Mehdi Unfiltered

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EXCLUSIVE: Mehdi Interviews Piers Morgan on Gaza, Israel and Trump Nov 02, 2024

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You’ve seen Piers Morgan interview Mehdi plenty of times over the past year. This week, Mehdi and Morgan flipped roles for the first time, with our editor-in-chief sitting down for an exclusive interview with the controversial British broadcaster in New York.

Their discussion starts with Mehdi offering a twist on a classic Morgan question: “Do you condemn Benjamin Netanyahu's terrorism against the children of Gaza?”

As difficult as it is for a defiant Morgan to use the T-word to describe Netanyahu’s brutal actions in Gaza, he goes even further to avoid using the G-word to describe Israel’s relentless assault on the embattled strip.

“I think to use the word genocide about what Russia is doing there is the wrong term, and I shouldn't have used it,” says Morgan.

“I look at Piers Morgan, I say here's this uncensored person, very bold, outspoken, opinionated man. He says, ‘Syria is a genocide. Burma is a genocide. Ukraine's a genocide’… Israel? ‘No, it's not a genocide,’” Mehdi says to Morgan, perhaps stunned by the latter’s new stance.

Oh, and wait until you hear Morgan’s response to Mehdi’s questioning about his amplification of the ‘beheaded babies’ lie!

Our editor-in-chief’s exclusive interview with the outspoken British broadcaster was taped a day after former president Donald Trump held a hate-filled rally at New York City’s Madison Square Garden, which Morgan proudly attended.

“My view of Trump has evolved a lot because I know him personally, I like him personally, some of the things he does I think are very effective, some of the things he does I think are completely wrong,” Morgan tells Mehdi.

Mehdi presses Morgan to defend his friend Trump’s insane rhetoric, unhinged behavior, and long-standing racism. Morgan, you’ll be shocked to hear, pushes back hard.

Watch the full and explosive interview above to hear why Morgan doesn’t think Netanyahu is a terrorist and doesn’t think Trump is a fascist, and what he makes of the US and UK media bias in favor of Israel.

If you are a paid subscriber to Zeteo (thank you!), this exclusive interview is available to you in full, and you can also leave your comments below. Free subscribers get a 15-minute preview of this special interview with Piers Morgan. So do consider becoming a paid subscriber today!

Mehdi Challenges Imam Who Endorsed Trump Oct 31, 2024

We all know Donald Trump said and did a lot of racist, offensive, and Islamophobic things when he was president the first time round - and is promising to do so again if he wins a second term next week.

It seems, however, that he has not said or done enough to deter the endorsement of a growing minority of Muslim Americans, such as Imam Belal Alzuhairi of The Great Mosque in Hamtramck, Michigan.

“I never claimed that he is infallible,” Alzuhairi tells Mehdi. “I never claimed that he is a saint. I never gave him a blank check. I see him as a leader who, in our discussions, committed to supporting values that matter deeply in our community… We said these are the five points, he said I agree 100% with you.”

The imam not only stood on stage at a Trump rally in Michigan to announce his endorsement, in what became a viral online moment, but he also separately met with the Republican nominee – something the Harris campaign, reportedly, refused to do (though they have met with other Muslim and Arab groups in that key swing state).

“The other party [Democrats] does not have any time for us and does not have any regards for us as Muslims,” says Alzuhairi. “Now, they understand that… we're not in your pockets. I mean, we have alternatives.”

Mehdi, of course, pushed back on the idea that Trump can be trusted or considered “the peace candidate” or the candidate of “family values,” in the provocative words of Imam Alzuhairi.

You’ll have to watch the full interview above to hear how heated their discussion got!

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“Muslims Don’t Matter”: Baroness Sayeeda Warsi on Racism, Islamophobia, Riots and More Oct 29, 2024

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Note to Subscribers: Interested in chatting with Mehdi on Zoom TODAY? He’ll be hosting a Town Hall ‘Ask Me Anything’ where he’ll be talking about this year’s elections, voting, and taking your questions! This live online event will be at 3pm PT / 6pm ET / 10pm GMT and is exclusively for paid subscribers. Please register via the link at the bottom of this email.

“In this country, four generations on, we don’t matter, we don’t belong, that we’re still othered, and that it doesn’t matter how much blood, sweat, life you give, you’re still seen as the enemy within.” — Sayeeda Warsi

Muslims don’t matter. That’s not just the reality for a lot of Muslims living in Western countries like the United States and the United Kingdom, where Islamophobia has gone mainstream in both politics and the media.

It’s also the name of a new book from Sayeeda Warsi, the British baroness and former Conservative cabinet minister, which examines her fear and heartbreak when it comes to the way in which even the perception of being a 'Muslim’ results in dehumanization and bigotry.

Mehdi recently traveled to London and sat down for a wide-ranging conversation with Baroness Warsi on the growth of Islamophobia in the US and the UK and how Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza, in the wake of the Oct 7th attacks, has resulted in further hatred directed at Muslims across the globe.

The two also discuss the state of the UK’s Conservative Party with Warsi, who served as the country’s first Muslim cabinet member, recently resigning the Conservative whip, saying her party has moved too far to the Islamophobic right.

“I think that the Conservative Party's relationship with the Muslim community is deeply toxic and flawed,” Warsi tells Mehdi.

Gaza also comes up, with Warsi condemning the UK’s support for “war crimes” against the Palestinians under both Conservative and Labour governments. In 2014, Warsi quit David Cameron’s Conservative-led coalition government in protest over the then Israeli assault on Gaza.

Watch the full interview above, it’s a great conversation. Paid subscribers can watch the full 37-minute interview, while free subscribers can watch the first 5 minutes.

Paid subscribers: Register via the link below for today’s Town Hall with Mehdi…

“Say ‘I Am Not Joe Biden!’”: Michael Moore Urges Kamala Harris to Break with the President on Gaza Oct 25, 2024

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With less than two weeks to go until election night, Academy Award-winning filmmaker and Michigan native, Michael Moore, talks to Mehdi about why Kamala Harris is losing voters in that key swing state.

“We're not going to ask the Muslim community to vote for the people that are funding and doing the slaughter. So that means Vice President Harris is going to lose about 40,000 Arab and Muslim votes.” Moore tells Mehdi.

To his point, Harris is already feeling the brunt of this as new polls show her lead over Donald Trump has disappeared and, although time is running out, Moore argues that the answer to the vice-president’s problem is clear.

“You don't have to do a lot,” he says. “You just have to say that when you are president on January 20th, this ends, the slaughter of civilians ends. I'm not going to continue that… I am not Joe Biden.”

Many have pleaded with the Harris campaign to break away from Biden’s policies on Gaza since she began her presidential campaign, but to no avail. Moore is disappointed with the lack of change so far, as you’ll hear him discuss in the interview.

Watch the full conversation above to hear how history could be repeating itself and what a lot of Arab-American voters are telling Michael Moore is their preferred alternative to the two-state solution in the Middle East.

If you are a paid subscriber, the interview is available in full, and you can also leave your comments below. Free subscribers get a six-minute preview of this special interview with Michael Moore. Do consider becoming a paid subscriber today!

'The General's Plan': Meet the Man Behind Israel’s Genocidal Attack on Northern Gaza Oct 22, 2024

On this week’s episode of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered,’ Mehdi Hasan exposes the details of “The General’s Plan”:

"Israel enjoys such impunity on the international stage - thanks to the blind support it gets from the United States - that its political and military leaders don’t just bomb, besiege, starve, and ethnically cleanse civilian areas, they brag about it. They advertise it. They give their genocide a name. The General’s Plan."

Watch Mehdi’s monologue above to learn who Giora Eiland is, how this plan came to be and how, despite Israelis openly bragging or discussing it, there’s been very little coverage of it in Western media.

Joining Mehdi on the show is Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna of California’s 17th congressional district. Khanna was recently part of a Congressional delegation that traveled to the Middle East and also met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“I think it's important for progressive voices to be in the room, and I was very, very, candid with him,” says Khanna.

Mehdi pressed Khanna on several topics, including the options the US has when it comes to holding Israel accountable and why it doesn’t use them.

Khanna said: “Should the United States have done more, and should we do more, to hold Netanyahu accountable? The answer is absolutely yes… if I were to say, look, you know, we're going to continue to not give you offensive weapons, etc., he will say you were on the losing end of that [Congressional] vote.”

Watch the full interview above to hear more from Khanna about what Democrats are and not doing in the campaign, and why he thinks Elon Musk could have been on the side of the Democrats this election.

In the show, Mehdi reminds us of the Biden administration’s terrible record so far, but also of the awful policies that Donald Trump (and the people around him) implemented in Israel and Palestine when he was president. He is joined by Palestinian-American political analyst Omar Baddar to discuss this and what a potential Trump presidency might mean for Palestinians.

“Donald Trump by the time he left office, was indisputably the most pro-Israeli, anti-Palestinian president in US history. We don’t need to rehabilitate or whitewash Donald Trump in order to critique Biden or Harris,” says Mehdi.

Baddar adds that “The Biden Harris policy so far on Palestine and Israel has been just a despicable horror from beginning to end. It's been a year now of watching this genocide unfold day after day on our phones.” And, on Trump’s recent assertion that Biden is holding Netanyahu back, but that he would allow Bibi to ‘finish the job’, Baddar says: “That could be the significant escalation and flat out endorsement from the White House of Israel taking over all of North Gaza and pushing Palestinians completely out of it and beginning that process in the West Bank as well, and saying that we recognize, you know, Trump already recognized the legitimacy of Israeli settlements and what that expansion looks like.”

Listen to the full conversation above where they also cover the current situation in Northern Gaza, Trump’s anti-Palestinian track record, and why there’s even an illegal Israeli settlement named after him.

DON’T MISS THIS LIVE EVENT TOMORROW:

The F Word: Fascism, Trump, and the Threat to American Democracy

In a special event organized by Substack, Mehdi and Steve Schmidt of The Warning with Steve Schmidt will discuss the political dynamics surrounding Donald Trump and the MAGA movement, consider the broader implications for US democracy, and won't shy away from tough questions about the movement’s ideological direction.

When: Wednesday, October 23, 8 p.m. ETWhere: Only on this link, for the Substack App

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ICYMI: John Legend Says Hollywood 'Afraid' of Speaking Out on Gaza Oct 21, 2024

“I don't think we should be writing blank checks to any country that we're allied with. I think that's a very sensible way to conduct foreign policy.”- John Legend on conditioning aid to Israel

Last week, we shared a wide-ranging exclusive interview with John Legend that covered a lot of ground: from homelessness and criminal justice, including current propositions on the ballot in California, to the 2024 presidential election and the war in Gaza.

