria," CSIS, August 9, 2022.

A Mezze: Taking the Heat Aug 02, 2022

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More and more people in the Middle East are accusing their governments of lying about the weather—falsely reporting lower temperatures to skirt UN regulations that prevent workers from laboring in searing conditions. Government weather reports may be off by a few degrees, but the critics are off by a mile. A new Mezze from the CSIS Middle East Program.

Henry Rome: Nuclear Negotiations with Iran Jul 26, 2022

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This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Henry Rome, deputy head of research at the Eurasia Group and a longtime watcher of Israel and Iran. They talk about negotiations for a new nuclear deal with Iran and why they've stalled, scenarios for where negotiations and Iran's nuclear program might go from here, and how the region might change if Iran successfully develops a nuclear weapon. Then, Jon continued the conversation with Natasha Hall and Caleb Harper about what the lack of a deal would mean for the United States and U.S. policy in the Middle East.

Henry Rome, “The Limits of a New Iran Nuclear Deal,” Foreign Affairs, March 8, 2022.
Henry Rome, “The status of negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program,” International Institute for Strategic Studies, January 25, 2022.
Henry Rome and Eric Brewer, “Getting to ‘No’ With Iran,” War on the Rocks, December 1, 2021.
Jon Alterman, "Iran Will Still be a Slog," Defense One, January 25, 2021.
Transcript, "Nuclear Negotiations with Iran," CSIS, July 26, 2022.

A Mezze: Lebanon's Brewing Crisis Jul 19, 2022

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Some Lebanese investors have turned to the beer and wine industry as the Lebanese economy tumbles and holding dollar deposits in banks becomes riskier. But a crisis is brewing, and alcohol may not be able to provide a pathway out of it. A New Mezze from the Middle East Program.

Gregory Gause: President Biden's Trip to Saudi Arabia Jul 12, 2022

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This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Gregory Gause, professor of international affairs at Texas A&M University and a longstanding expert on Saudi Arabia. They talk about President Biden's upcoming trip to Saudi Arabia and what both sides hope to get out of the meeting, why Gause thinks that the United States should focus on order in the Middle East, and how the energy transition will impact U.S. engagement with the region. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Natasha Hall and Danny Sharp to break down how President Biden and U.S. officials are thinking about the president's trip.

Gregory Gause, "America's New Realism in the Middle East," Foreign Affairs, July 6, 2022.
Jon Alterman, "Rethinking Saudi Arabia," CSIS, June 23, 2022.
Gregory Gause, "The Price of Order," Foreign Affairs, March 2022.
Gregory Gause, "The United States is the Last Check on MBS's Power," Foreign Affairs, March 30, 2021.
Transcript, "President Biden's Trip to Saudi Arabia," CSIS, July 12, 2022.

A Mezze: No Milk, No Honey Jul 05, 2022

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Israel has more vegans per capita than any other country. Within that community is tremendous diversity.

Frank Verrastro: The Middle East and Global Energy Markets Jun 28, 2022

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This week on Babel, Jon speaks with Frank Verrastro, a senior advisor with the Energy Security and Climate Change Program at CSIS. They talk about price volatility in the energy market, President Biden's trip to Saudi Arabia and its potential effect on the oil supply, and the current bottlenecks affecting the production of oil and natural gas. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Will Todman and Caleb Harper about how Middle Eastern oil producers are thinking about the near-term future of energy and what that means for U.S. relationships in the region.

Frank Verrastro and Albert Helmig, "High Gasoline Prices Put Focus on Refiners, No Easy Solutions Ahead," CSIS, June 28, 2022.
Jon Alterman, "Who Needs Oil When You Have Land?" CSIS, March 28, 2022.
Jon Alterman, "A New Revolution in the Middle East," CSIS, August 9, 2021.
Transcript, "The Middle East and Global Energy Markets," CSIS, June 28, 2022.

A Mezze: The DNA of Moroccan Society Jun 21, 2022

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Street children are an unfortunately common presence on Morocco’s city streets. Police in Agadir think they have an answer: DNA testing. A new Mezze from the CSIS Middle East Program.