We thought it’s worth re-sharing the section on Gaza, Israel, and Kamala Harris in particular. That’s the part you can watch above, now available, free, to all of our subscribers. (Paid subscribers to Zeteo can still also watch the full discussion here.)

Legend answers Mehdi’s questions, from what Harris needs to do to win votes in swing states like Michigan, to the dehumanization of Palestinian children, to why more people in Hollywood aren’t speaking out the way he is now.

“They've seen people lose their agent or lose jobs from it,” Legend tells Mehdi, in a rather blunt exchange. “They're afraid they'll suffer professional consequences.” He also shares why he’s choosing to be vocal and isn’t scared of being “punished”.

It’s a great discussion, and the first time the award-winning artist has opened up in this way on Israel and Gaza. Give it a watch and let us know your thoughts in the comments!

As always, if you believe in the work we’re doing at Zeteo, do consider becoming a paid subscriber. We are not supported by ads or corporate sponsors, and so all the work we do has been possible because of individual paid subscribers, who we cannot thank enough.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zeteo.com/subscribe

‘The Efforts Are Not Enough’: Rep. Ilhan Omar on Kamala Harris’s Failing Outreach to Muslim Voters Oct 18, 2024

In this new episode of Mehdi Unfiltered, Mehdi calls out Democratic Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris for her failure to win over Arab American and Muslim voters and distinguish herself from Biden when it comes to Gaza and conditions on aid to Israel.

“Just saying ‘Trump Trump Trump’ is not enough for most people; the reality is that most people, Muslims included, don’t just want to vote against something, they want to vote for something,” Mehdi says.

Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar joins Mehdi to discuss Harris’s performance among Arab Americans, telling Mehdi that Harris’s efforts to win over the Arab American and Muslim community are, “not enough.”

“You cannot do outreach to a community when you cannot deliver the thing that they are asking for. And so, unless and when that happens, I am afraid that these voters are not going to come over and vote for her,” Omar says.

Watch Mehdi’s full interview with Rep. Omar to hear the two discuss more on Harris’s strategy, AIPAC, and Omar’s own re-election campaign.

Palestinian poet Mosab Abu Toha, who managed to escape occupied Gaza at the beginning of the war, talks to Mehdi about Israel’s continued assault on the strip, as well as the US media’s failure to uplift Palestinian voices during the war.

“The only people we are seeing on TV are some officials who are giving us some statistics, some statements, condemning. But we don't get to hear the real people about whom they are talking,” Abu Toha says. “I have been trying to go on CNN and BBC, and there is no room for us to speak about our personal stories.”

Listen to the full conversation to hear more about Israel’s plans for Northern Gaza, what it’s like for Abu Toha to try to communicate with family in Gaza, and his reaction to Israel’s killing Yahya Sinwar.

Sudan

With more than 8 million people displaced, there are no signs of a ceasefire in Sudan. The genocide continues as the nation’s army fights against the Rapid Support Forces; a paramilitary group supported by a few other countries.

On the show, Mehdi interviews Sudanese artist and producer Khalid Albaih, who discusses the latest on the war and how the targeting of journalists is affecting it.

“It's incredibly hard to find any source of credible news. And that makes even the situation worse because the war became kind of a media war between the videos that the RSF soldiers shoot about themselves and the videos that the army soldiers shoot about themselves,” Albaih says.

Be sure to watch the rest of this week’s episode above. Let us know what you think and who you would like to see on the show next.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zeteo.com/subscribe

‘We Will Dahiya You’: Mehdi Breaks Down the Israeli Military Plan For Flattening Lebanon and Gaza Oct 11, 2024

On this week’s episode of Mehdi Unfiltered, Mehdi explains the Israeli military policy driving their genocidal campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon.

“The Dahiya doctrine calls for the Israeli military to intentionally, deliberately, cynically, inflict long-lasting and disproportionate damage onto the enemy, no matter how bad the civilian consequences,” Mehdi says. “AKA, exactly what we’re seeing in Lebanon now, and in Gaza for the past year.”

Why doesn’t the US media give Israel’s Dahiya doctrine any coverage? Mehdi does a deep dive into the history behind the policy, that of which mainstream media has failed to bring attention to.

To discuss Israel’s new front of the war in Lebanon, Lebanese academic and London School of Economics Professor, Fawaz Gerges joins the show. Gerges talks to Mehdi about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s latest message to the Lebanese people, in which Netanyahu called on the Lebanese people to, “stand up and take their country back” from Hezbollah or face the same suffering Israel has inflicted on Gaza.

“What Benjamin Netanyahu and his coalition are trying to do is to instigate a civil war in Lebanon. They're calling on the Lebanese to rise up to revolt against Hezbollah, knowing full well that Hezbollah is an integral part of the social fabric [in Lebanon],” Gerges says.

Watch the full discussion above to hear Mehdi and Fawaz discuss why Israel’s military strategy is so ineffective, the killing of Hezbollah Leader Hassan Nasrallah, and how the war in Gaza could change the international order forever.

Also on the show, human rights activist Dr. Mahrang Baloch joins to tell Mehdi the story of how after being named one of Time Magazine’s 100 Next, the Pakistani government barred her from traveling to New York to be recognized by Time and attend their gala this week.

Baloch, who has been speaking out against Pakistan’s abuse and killing of the country’s Baloch minority, tells Mehdi that she was prevented from traveling to New York for the gala because the government knew she “would expose their war crimes in Balochistan.”

“For years, our people have suffered enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and unimaginable human rights violations. And the US is [Pakistan’s] biggest ally ,” Baloch says to Mehdi. “Not a single person that belongs to the Baloch community is safe.”

Listen to Mehdi’s interview with Dr. Mahrong Baloch to hear more about what the recognition from Time Magazine means to her and her minority community, as well as why other countries are turning a blind eye to Pakistan’s abuse.

After Elon Musk’s surprise appearance at a Trump rally this past weekend, Mehdi is joined by the authors of “Character Limit,” – a new book about Musk and his disastrous Twitter takeover.

"From bringing back formerly suspended accounts like that of former President Donald Trump and a variety of white supremacists and card-carrying antisemites, to then suspending accounts of journalists tracking the location of his jet using public sources, one thing is clear about Elon Musk, he is not the hero in this story,” Mehdi says. “But he thinks he is.”

Watch Mehdi’s interview with the authors, Ryan Mac and Kate Conger, to hear more about Musk forming his own echo chamber, his decisions to reduce content moderation on Twitter, and his rise into the far-right MAGA world.

Be sure to watch the rest of this week’s episode above. Let us know what you think and who you would like to see on the show next.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zeteo.com/subscribe

John Legend Talks to Mehdi about Gaza, Trump, and Criminal Justice Reform Oct 09, 2024

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When most people think of John Legend, they think of his hit songs and albums, his ‘EGOT’ status, and even his role on ‘The Voice.’ But Legend also happens to be an A-list celebrity who isn’t afraid to speak out on political issues, even when it comes to more contentious causes.

Not only is Legend a longtime advocate for criminal justice reform, but he also has a long history supporting the Democratic Party, endorsing Hillary Clinton in 2016, Joe Biden in 2020, and now, Kamala Harris.

But Legend, in this exclusive and wide-ranging conversation with Mehdi, isn’t afraid to criticize Harris and the Democrats’ unconditional support for Israel’s assault on Gaza, nor does he hold back from denouncing the dehumanization of Palestinians and the ongoing killing of Palestinian kids.

Watch the 45-minute interview above (free subscribers can watch the first 11 minutes), in which the two discuss the latest initiatives on prison reform from Legend’s nonprofit Free America, as well as the award-winning musician’s views on the DNC and Kamala Harris, Donald Trump and J.D. Vance, and of course, Israel, Gaza, and U.S. arms sales. '

Don’t forget to join the conversation in the comments below!

A Year After Oct. 7, Israeli Hostage Family Condemns Netanyahu Oct 07, 2024

This interview is part of Zeteo’s special content marking one year since the attacks on Oct. 7 and the genocidal war in Gaza that has followed.

12 months after a brutal attack and the hostages have yet to be released. 12 months of an incomprehensible genocide that has shown no signs of coming to an end. We are 12 months on, and rather than ending the war on Gaza and bringing the hostages home, Israel has now expanded its violent campaign to new frontiers, with the tacit approval of the US, endangering millions more across a whole region - perhaps even beyond.

Over the last week and in the coming days, Zeteo is sharing special coverage marking the one year since October 7. Scroll down to see some of the pieces you may have missed.

Neither Mehdi nor the guest on today’s segment of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’ expected this to be what one year on from October 7 would look like. Zahiro Shahar Mor, the nephew of former Israeli hostage Avraham Munder, 79, came on the show back in June to share the story of his uncle who was taken hostage by Hamas. Mor was also protesting and campaigning, along with many other families of hostages, for a ceasefire and an end to the violence.

In August though, Mor’s uncle’s body was tragically found in a tunnel in Khan Yunis. Officials have not determined the cause of death. For Mor, the loss of his uncle has only made him louder in opposition to his government’s handling of the genocide, the conflict, and the hostages still being held in Gaza.

“A year has passed, and you know every chance, every avenue, every road, to some kind of agreement was torpedoed,” says Mor. “I don't believe Netanyahu one bit. He speaks differently in Israel and abroad.”

Watch Mehdi’s interview with Mor above. His pain and frustration are palpable. His loss is unspeakable, because it could have been preventable. He’s now calling for external, international invention to help bring the violence to an end.

Be sure to catch Mehdi’s interview with Gaza-based Palestinian journalist Hind Khoudary, who joins the show from occupied Gaza to mark one year of the genocide. She speaks about feeling abandoned and the media’s complicity in the dehumanization of Palestinians:

More of our content marking one year on from October 7:

If you value the work we’re doing, consider becoming a paid subscriber so that we can continue our mission of offering original and meaningful content that highlights voices and perspectives you won’t find in the mainstream news.

For those of you who are already paid subscribers, thank you. We hope you appreciate what we’re doing at Zeteo and recognize your role in making all of it possible. None of this would be possible without you.

Stay tuned for more…

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‘The Whole Western Media Was Complicit’: Hind from Gaza on One Year of Genocide Oct 06, 2024

This interview is part of Zeteo’s special content marking one year since the attacks on Oct. 7 and the genocidal war in Gaza that has followed.

Processing what Palestinians in occupied Gaza have been living through for a whole year now is nearly an impossible task, and yet, much of mainstream media continues to ignore or deny Israel’s war crimes in the strip.

But Palestinian journalists like Hind Khoudary, the guest on this special segment of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’, are putting their lives on the line to fight against media complicity – literally. Since the start of the war, Khoudary has amassed nearly 1.5 million followers between Instagram and Twitter, putting her life on the line as she reports on the frontline of an ongoing genocide. Constant Israeli bombardment, the killing of Palestinian journalists, and regular internet outages make Khoudary’s voice invaluable for Gaza and those trying to stay informed about Gaza.

Over the last week and in the coming days, Zeteo is sharing special coverage marking one year since October 7th. Scroll down to see some of the pieces you may have missed.

Khoudary is one of the few remaining journalists in occupied Gaza, with Israel having spent the past year killing at least 127 journalists and media workers there, and continuing to block foreign journalists from entering the strip. After all the bloodshed, she tells Mehdi how disappointed she is to have seen so little support from her colleagues in the West.

“Not only they abandoned us, but the whole Western media was complicit,” says Khoudary.

“We are the only source for all of these news organizations to report on what's happening,” she explains to Mehdi, adding that she is not only reporting on the horror stories in Gaza, but living them too.

“It's not only like we're reporting this, but we're also living every single detail. Like when we report about famine, we're not eating food, when we report about diseases, we’re being sick, when we report about people not being able to leave, we’re also not being able to leave.”

Watch the full interview above, and also see Khoudary react to an old interview of hers from 2017, as well as describing what life in Gaza is like today.

More of our content marking one year on from October 7:

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zeteo.com/subscribe

Ta-Nehisi Coates Talks to Mehdi About Israel, Palestine, and Apartheid Oct 05, 2024

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On the heels of the release of his latest book “The Message,” his first nonfiction work for seven years, the award-winning author and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates joined ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’ to discuss the book’s focus on Palestine, and the reception it has received from the mainstream media – including a shocking interview on CBS. In their discussion, Coates discusses topics for the first time since the start of his book tour – including his view of President Biden’s Zionism, and his advice to Vice President Kamala Harris on arms sales to Israel.

For his new book, which explores how mainstream narratives shape and sometimes distort our experience, Coates traveled to Senegal, South Carolina in the US, and the occupied West Bank.

“What I'm trying to do with this book is get out of the way. I'm trying to clear space, hopefully for Palestinian narrators and storytellers, and in a larger sense, you know, for Arab storytellers at large,” he tells Mehdi.

The Palestine section of his book was under attack early in the tour, with one interview on CBS going viral for the bigoted framing and aggressive nature of the questions that Coates was asked by host Tony Dokoupil.

“I was a little surprised, and then I realized what was going on, I was in a fight,” he says, about that interview. “So it was right there, you know, as a pop quiz, but I had studied.”

Mehdi asks Coates about the Biden administration and its steadfast support for Israel - while silence on Palestinian suffering. “[Biden] basically said to a Jewish audience ‘We know you wouldn't be safe without Israel’… That's your job, Joe… Are you saying that you're not going to protect Jewish Americans, who are Americans?” asks Coates, referencing remarks made by the president during a White House meeting with Jewish-American leaders last October.

As for Kamala Harris, the jury is out, he says, but the hope is there. “I hope Kamala will be better… the struggle is not just our skin color, it’s principle also. This is extremely, extremely important… it's a kind of soul death for the struggle to just say, hey, we're just going to go along with this,” Coates explains.

Watch the full interview above to discover why Ta-Nehisi Coates decided to come back from his break on nonfiction writing, what it took for him to publish a book critical of Israel at a time like this, and what he says that makes Mehdi “feel seen.”

Paid subscribers can watch the full discussion above (free subscribers can watch a 5-minute preview). And for paid subscribers, don’t forget to join the conversation in the comments below!

Be sure to check out more of our content marking one year on from October 7:

Mehdi in Malaysia: Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim Rails Against the West’s ‘Sheer Hypocrisy’ On Gaza Oct 04, 2024

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“The sheer hypocrisy of many of the countries in the West to condone this [genocide in Gaza], to me, is shocking. It’s appalling. And therefore we have to speak up.” - Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim

The story of Anwar Ibrahim is one of the most remarkable in modern day politics.

After being kicked out of the Malaysian government by his own mentor in 1998, Ibrahim quickly became the leader of Malaysia’s opposition movement, only to later be imprisoned on false and politically motivated charges.

Today, Ibrahim has gone from sitting in solitary confinement to sitting in the highest seat in Malaysian politics, after winning the premiership in 2022 at the ripe age of 75. He now leads one of the world’s fastest growing economies, and one of the most diverse countries in his part of the world, which also happens to be a Muslim-majority democracy.

Mehdi traveled to Kuala Lumpur to sit down with Prime Minister Ibrahim for a wide-ranging interview on his fascinating political journey; his growing ties to Russia and China; Trump, Islam and Islamophobia; and of course, his ferocious criticisms of the Gaza genocide and Western support for Israel.

Paid subscribers can watch the full discussion above (free subscribers can watch a 10-minute preview). And for paid subscribers, don’t forget to join the conversation in the comments below!

Hezbollah, Lebanon, and Israel: Five Things You Need To Know Sep 27, 2024

On this week’s ‘Mehdi Unfiltered,’ Mehdi unpacks Israel’s “violent and reckless” assault on Lebanon and the false propaganda behind it.

“The Israeli government wants you to believe that this is all about security, about protecting ordinary Israelis at the Northern border. And that this war isn’t against Lebanon or the people of Lebanon, but only against Hezbollah,” Mehdi explains. “The problem is that, like with Gaza, their ministers can’t stop sounding genocidal in public when they talk about Lebanon.”

American University of Beirut professor Karim Makdisi joins the show to discuss Israel’s latest attacks on Lebanon – including Israel’s explosive pager attacks – and how Israel’s offensive is only increasing Lebanese support for Hezbollah.

“It is a pure act of terrorism,” Makdisi tells Mehdi. “They didn't even want to kill. They wanted to maim and blind people, you know, several thousand people… and these are the kinds of things, ironically, where those that deeply oppose Hezbollah in Lebanon become a lot more sympathetic.”

Watch the monologue and panel interview – which also features the Center for International Policy’s Matt Duss, former Bernie Sanders foreign policy advisor – to hear more about the humanitarian toll in Lebanon, how likely it is that Iran will get involved, and how another war could impact the US presidential election.

Also on the show, Mehdi is joined by renowned author and historian William Dalrymple to discuss his latest book, ‘The Golden Road: How Ancient India Transformed the World’. The book makes the case that, for over a millennia, India was an international powerhouse that shaped civilizations around it – it was ‘the heart of ancient Eurasia’ – and that its advances and influence have been erased. The two also discuss Israel’s war in Gaza and why William has been so outspoken while other authors and historians have remained silent.

“I have the freedom to speak out,” he tells Mehdi. “If, as an author, you know something to be untrue and you know a great injustice is going on, it's your duty to do this.”

Be sure to watch this week’s episode above and tell us what you think about Mehdi’s monologue, the discussion on Lebanon and William Dalrymple. We love hearing from you!

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zeteo.com/subscribe

A Civil War in America? Two Experts Sound the Alarm on Trump's Second Term Sep 19, 2024

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Bomb threats to schools in Ohio attended by immigrants, an assassination attempt on a presidential candidate, and an increase in threats to federal judges are just a few examples of the heightened level of political violence in the United States.

Much has been written about Donald Trump’s hateful rhetoric and incendiary language but what will happen if he loses the election? A study last year showed that violence is gaining mainstream acceptance, with one-third of Republicans saying that violence may be the answer to saving the US.

As the election approaches, can we totally discount the idea of a ‘civil war’ in the US?

Some say that this has all been a long-time coming. Jack Goldstone, an expert on Civil Unrest, practically predicted January 6th, writing alongside Peter Turchin less than two months before the 2020 election: “Is the US likely headed for still greater protests and violence? In a word, yes.”

In fact, Goldstone had already predicted over 25 years ago that in the 21st century, the US would elect a populist America-first leader who would inflict division and chaos onto the country.

Jack Goldstone, Professor of Public Policy at George Mason University joins this episode of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’ together with one of the top experts on fascism, New York University’s History Professor Ruth Ben-Ghiat, the author of ‘Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present.’

“What it would mean is an end to the lawful processes that we believe in. Revolutions have changed, they're more peaceful than they used to be, and we could have civil strife that changes our institutions,” said Goldstone.

Ben-Ghiat cautioned that as “we saw on January 6th, [for them] violence is the way you change history. And that goes back to fascism, and it's also part of communism… This is what demagogues do, they have to condition people to see violence differently.”

Watch the important, and at times disturbing, discussion above to hear the analysis of this particular political moment, what role language and rhetoric play in setting the stage for upheaval, and even whether a coup may be in the cards.

EXCLUSIVE: Mehdi Interviews the Mother of the Palestinian-American Child Stabbed to Death After Oct. 7th Sep 18, 2024

On October 14, 2023, a week after the Hamas attacks on Israel, and just days after Joe Biden falsely claimed he had seen photos of beheaded Israeli babies, a 6-year-old Palestinian-American boy called Wadee Alfayoumi was brutally murdered in his home after being stabbed 26 times. His mother, Hanaan Shahin, was also stabbed and left critically injured.

Shahin’s landlord, 71-year-old Joseph Czuba, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, and, crucially, two counts of hate crimes. Czuba pleaded not guilty and faces trial later this month.

On Tuesday, in the wake of a contentious hate crimes hearing in the Senate in which Palestinian voices were not platformed and in which Wadee’s name was barely mentioned, Mehdi sat down with Shahin and civil rights attorney Maaria Mozaffar, from the Muslim Civic Coalition, for an exclusive interview. They talked about Shahin’s memories of Wadee, the ‘Wadee Act’ in the House and Senate, and her conversations with Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.

Please do watch the full interview with Hanaan Shahin, which we are not pay-walling and making free to all subscribers, above.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zeteo.com/subscribe

Trump's Assassination Attempt; Banning the Word ‘Zionist’; The Terrorizing of Haitian Immigrants Sep 17, 2024

This week, we have a bonus episode of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’ because there’s no shortage of news to cover.

On Sunday, we saw another assassination attempt on former President Trump at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida, with the alleged shooter having an AK47-type rifle on him. As upset as the Republicans are, their outrage over this second assassination attempt on Trump has its limits. It stops at gun control.

Congressman Maxwell Alejandro Frost, a Democrat from Florida, the first member of Generation Z to be elected to Congress, and the former National Organizing Director for March for Our Lives, the youth-led movement in support of gun control, joins Mehdi in studio to talk about the attempted attack and the failure of gun reform in in the US so far.

Also on the show, Zeteo contributor, award-winning actor and activist Cynthia Nixon discusses Barnard College’s latest restrictions on its faculty when it comes to speech, freedom of expression, and pro-Palestinian sentiment on its campus. Nixon is a Barnard alumna and had a lot to say, including on the recent suspensions of students, which left many without health insurance and, in some cases, even housing.

And finally, justice correspondent for The Nation, Elie Mystal discusses Republican vice-presidential candidate JD Vance’s dangerous peddling of fake stories about Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio. It’s led to serious threats against Springfield schools, hospitals, city officials, and the city’s Haitian population. Mystal is of Haitian descent and recently wrote for the Nation: ‘White People Have Never Forgiven Haitians for Claiming Their Freedom’. He joins the show to talk about his piece; the racist, Republican-led narrative being pushed; and the bigger picture.

We hope you enjoy this week’s bonus episode of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’. Be sure to join the conversation in the comments - including telling us what you thought of this week’s guests. (We really do read what you have to say!)

And in case you missed it, be sure to check out Mehdi’s exclusive interview with Jill Stein from Monday.

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EXCLUSIVE: Mehdi Interviews Jill Stein Sep 16, 2024

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In this special episode of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’, Green Party presidential candidate Dr. Jill Stein and her running mate professor Butch Ware join ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’ for a wide-ranging and challenging interview.

Stein sat down for an hour-long interview with Mehdi where he covered her stance on Israel and Gaza; whether she helped Trump in 2016 and whether she is helping him again in 2024; her own controversial record on Russia and Syria; and the long-standing failures of the Green Party on her watch.

The almost 1-hour interview, above, with Stein and her running mate Ware, is available in full for our paid subscribers. (Free subscribers get a preview.)

For those of you who are paid subscribers, do join the conversation in the comments.

A NOTE FROM MEHDI:

I see some lively and critical discussions in the comments below. To be clear, I do tough interviews. Jill Stein and Butch Ware merited a tough - but fair - interview. I'm amused that some people enjoy my interview style when it is a guest they dislike, but dislike my interview style when it's a guest they like. I hope you all watch the full interview, which we did at length, to give both guests an opportunity to address multiple contentious issues.

ICYMI: In Gaza ‘There Are Almost No Christians To Marry Anymore’ Sep 15, 2024

The Occupied Palestinian territories of Gaza and the West Bank are home to one of the oldest Christian communities in the world. But today in Gaza, the Israeli bombardment of churches and Palestinian Christian neighborhoods is pushing that community to the brink of extinction. And in the occupied West Bank, Israeli settler expansion and travel restrictions not only make it difficult for Palestinian Christians there to practice their faith, but can even classify them as illegals in their own home.

Khalil Sayegh, a Palestinian Christian and former resident of both occupied Gaza and the occupied West Bank, joins Mehdi to discuss the consequences of Israel’s war, and how Israeli aggression isn’t only killing the Palestinian Christians of today, but the Palestinian Christians of tomorrow as well.

“We’re less than a thousand [Christian] people in Gaza, we’re allowed to only marry Christians, and there are almost no Christians to marry anymore,” says Khalil, who lost his father and sister in Israel’s genocide against Palestinians.

Watch the full interview above to hear why Sayegh is not allowed to return to his homeland of Palestine, his reasoning as to why Christian evangelicals in the US are turning a blind eye to the Christians of occupied Gaza, and his heartbreaking stories of loss from the embattled strip.

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EXCLUSIVE: Jamaal Bowman on AIPAC, Losing His Seat, and Trump vs Harris Sep 11, 2024

On this week’s episode of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’, Mehdi breaks down former President Donald Trump’s “embarrassingly incoherent but shamelessly dishonest” debate performance on Tuesday night, after Kamala Harris successfully baited him and exposed “deluded Trump.”

“Trump's people told Trump not to get baited. But the thin-skinned man-child that he is, he just couldn't stop himself. He took the bait. Every time,” Mehdi says.

US Congressman and “Squad” member Jamaal Bowman joins Mehdi to discuss his recent primary defeat, the role AIPAC played in it, and his continued fight for social justice in all its forms.

On his frustration about how difficult it is to push for progressive change, Bowman says: “It seems like whenever we try to do a transformative piece of legislation, it has to include something like a thousand more police, or another billion to Israel, or tax cuts for corporations.”

Watch Mehdi’s full interview with Bowman above to hear him also discuss his views on the debate, and why he thinks so many House Democrats continue to remain silent about Israel’s war on Gaza.

Israel’s Ceasefire Protests: This past weekend, over 700,000 protesters took to the streets in Israel calling for a hostage deal, and criticizing the Netanyahu government.

Palestinian Lawyer and Zeteo Contributor Diana Buttu was one of many to witness those protests. She joins the show to discuss what they were like and how, despite the calls to release the hostages, many of those protesters did not appear very concerned with Israel’s destruction of Gaza.

“People are angry about the economy. They're angry about the fact that this is continuing.

They're angry with Netanyahu. They’re angry with the Haredi [Jews] not going to the army, but not at all any sort of reckoning with what they've done to Palestinians,” Diana tells Mehdi.

If you’re a paid subscriber, be sure to let us know what you think in the comments, and who you would like to see Mehdi talk to next! And if you’re not a paid subscriber, what are you waiting for? We want to hear from you too.

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The Billionaire Oligarchs Funding Project 2025’s ‘Unpopular, Self-Enriching Policies’ Sep 08, 2024

Most Zeteo subscribers are already well-aware of Project 2025 and its anti-democratic agenda. But what a lot of people aren’t aware of is all the billionaire oligarchs who are using dark money to fund it.

David Sirota, host of ‘The Lever’s’ new podcast series Master Plan, joins Mehdi to explain what these groups have to gain from Project 2025, and how they’ve become so successful when it comes to thwarting democracy and its’ rules.

“In a one person, one vote democracy, it's much harder for oligarchs and corporations to pass the unpopular, self-enriching policies they want,” Sirota tells Mehdi. “They need to use the thing that they have the most of – money – to rig that and short circuit that process.”

Watch the full conversation above to hear Sirota explain what his new investigative podcast series, “Master Plan,” has revealed about dark money, buying elections, and just how dangerous Project 2025 could be.

Also, check out The Lever’s “Master Plan” on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts!

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zeteo.com/subscribe

A Military Crackdown? Trump Is Planning to Use Troops Against Protesters Once He's Re-Elected Sep 05, 2024

On this week’s episode of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered,’ Mehdi breaks down one of Donald Trump’s most fascistic plans yet – using the US military to crush dissent.

“It’s not a conspiracy theory, nor is it a secret,” Mehdi says, as he brings the receipts exposing Team Trump’s plan to use the Insurrection Act to crack down on protesters via military force, starting on day one of his second term.

“We're not exceptional,” Rosa Brooks, former Obama Defense Department adviser, tells Mehdi. “I think one thing that Americans tend to think is that somehow bad things that happen in other places couldn't possibly happen here, but we are not immune from the forces of history.”

Watch Mehdi’s monologue, and his full conversation with Rosa Brooks and Yale University fascism expert Jason Stanley, above.

—

Christians in Gaza: Khalil Sayegh, a member of Gaza’s Palestinian Christian community, joins Mehdi in the studio to discuss how Israel has repressed and attacked his community, both before and especially since October 7, 2023, and how the US evangelical elite has ignored the Christians of Gaza.

“My sister was entering a room with my infant niece, literally walking into the room and just before she got into this room, the room itself just collapsed,” Sayegh tells Mehdi, referencing the recent Israeli strike on a house next to Gaza’s Saint Porphyrius Church.

—

Khizr Khan is back: Also on the show, Mehdi talks to legendary Gold Star father Khizr Khan, on set, about Trump’s recent stunt at Arlington Cemetery, in violation of federal law, and why it matters. “Trump is void of accountability, sense of responsibility. That is why we see that civility in our political discourse is at its lowest,” says Khan, who lost his son Humayun in Iraq in 2004 and famously denounced Trump at the Democratic National Convention back in 2016.

Oh and check out the big Washington Post story on how Zeteo, with your support, is going from strength to strength. Thank you!

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Trump Isn't Anti-War. It’s Time to Debunk This Dangerous Myth Sep 03, 2024

“I was the first president in modern times to start no new wars,” Donald Trump declaimed at the RNC in Milwaukee in July.

That statement, like pretty much every statement Trump makes, is false. On multiple levels.

And yet, I keep meeting people – in leftwing circles, in Muslim-American circles, in Arab-American circles, and beyond – who tell me that they’re voting for Trump in November because they believe him; they think that he isn’t a hawk and that he killed fewer Muslims than Democratic presidents have.

“At least he didn’t do a genocide like Biden,” I hear some say.

It’s an argument that gives me a proper headache because it simply is not true. In fact, it’s total and utter nonsense.

So, when it comes to Trump and the topic of war, and especially the killing of Muslims in the Middle East, it’s time for a thorough debunking.

Please do watch and share my video explainer above.

(It’s such an important issue that we have kept it freefor all subscribers!)

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ICYMI: Mehdi Interviews Spokesman for Anti-Taliban Fighters Sep 02, 2024

Twenty years, trillions of dollars, and the longest war in US history failed to eradicate the Taliban. Now, with the Taliban having taken back the country – and having implemented some of the most troubling restrictions on women we’ve seen from them – what’s next for Afghanistan and its people? And what’s been happening since the mainstream media mostly stopped covering the story?

The head of foreign relations for the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan (NRF) Ali Maisam Nazary joins Mehdi Unfiltered in Washington, D.C. to talk about his coalition group’s efforts to force out the Taliban and take back the country.

But how effective have they been so far – including in their efforts at getting foreign help? Are they even popular in the country? And what was their record when their members were part of the last government?

Watch the interview above, including Nazary explaining the dire state of women in Afghanistan at this very moment (he calls it gender apartheid). And for paid subscribers, join the conversation in the comments and let us know what other countries you want to see us covering!

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Why the Media Needs to Break Up With Trump Aug 30, 2024

Donald Trump has a seriously abusive relationship with the media. He bashes them as “enemies of the people,” tries to discredit them as “fake news,” and even calls for reporters and anchors to be jailed, yet much of the so-called ‘liberal’ US media seem to give him a pass on so much of the shocking stuff that he says or does.

No lessons seem to have been learned from the 2016 debacle, and our media is now bent on trying to find some sort of ridiculous equivalence between the ordinary exaggerations and misstatements of the Democrats and the brazen gaslighting and fabulism of Trump and the GOP. By trying to look ‘neutral’ and ‘unbiased,’ the press has effectively assumed the role of Trump normalizers, at best, and Trump apologists, at worst.

So what’s wrong with our ‘liberal’ media? And how do we fix it before it’s too late?

To answer these questions and more, Mehdi was joined in the studio this week on ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’ by two of the US media’s most eloquent critics. Journalist and author Wajahat Ali, who publishes the Left Hook Substack newsletter, and veteran reporter and author James Fallows, who was chief speechwriter to President Jimmy Carter, and publishes the Breaking the News Substack newsletter.

“I think it's time for fact checkers to retire for this election cycle.”

“There's a bias towards normalizing things that are objectively crazy and being afraid to say, this is crazy.”

Watch the panel discussion above to hear the full conversation about how the media lost their way, why truth is no longer prioritized in today’s mainstream media landscape, and listen out for at least one very dark, but very funny joke, from Wajahat!

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EXCLUSIVE: Mehdi Speaks to UNRWA Head. ‘People in Gaza Waiting for Their Turn To Be Killed’ Aug 27, 2024

In an exclusive interview with ‘Mehdi Unfiltered,’the Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, speaks to Mehdi on the threats that face both Palestinians in Gaza and his own organization.

“I don't know how much worse it can become, I have to say, we are losing and we are lacking words to describe the situation,” says Lazzarini. UNRWA is currently fighting a polio outbreak in Gaza, but a successful vaccination campaign there is nearly impossible given Israel’s bombardment. “This is a communicable disease which doesn't know any border and could also spread in the entire region, including Israel,” Lazzarini tells Mehdi.

In addition to disease, UNRWA faces repeated Israeli attempts at dismantling their entire organization. From accusations that staffers took part in the Oct. 7 attack, to allegations that Hamas builds tunnels under UNRWA schools.

“I do not have the military expertise to look at what's underneath the entire Gaza Strip… All these allegations need to be investigated. First, we need to investigate the killing of the UN staff,” says Lazzarini.

Watch the full conversation above to hear what the Commissioner-General also has to say about war crimes in Gaza.

Also on the show: why can’t U.S. news organizations get their coverage of Donald Trump right? Mehdi is joined by journalist and author Wajahat Ali as well as former chief speechwriter to President Jimmy Carter, James Fallows, to talk about it.

The conversation includes Ali calling for “fact checkers to retire for this election cycle,” Fallows on the “failure of imagination” among liberal white journalists, and a dark joke about detention camps from one of the two that we’ll leave for them to tell.

Then there is Afghanistan, where the situation for women and minorities gets worse by the day, under Taliban rule, but which is being ignored by much of our mainstream media.

“What we see today in Afghanistan is gender apartheid. Women have been erased from public life. Their basic rights have been taken away from them,” Ali Maisam Nazary, Head of Foreign Relations for the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan (NRF), tells Mehdi on this week’s show.

Watch the full interview to hear more on the status of women in Afghanistan. Mehdi also challenges Nazary on the fighting in the Panjshir Valley, the NRF’s record in the last government, and the difficulties that lie ahead.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zeteo.com/subscribe

BREAKING: Democrats Deny Request for Palestinian Voice on Their Convention Stage Aug 22, 2024

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CHICAGO – In this special episode of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’, we’re at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, around the corner from the United Center, at the Palestinian-American owned OUD Coffee and Cafe. Mehdi is joined in this exclusive interview with prominent voices from the Uncommitted Movement – and just moments after it was revealed that the DNC would not be allowing a Palestinian to speak at the convention.

Joining ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’ are co-chair of the Uncommitted Movement Layla Elabed, who briefly spoke with Vice President Harris recently; former U.S. Representative from Michigan Andy Levin, a progressive, Jewish critic of Israel; and Georgia State Representative Ruwa Romman, the first Muslim-American woman, and first Palestinian-American to be elected to the state’s House of Representatives.

Just minutes before this recording began, the panel got word that the DNC officially confirmed a Palestinian speaker would not be brought to speak on stage at the convention on Thursday, despite officials suggesting to the movement earlier that it could happen. The DNC had gone so far as shortlisting potential speakers, according to unnamed members of the movement who spoke to Zeteo.

“I really thought I could take something back after this week,” Romman said. “And now I don’t know what I’m going to say to [my community].” Romman was the Palestinian-American who most likely would have been the speaker on stage Thursday evening.

The Uncommitted Movement has been a prominent anti-war, pro-Palestinian coalition that’s secured more than 700,000 votes during the Democratic Party primaries, including more than 100,000 in the swing state of Michigan alone. It has thirty delegates from 8 states here at the DNC.

So, how does the movement feel after the DNC denied a Palestinian voice a spot on the convention stage, especially after they featured the parents of an Israeli-American hostage in Gaza on stage Wednesday night? Do members believe they’ve made headway with the Democratic party in recent months, what’s been happening behind-the-scenes? And, the big questions, what happens next – and what’s the plan for November?

Watch the full conversation above and join the conversation in the comments below!

“If I Was A Palestinian, I Would Fight Against Israel’s Occupation”: Former Israeli Security Chief Ami Ayalon Aug 13, 2024

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Throughout the course of Israel’s brutal 10-month assault on Gaza, Ami Ayalon – the former head of Israel’s Security Service, Shin-Bet, and the ex-commander of the Israeli Navy – has emerged as one of the Netanyahu government’s chief critics, along with several other former Israeli military officials.

In this wide-ranging interview for ‘Mehdi Unfiltered,’ Ayalon tells Mehdi why he believes Benjamin Netanyahu and Itamar Ben-Gvir are a threat to Israeli democracy, why it is time to “stop the occupation,” and why he would fight against Israel if he were a Palestinian.

“[Netanyahu] did everything in order to increase the power of Hamas and to make sure that Abu Mazen and the Palestinian Authority will not be able to create a unified government,” Ayalon says. “I think that too many Israelis do not understand that we shall not have security unless we shall stop the occupation. And we shall not have democracy unless we shall end the occupation.”

As reports of Israeli torture and rape against detained Palestinians continue to emerge, Mehdi also confronts Ayalon over allegations of torture against Shin Bet on his watch - and the former security chief admits to Mehdi that he has “many regrets.”

Watch the full interview, above, to see Mehdi debate Ayalon on whether or not Israel is committing war crimes in Gaza by bombing civilian targets. Please note that free subscribers can only watch the first ten minutes as a preview.

If you’re a paid subscriber, join the conversation below - we love hearing what you think!

‘The Fish Rots from the Head’: British Muslim MP Blames Politicians and the Press for the Shocking Far-Right Riots in the UK Aug 08, 2024

The streets of Britain took a 180-degree turn from leftists protesting Israel’s genocide in Gaza to far-right fascists rioting in favor of the expulsion of migrants and Muslims from the country. On this week’s episode of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered,’ Mehdi speaks to British Member of Parliament Zarah Sultana, the youngest Muslim woman ever elected to the House of Commons, on what’s happening on the ground and what’s driving this shocking wave of right-wing political violence.

“These racist, Islamophobic, far right riots haven't come from nowhere, they are a culmination of racist headlines and racist framing by our media and our political class,” she tells Mehdi. And it isn’t just newspaper headlines or political rhetoric that has helped exacerbate these riots, Sultana explains.

“You've got people like Elon Musk who are also perpetuating this conspiracy… we see how he has used Twitter to amplify anti-migrant rhetoric, anti-trans rhetoric,” she says.

Watch their full discussion above, unpacking the horrifying riots that have led to more than 500 arrests and are still keeping people on high alert. This week, thousands of anti-racist counter-protestors gathered in public, to take a stand against the far-right, amid a heightened police presence.

Also on the show, Mehdi speaks with liberal YouTube star Brian Tyler Cohen about the state of the Harris v Trump U.S. presidential race and the ongoing radicalization of the Republican Party. With his new book ‘Shameless: Republicans' Deliberate Dysfunction and the Battle to Preserve Democracy,’ releasing soon, Brian doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to the modern MAGA-led GOP.

“The case is that Republicans are not who they have claimed to be in terms of their historical branding… and I think exposing the reality of the situation that we're living in… will kind of pry them [Americans] away from the spell that Republicans have put on them,” says Brian.

That spell Brian talks about is one that is rarely broken by mainstream media, but rather protected through ‘both sides’ normalizing coverage of Trump’s insane rhetoric. “They [the mainstream media] feel this obligation somehow to continue on as these neutral observers that have no skin in the game,” Brian tells Mehdi, who he also interviewed for his new book.

Do watch the full show above and, for paid subscribers, be sure to let us know in the comments below what you think of the show and who we should have on next!

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zeteo.com/subscribe

Meet the Israeli Teenager Who Chose Prison Over Serving in Gaza Aug 05, 2024

Among the thousands of Israelis of age to be drafted into the military, teenager Tal Mitnick stands out. Although military service for most Israeli Jews is mandatory, Tal picked a second, much less popular, option: go to prison.

Last December, 18-year-old Tal went to prison for the first time after refusing a mandatory draft. “I felt like I needed to take the stance,” Tal tells Mehdi in this wide-ranging interview, and he has… five times. Tal has been sent to prison on five separate occasions since Oct 7th, for his ongoing refusal to serve - and spent more than 180 days behind bars.

“It was a sacrifice that I was willing to take, to show this voice inside Israeli society,” said Tal.

Locked up, he and other young Israeli conscientious objectors penned a letter to Joe Biden, urging him to stop supporting Israel’s war. But Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the White House last month shows the U.S. president is not listening to Israeli dissidents like Tal. “Anyone that claims to be a friend of Israel, like Joe Biden or Kamala Harris... should stop arming this war,” he told Mehdi.

Of the many important stories that Zeteo has published on how many Israelis see Palestinians, Tal’s story stands apart. In a society that is now rampant with violence, rage, and hate, Tal seeks a peace that fewer and fewer Israelis seem to be keen on.

“The way that we create societal change is by showing people that another way is possible.”

Watch Tal Mitnick’s full interview with Mehdi above, and - if you’re a paid subscriber - do please let us know your thoughts in the comments.

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Project 2025: Everything You Need To Know In Two Minutes Jul 29, 2024

Project 2025, the super-controversial presidential transition project conceived of by the pro-Trump, right-wing Heritage Foundation in Washington DC, is grabbing a lot of headlines these days:

It has been called a “prescription for authoritarianism,” and a “wish list for a Trump presidency” that would “open the door for abuses of political power” and should “send shivers down the spine of anyone who cares about the rule of law.”

But what does it actually say? Most of you don’t have time to read more than 900 pages of right-wing bloviating, but Zeteo has you covered.

Watch Mehdi break down all 30 chapters of Project 2025’s dystopian manifesto in just two minutes flat. (He speaks very fast!)

Start the clock!

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Will Kamala Harris Be Different? Mehdi Asks Congressman Ro Khanna Jul 23, 2024

Two historic events happened in the last week and this week’s ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’ covered both of them.

On the international front…

The International Court of Justice, the ICJ, issued a landmark 83-page opinion on Friday agreeing with the decades-long assertions from Palestinians that Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip is unlawful and should come to an end “as rapidly as possible”. Award-winning journalist and Zeteo contributor Rula Jebreal joins Mehdi to talk about what the historic decision means, what it could lead to, and shares some strong opinions about Vice President Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.

On the domestic front…

For the first time since 1968, a sitting U.S. president decided not to run for re-election. But how will Vice President Kamala Harris fare against Donald Trump? And how do progressive Members of Congress feel about Biden’s decision to bow out of the race? Mehdi spoke to Congressman Ro Khanna of California - who also discusses why he won’t be attending Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech to Congress on Wednesday.

PLUS! JOIN ZETEO TOMORROW DURING NETANYAHU’S SPEECH TO CONGRESS

Mehdi and Zeteo’s new political correspondent, Prem Thakker, will go LIVE on Substack Chats tomorrow, July 24th, at 10:30am reporting on the historic and controversial speech from the Israeli prime minister.

Prem will be on Capitol Hill, both outside with protestors and inside with members of Congress, and chatting live during Netanyahu’s speech at 2pm. Mehdi will also have a lot to say, so join in the conversation with your own thoughts and questions!

This Substack Chat event is open to all paid subscribers. You should receive an email notification once the Chat is live and running.

We strongly recommend downloading the Substack app for a better Zeteo experience - including tomorrow’s chat. See you there!

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My Advice to Kamala Harris on How to Beat Trump Jul 22, 2024

Kamala Harris has now won the endorsements of Joe Biden, the Clintons, and multiple members of the House and Senate. She has raised tens of millions of dollars in less than 24 hours.

But does she have a plan to beat Donald Trump? A clear winning strategy? In this video for Zeteo, here are my seven pieces of unsolicited advice for the vice-president who has now become the likely 2024 Democratic presidential nominee.

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‘Trump would upend our democracy’: Two former Trump officials react to his unhinged RNC speech Jul 19, 2024

There’s a lot to process, pick apart, and debunk from Donald Trump’s 92-minute-long speech at the Republican National Convention. In the latest episode of Mehdi Unfiltered, Mehdi looks past the more ‘somber’ version of Trump that the world saw at the start of his speech, and unpacks just how concerning the rest of it was.

Two former Trump administration officials join Mehdi to talk about the moments that stood out to them: Olivia Troye, who previously served as advisor to former Vice President Mike Pence, and Sarah Mathews, Trump’s former Deputy Press secretary. In the conversation, they talk about what they regret most from working in Trump’s first administration, the lessons they’ve learned from being on the inside, and their biggest warnings to Republicans, Democrats, and everyone in between about what could come in a second Trump White House.

Mehdi also debates Washington Post columnist and Editorial board member Shadi Hamid, who feels Trump does not pose the level of threat everyone else sees in a potential second term. Should we have faith in U.S. institutions to withstand a Trump-style autocracy? What exactly could Project 2025 do? And what’s the matter with the Democrats?

Watch the full show above and let us know what you think in the comments!

You can find Shadi Hamid’s Notebook here.

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Project 2025: Mehdi Debunks Trump’s ‘Desperate’ Denial Of It Jul 17, 2024

In the midst of all the media frenzy over Joe Biden’s age and mental fitness, GOP frontrunner Donald Trump has made one of his most deluded claims yet: That he has nothing to do with the people behind the far-right policy agenda known as ‘Project 2025.’

A bold statement for the GOP’s leading man, especially when you consider his close and long-standing alliance with the right-wing organization behind it: the Heritage Foundation. But beyond that, Trump’s denial begs the question: Did he just suddenly forget about the former staffers of his who worked on the project? People like his former top aide Stephen Miller and his current press secretary Karoline Leavitt?

Watch Mehdi debunk Trump’s desperate and deluded denials, as he goes through just a few of the major players that the former Republican president knows are leading Project 2025.

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Michael Moore on Biden’s ‘Trumpian Behavior’ Jul 11, 2024

The pressure is mounting on President Joe Biden.

Not only is he facing calls to step down as the Democratic nominee from senior people within his own party, but his age has also become the biggest story for every major media outlet.

On the latest episode of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered,’ Mehdi moderates a debate between two D.C. insiders on whether Biden should step aside as the Democratic nominee, after his disastrous debate performance two weeks ago.

Plus, as Hollywood stars like George Clooney call for Biden to step down, watch Academy-Award winning filmmaker Michael Moore tell Mehdi why he thinks keeping Biden in office is “elder abuse.”

A debate on Biden’s candidacy…

Should Biden step down from the 2024 election? Can he defeat Donald Trump once again, after all the frenzy over his long pauses and awkward gaffes during the CNN debate?

Journalist Brian Beutler, who has called for Biden to step down, joined the show for a debate with political scientist Norman Ornstein, who says that though Biden may stutter, “he can govern.” Beutler takes a more critical stance on the Biden campaign, telling Mehdi that the president should step aside as the presumptive nominee because, “he can't communicate extemporaneously in public clearly anymore.”

Ornstein and Beutler also discuss what it would look like for Vice-President Kamala Harris to take over the Democratic Party presidential campaign, whether Biden would still serve out his term, and the media’s lack of coverage over Trump’s many gaffes and lies.

Michael Moore on Biden…

This past week, award-winning filmmaker Michael Moore called for Biden to step down not only as the Democratic presidential nominee, but also as president. Moore tells Mehdi that watching the CNN debate was “heartbreaking” for him.

“My first thought is who let him out on that stage in that condition? Who would do that to their parent or grandparent?”

Moore also accuses Biden of displaying “Trumpian behavior” by refusing to step down.

“Remember Trump when he ran said, ‘I’m the only one who can fix the problem, I alone can fix these.’ ” Moore asks Mehdi. “For Biden to think – and I don't think he thinks this – that he's the only one that is going to do this or the only one that can defeat Trump…it's narcissistic and arrogant to dig in and take this position.”

Moore, who has been very outspoken on Gaza, also talked to Mehdi about Benjamin Netanyahu coming to Congress, Biden’s support for Israel’s “massacre” in Gaza, and how it could cost him the votes of young people in November (if his campaign continues)...

“I tried to just say it as loud as I could right away in October: Please don't go and hug Netanyahu,” Moore said, referring to Biden’s support for the right-wing Israeli prime minister’s war on Gaza.

Watch the full show above and, for paid subscribers, be sure to let us know in the comments below what you think of the show and who we should have on next!

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Mehdi on Israel's Looming War Against Lebanon: Who's Going to Stop Israel From Turning Lebanon Into Gaza? Jul 01, 2024

In the midst of their horrific assault on Gaza, Israel has already started drawing up battle plans for another war – this time with Hezbollah in Lebanon. In this episode, Mehdi exposes the disproportionate Israeli military doctrine that could ultimately kill thousands of Lebanese civilians. Plus, Middle East expert Vali Nasr breaks down what another war would mean for the region.

Also on the show, Mehdi asks US Congress Representative Greg Casar about President Joe Biden’s asylum ban and Representative Jamaal Bowman’s primary loss in New York. Mehdi is also joined by Israeli Historian Lee Mordechai, who recently accused Israel of genocide in Gaza.

Israel and Lebanon…

Mehdi takes viewers back to the 2006 Lebanon War, when Israel developed the Dahiya Doctrine – a military strategy that aims to intentionally inflict long-lasting and disproportionate damage onto their enemies as a deterrent.

“If you think Israel’s attacks on Lebanon in 2006 were disproportionate, if the Dahiya doctrine was bad back then, just think how much worse a war on Lebanon will be now that Israel has barely even gotten a slap on the wrist from its Western allies, especially the United States, for inflicting a full-blown genocide on Gaza!” Mehdi said.

Middle East expert Vali Nasr pointed out that a war in Lebanon with Hezbollah would also be a great danger for Israel themselves, even if Iran and the U.S. don’t get involved.

“Hezbollah has proven itself over 40 years to be a ferocious fighting force. It's the only fighting force that Israel has not been able to crack around it,” Nasir told Mehdi. “Hezbollah is capable of hitting northern Israel in a way that it would become uninhabitable for a long period of time, but if Israel's objective is to enable its population to go back [to Northern Israel], it [a war] will have the opposite effect.”

An interview with Rep. Greg Casar…

Earlier this month, in what was widely seen as an attempt to address his right-wing critics, US President Joe Biden implemented an asylum ban at the Southern border – one that critics say is straight out of Trump’s playbook. Mehdi asked Representative Greg Casar from Texas – a progressive and long-time advocate for immigration reform – what he made of Biden’s controversial move.

“Republicans have set this sort of trap, and it's the oldest trick in the book – distract from Republicans' failures to govern by picking on whichever vulnerable group… Right now, it's overwhelmingly Venezuelan and Haitian moms showing up desperate at the border,” Casar explained.

Mehdi also asked Casar about Representative Jamaal Bowman’s historic primary defeat on Tuesday night, after pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC spent 15 million dollars trying to unseat him.

“There is a clear message trying to be sent to progressives, but frankly to any member of Congress, that maybe infinite money can come into our elections,” Casar told Mehdi. “I think it's on the Democratic Party to stand up and say…no matter who's spending the money, this can't be allowed anymore because it would change our democracy in a fundamentally disastrous way if this happens at every primary.”

An Israeli historian accuses Israel of genocide…

Dr. Lee Mordechai, a professor at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, has become the latest Israeli academic to accuse their own country of genocide, after an extensive research process that led to an almost 100-page paper with over 100,00 footnotes.

“The amount of information that can come out of Gaza is limited. A significant amount of these journalists in Gaza are also being killed. So all this is limited. Nonetheless, I've seen enough evidence, whether by journalists over there, whether by regular people there, and that has convinced me,” Mordechai said.

Watch the full show above and, for paid subscribers, be sure to let us know in the comments below what you think of the show and who we should have on next!

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Mehdi Presses Pro-Israel Democrat on Support for ICC Sanctions & Gaza Destruction: ‘You Voted for a Mafioso Bill’ Jun 20, 2024

Over 70% of Americans believe lobbyists have too much influence – so why do Democrats and the media remain silent when it comes to the most powerful pro-Israel lobby in America, AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee?

In this episode of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’, Mehdi not only calls out AIPAC for helping the GOP meddle with Democratic primaries, but also calls out his main interview guest, Democrat Congressman Dean Phillips, who recently voted to sanction the ICC for requesting an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Plus, Mehdi speaks with world-famous Bangladeshi photojournalist Shahidul Alam on his protest against the war in Gaza and what it has cost him. Watch the full show above.

Pressing Rep. Dean Phillips on his vote against the ICC…

Minnesota Congressman Dean Phillips says he stands for the rule of law. So why did he choose to vote for a bill that would sanction International Criminal Court officials – as well as their families – after the court requested an arrest warrant for Netanyahu’s role in the war on Gaza?

Phillips told Mehdi that he objected to the ICC’s decision because of the fact that Israel is not party to the ICC – a claim that Mehdi rebutted by pointing to last year, when Democrats praised the ICC arrest warrant against Putin for his war crimes in Ukraine, even though Russia is not party to the ICC either.

“Even if we were to agree with you that they're outside the purview, and they [the ICC] would say they're not, it didn't just go after ICC officials, but also quote ‘immediate family members’ of ICC officials. That is mob-like behavior – is it not? To go after family?” Mehdi asked Phillips.

“We have votes in Congress that we know will not end up going anywhere. We have votes that we know will probably be signed into the law. They have very different consequences,” Phillips responded.

“With respect, Congressman. It doesn't matter what your intent is. It matters what you voted for. You voted for a very mafioso bill,” Mehdi told Phillips.

They also debated U.S. complicity in war crimes, whether Democrats value Palestinian life, and Phillips’s own failed presidential bid earlier this year.

Let’s talk about AIPAC…

As AIPAC spends millions of dollars trying to unseat pro-Palestine progressive Jamaal Bowman, Mehdi begs the question: Why does AIPAC, a pro-Israel group that openly brags about their influence over elected officials, rarely get criticized?

“Anti-Semitic tropes about ‘rich Jews’, whether they’re Soros or the Rothschilds or the Jewish community in general, should absolutely be condemned. But that’s not what we’re talking about when we’re talking about AIPAC. We’re talking about a self-described powerful lobbying group,” Mehdi says, adding that the lobbying group, “should be rejected in the same way that we reject, say, the NRA.”

Watch his powerful and timely monologue above.

Artists speaking up on Gaza…

This past March, Bangladeshi photojournalist Shahidul Alam was supposed to curate the first ever edition of the famous Biennale photography exhibition in Germany with three non-European curators. However, the exhibition ended-up being canceled in November due to Alam’s criticism of Israel’s war on Gaza.

“We worked really hard to put together a show that would have been very different. The whole point in inviting initially me and me inviting the others was to bring about a change to the way they'd always done it,” Alam said of the exhibit. “But of course… what they needed was someone who would be non-European, but still follow the European scheme of things.”

Alam of course has not backed down from his criticism of Israel’s war on Gaza.

Watch the full show above and, for paid subscribers, be sure to let us know in the comments below what you think of the show and who we should have on next!

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'Netanyahu Betrayed Us': Hostage's Nephew Tells Mehdi He Wants A Ceasefire Jun 12, 2024

Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu might have expected the entire world to celebrate the news of four Israeli hostages being rescued from Gaza, and the entire world might have done - had it not been at the cost of hundreds of Palestinian lives.

Saturday’s bloody and brutal operation has raised new concerns among many of the Israeli hostage family members, who accuse Netanyahu and his far-right government of deprioritizing the safe return of all the hostages.

Enter Zahiro…

One hostage family member who believes that is Zahiro Shahar Mor, who says there is more reason to fear for the safety of his 79-year-old uncle, Avraham Munder, while he remains captive in Gaza.

Avraham was taken by Hamas on October 7th, along with his wife, daughter, and grandson, all of whom were released during a hostage deal between Hamas and Israel in November - with the exception of Avraham.

His nephew Zahiro tells Mehdi: “Ever since October 8th, everything they [the Israeli government] do is directed at not getting the hostages back,” and that Netanyahu’s government is actively “sabotaging their own initiatives” by rejecting deals that would have secured the release of all the hostages much earlier in the war.

Betrayed by his own country’s officials, Zahiro says Israel’s government “is being taken hostage by the diehard, right-wing, extremist fundamentalists.”

Also on the show, more betrayal …

Zahiro isn’t the only one who felt betrayed on this week’s episode of ‘Mehdi Unfiltered.’ Palestinian Pastor Munther Isaac of Bethlehem’s Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church accuses Christian evangelicals in the U.S. of abandoning their fellow Christians in the Occupied Territories.

“They [US Christian evangelicals] have created a worldview in which support to Israel is integral to this American identity, American exceptionalism, American national Christian identity,” says Munther, a worldview that he thinks would change if they were to visit occupied Bethlehem, for Christians the birthplace of Christ, and see the situation on the ground for themselves.

Munther is no stranger to the apartheid rule of Israel, where government policy and a 708-kilometer separation wall disrupt the worship of thousands of Palestinian Christians.

Recalling conversations with fellow evangelicals from South Africa, Munther says they described the situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories as being “much worse than apartheid,” adding that “you would assume that people would respect what South African theologians, church leaders are saying.”

Watch both interviews above and, for paid subscribers, be sure to let us know in the comments below what you think of the full show and who you think we should have on next.

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Jewish-American Soldier Quits Biden Administration Over Gaza: “I Feel it's Appropriate to Invoke ‘Never Again’” Jun 05, 2024

While Joe Biden struggles to draw a red line for Israel in its genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, a handful of principled officials within the administration are making their red lines very clear.

This week on ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’, Mehdi dives into the latest wave of resignations within the Biden administration over its handling of the war on Gaza, with one outgoing political appointee accusing the president of “making Jews the face of the American war machine.”

The exit interview…

The latest resignation from the Biden administration came into effect just this Monday for Major Harrison Mann. Formerly an official at the Defense Intelligence Agency, and an active-duty U.S. army officer, Mann made headlines for a resignation letter he shared last month to his Linkedin page criticizing the “nearly unqualified support for the government of Israel.”

In one of his first TV interviews since leaving his post, Mann explains to Mehdi the reasoning behind his decision, the role US agencies play in Israel’s ethnic cleansing, and how others in government share his views - but are afraid to air them.

“I also suspected and have increasingly learned even in national security circles that my views are not particularly uncommon or controversial,” says Mann.

Mann, who is Jewish-American, compared the treatment of Palestinians today to the way in which Jews were treated in the run-up to the Holocaust: “It was very easy for me to see in the Palestinians another unwanted population, the way that Jews were in Europe.”

Also on the show: a forgotten war…

One genocide overshadowed by another. This week Mehdi sheds light on the atrocities that are taking place in Sudan but are unable to reach the world. With more than 14,000 people dead, and more than 8 million displaced, the violence in Sudan is still going mostly unnoticed in Western media.

Mehdi is joined by Nesrine Malik, an award-winning British-Sudanese journalist with the Guardian, who has covered the story in Sudan for years. She explains how the lack of information from the ground there is making the situation much more dire, especially when paired with false stereotypes.

“We don't tend to think of war happening in countries like Sudan as a profoundly tragic, destabilizing thing, and more as business as usual.”

Watch both interviews above, and for paid subscribers, be sure to let us know what you think of the full show and who you think we should have on next.

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A Real Beheaded Baby - But In Rafah. May 30, 2024

What has Israel’s relentless assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah revealed about the U.S.? That Joe Biden, has no red line, no pink line, no line whatsoever when it comes to Benjamin Netanyahu.

This week on ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’, Mehdi begins the show with a condemnation of the lack of condemnation for Israel’s deadly airstrikes in Rafah. A decapitated toddler, a massacre of Palestinians in tents, and a complete rejection of an order from the top U.N. court demanding Israel halt its operations in Rafah – none of it led to the U.S. saying much at all.

“We live in a world where non-existent images of imaginary beheaded Israeli children can help launch a genocidal war,” says Mehdi, in his opening monologue, “but actual images of real-life beheaded Palestinian children don’t force the entire world to bring an immediate halt to that war.”

Also on the show…

Ambassador Husam Zomlot, the current head of the Palestinian Mission to the United Kingdom and a member of Fatah spoke with Mehdi about the role of the U.S. in this decades-old conflict, saying it’s “not about Trump or Biden.”

“So far, the U.S. has failed miserably to bring itself to the level of an honest mediator, of a leading force in our international relations,” Zomlot says. “The US has remained, whether Democratic administrations or Republican administrations, has remained completely and utterly biased.”

Zomlot also talked about Nikki Haley signing Israeli artillery shells destined for Gaza, recent recognition of Palestinian statehood by three countries, and what the future of governance in Gaza could look like.

Biden and Black voters…

Recent polling shows Black voters are much less interested in Biden and the Democrats in 2024 than they were in 2020. From feeling that the president hasn’t done enough to earn their vote to complaints over the U.S.’s handling of Gaza, the reasons vary – and some Black voters are even turning to Donald Trump.

So, does Biden have a chance in November if he loses Black voters? Has he taken them for granted? And how big of a role exactly is Gaza playing in Black disillusionment? Don Calloway, a former Democratic member of the Missouri House of Representatives and now a Democratic Party strategist, and Pastor Michael McBride, a founder of Black Church PAC and the lead pastor of the Way church in Berkeley, California joined Mehdi for this debate.

“People do believe that the president and this administration, and by extension, the Democratic Party, has lost its way on this issue [Gaza],” McBride argues. “We believe there has to be a course correction.”

Calloway pushed back. “Black voters do not have and have never had the luxury of being single-issue voters. So, do we care about Palestine? Absolutely… Do we vote against Joe Biden and the interests of Palestine against reproductive freedom? Probably not.”

To hear McBride’s response and more of this exchange, watch the debate above.

Be sure to let us know what you think of the full show and who you think we should have on next.

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Death of a President: What a Helicopter Crash Means for Iran, the U.S., and the World May 21, 2024

“Raisi very much was someone that they were banking on, and now their plans have to go back to square one. On your question about this new guy…his mandate is to do nothing.”

- Iran expert Trita Parsi on finding Raisi’s successor

Since the sudden death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash this week, there have been a lot of hot takes on what this means for Iran. Why does it matter? What does it mean for the Iranian people? This week on ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’, we thought we’d speak to an expert to help us make sense of it all. Have a listen to what author and analyst Trita Parsi had to say.

Plus, former ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo and UN Special Rapporteur Francesca P. Albanese join Mehdi to lay out just how consequential the ICC’s request for Israeli arrest warrants is.

On Iran…

This past weekend, a helicopter crash in the northwest province of East Azerbaijan left no survivors, including Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. His death comes not only as fighting continues between Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel, but also just a little over a month since Iran launched its first-ever direct attack on Israel.

Iranian-American relations expert Trita Parsi joined Mehdi to discuss the elephant in the room – whether there was any “foul play” involved with his death, or if anyone is blaming Israel or the U.S. for the crash.

“The regime has a very clear interest in denying that there could have been anything else but an accident, because if there, for instance, had been an Israeli hand in all of this…it would show that the Iranians failed with their attack last month. They did not establish a new equation. They did not restore deterrence,” Parsi said. “Now, having said that, there’s no evidence that the Israelis were behind this.”

Iran has, of course, said they will be holding new elections on June 28th to choose a successor for Raisi, but Parsi tells Mehdi that participation will once again be low, just as it was in March’s parliamentary election.

“The people have lost faith in the idea that change can come through the ballot box. Now they [Iran] are going to be dealt with a crisis, because if they have even record low elections in this one that is upcoming right now, it really takes away a key thing that they had treated as a dose of legitimacy,” Parsi said.

On the ICC and Israel…

In his monologue, Mehdi called out the GOP’s failed attempt to stop ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan from requesting arrest warrants for the Israeli government over the war in Gaza, after 12 Republicans threatened him and his family in a letter sent in April.

“The GOP – and in fact, all of the Israeli government’s western allies – better start scrambling because in an earthquake move, the chief prosecutor… requested arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and his defense minister Yoav Gallant.”

Mehdi pointed out that Khan’s historic request marks the, “first time an ICC prosecutor has ever gone after the leader of a western country or one of its close allies.”

Former ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo and UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese joined Mehdi to discuss the implications of this request, with Albanese calling it a “game-changer.”

Albanese, who previously issued a report calling Israel’s war on Gaza a genocide, reminded viewers that although this is the first time the ICC is taking major action against an Israeli leader, it does not necessarily mark the first time Israel has committed war crimes.

“There were opportunities and obligations to investigate the [Israel’s] war crimes and crimes against humanity … before the 7th of October. The failure we are under is testament to the lack of effectiveness of that system,” Albanese said. “We can turn the tides now, and this is the challenge of all member states.”

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"Worse than Iraq": Three Former Biden Officials Explain Why They Resigned Over War in Gaza May 16, 2024

“There's just this blind unwillingness to recognize the U.S. does have all the power here – this notion that it’s not really the United States' fault. It is absolutely the fault of the U.S. government.” - Annelle Sheline, former Biden official, on Israel’s war on Gaza

This week on ‘Mehdi Unfiltered,’ three former Biden administration officials join Mehdi to explain how Biden’s support for Israel’s deadly assault on Gaza led them to resign.

Also on this week’s show…

Mary Trump weighs in on her uncle Donald Trump’s hush money trial, a looming presidential debate, and the power-hungry Republicans who are desperate to be Trump’s VP. Plus, Mehdi debunks Israel’s latest attempt at genocide denial.

On Biden resignations…

The protests against Biden aren’t just happening outside the White House. They’ve also been happening within, as several Biden administration officials have publicly resigned over the support for Israel’s war on Gaza.

Three of them – Tariq Habash, Annelle Sheline, and Hala Rharrit – join Mehdi to discuss why they chose to give up their jobs rather than continuing to work for an administration that was aiding Israel in its brutal assault on Gaza.

“It’s worse than Iraq,” Rharrit, a former U.S. diplomat, told Mehdi, adding how she watched pictures “going viral of U.S.-made bombs that would say USA and then would show the children that were killed by those bombs.”

Tariq Habash was a Palestinian-American political appointee at the Department of Education who resigned in January, making him the first Palestinian-American in the administration to do so.

“After months of trying to communicate with the president, with other people in the administration who were representing the president on these policies, it very much felt like there was an exception for Palestinians in terms of his empathy,” Habash said.

Mehdi’s interview with these three former officials was held just hours before interior department staffer Lily Greenberg Call became the first Jewish political appointee to resign in protest of the war.

On Trump…

As Donald Trump weighs his options for a running mate, top Republicans like J.D. Vance and Tim Scott are keen to earn some brownie points with the former president – flocking to his side at the first ever criminal trial of a former president. Mehdi asks Mary Trump, Donald Trump’s niece, why these GOP members are so desperate for a position that almost got Mike Pence killed.

“The promise of power is so overwhelming for them. They literally think that they’re going to be the exception to the rule. And anybody who pledges to shield Donald Trump ends up getting banished, stepped on, or imprisoned,” Mary said.

Mary Trump also tells Mehdi why she’s worried about Biden agreeing to a debate with Donald Trump, the first of which has been set for June.

“It concerns me that he’s legitimized a man who incited an insurrection against his own government. So by putting him up on that stage with him, he’s essentially normalizing him as the presidential nominee.”

On Israel’s genocide denial…

In his monologue, Mehdi calls out the Israeli PR machine for warping the UN’s reporting on identified bodies into a false narrative about a “fake” death toll in Gaza.

“On May 8th, [the UN] provided a number for reported fatalities – again, over 34,000 – but also included a new subset of 24,686 ‘identified’ fatalities,” Mehdi said. “What they’re pretending is some smoking gun evidence of a Hamas cover-up, is literally just the difference between fully identified bodies and unidentified or partially-identified bodies. That’s it.”

Of course, this is not the first time Israel has tried to undermine the Gaza Health Ministry. But as Mehdi points out, Israel’s accusations are nothing but propaganda, especially when you consider that Israel’s own military relies on the Gaza health ministry’s numbers.

“There has always been one central goal to all this genocide denial and propaganda around ‘lower’ death tolls: to dehumanize the Palestinians who have been killed,” Mehdi said.

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"It Haunts and Shames Us": Former Israeli Soldiers Speak Out on Gaza May 10, 2024

“The dehumanization of Palestinians is so endemic in Israeli society, for so many years and has kind of been supported, and not really called out, by Israel's allies.” - Benzion Sanders, former Israeli soldier

This week on ‘Mehdi Unfiltered,’ two Israeli military veterans reveal how serving in the 2014 Gaza war fundamentally changed their view on Israel’s violent approach to the Palestinians.

Also on this week’s show…

As the Israeli military continues to ramp up its invasion of Rafah – Gaza’s last refuge – an American doctor at the European Hospital in Khan Younis, in the Rafah evacuation zone, tells Mehdi how his hospital has turned into a “scene out of Armageddon.”

In his monologue Mehdi not only denounces Israel’s horrific invasion, but also calls on President Biden to uphold the “red line” he told Israel not to cross.

Plus, Mehdi fanboys over UK sports broadcaster and retired footballer Gary Lineker in an interview on British politics, anti-immigrant sentiment, Gaza, and of course, English football.

Inside Israel’s military operations…

After serving in Israel’s war against Gaza in 2014 and seeing their country’s military operations up close, Benzion Sanders and Ariel Bernstein, two former special forces soldiers, turned into anti-occupation activists and have been speaking out ever since against their country’s brutal oppression of Palestinians.

They joined ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’ to discuss what they learned from their own Gaza experience and how they view the current Israeli campaign in Rafah – and the right-wing trends in Israeli society.

“Destroying a whole neighborhood and all the buildings that we've seen and been inside for no apparent clear reason, seems to me – I don't know if it's a war crime or not, according to international law – but it seems like a crime. It seems like something that I am ashamed that I took part in,” Bernstein told Mehdi.

On Rafah…

“It's just a scene out of an Armageddon.” In an interview with Mehdi, Palestinian-American ICU doctor Mohamad Abdel-Fattah, who's been volunteering at the European Hospital near Rafah’s evacuation zone, describes the sheer horror hospitals are facing as Israel escalates their assault on Rafah.

“It's just chaos… as you try to maneuver your way through the hospital, there are entire families living in every inch. And so you have kids playing in the hospital. You hear babies crying.”

On Biden…

In his opening monologue, Mehdi addressed President Biden’s response to Israel’s invasion of Rafah, calling on the president to do more than just “a single pause of a single arms shipment.”

“Pick up the phone, Mr President. End all of this, right now,” Mehdi said. “You, Joe Biden, can end this disastrous Gaza war and do all of that, or you can spend the rest of this year trying to conjure up a response to pro-Palestine protesters at public events of yours, as they heckle ‘Genocide Joe’ at you.”

A surprise guest…

UK sports broadcaster and former footballer Gary Lineker isn’t afraid to speak out. Not just about football, but also contentious issues like immigration and Palestine. In addition to some football chat (or as Americans call it, “soccer”), and a paean to Lionel Messi, Lineker tells Mehdi what it’s like to be targeted by the right-wing press for speaking out in defense of refugees - and how he hosted two refugees in his home. He also talks about crying while watching social media videos from Gaza.

“It's slightly bizarre… I just give my honest opinions and generally they're not necessarily political. They're more, I think, humanitarian,” Lineker said. “I've stuck up for the plight of refugees and the awful things and the dreadful circumstances that caused them to perhaps leave their homes, which obviously you would never want to do. So, all I've ever really asked for is a bit of compassion, a little bit of understanding.”

–

Don’t forget to watch the full show above!

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“We Call for Revolution”: Cornel West Defends His Independent Presidential Bid - Mehdi Unfiltered Apr 23, 2024

Campus protests. Police arrests. The 2024 presidential campaign. This week’s ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’ has it all - plus, a strong rebuke of the media’s latest failings on the Israel-Iran escalation.

Our main guest…

Mehdi sat down in the studio with independent presidential candidate Cornel West to talk about many things, but the two had a particularly lively exchange on the question plaguing many progressive voters this election year: If not voting for Joe Biden leads to Donald Trump - and thus, a dangerous path for American democracy - is that a price worth paying for holding Biden accountable for his complicity on Gaza?

“You know, I would say if we have to choose between Trump leading us toward a second civil war and Biden leading us toward the third World War, that's a choice I refuse, brother,” West said.

“But it's a choice you made in 2020.” Mehdi said. “You said in November 2020, when asked why you voted for Biden, ‘what we got to vote for was the mediocre, milquetoast, neoliberal centrist because he's better than fascism’.”

Have a listen to see how West responded and what he had to say about Sen. Bernie Sanders, Gaza, and more.

On campus protests…

Actress and activist Cynthia Nixon, a contributor at Zeteo, discussed what’s been happening at Columbia University. As an alumna of Barnard College at Columbia, Nixon has been deeply troubled:

“If you believe in democracy, you have to believe in protest,” she told Mehdi. “You really can't have one without the other.”

Nixon went on to talk about two of her children, who are Jewish, and the dangerous and inaccurate conflation of pro-Palestine protests with antisemitism.

On Iran and Israel…

You’ve probably seen the coverage of the recent back-and-forth retaliatory attacks between Iran and Israel. As Mehdi points out in this week’s opening monologue, there’s been a complete absence of historical and political context from our media when it comes to characterizing Iran’s drone and missile attack on Israel (but not so much, the other way around). The story rarely starts with the headline.

As Mehdi puts it, the media failure in presenting the important content is disingenuous and irresponsible. “If you don’t have context, you find yourself being lied to, being duped and deceived, and then sleepwalking into World War 3.”

Watch the explainer for more on what the media gets wrong on Iran.

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