Mairav Zonszein is an Israel-Palestine senior analyst at the International Crisis Group. She has been covering Israeli politics and U.S foreign policy for over a decade. In episode 38 of the Tahrir Podcast, Mairav tuned in to speak about how the current right-wing Israeli government, led by Bibi Netanyahu, came to be. She discussed the military objectives of Israel's brutal war in Gaza, the Israeli public's perception of this aggressive war, Bibi being on trial for corruption, as well as the...

Khalil Sayegh is a Palestinian political analyst. In episode 37 of Tahrir Podcast, Khalil joined me to speak on Gaza's humanitarian crisis as Israel continues to block aid from going in while continuing to indiscriminately bomb the strip, Hamas, ceasefire prospects, what the future might hold for Gaza, and the Israel's expansion in the West Bank. Episode on YouTube: youtu.be/CzSSgfYm2AU Streaming everywhere!...

Nadwa Al-Dawsari is a researcher and conflict practitioner with over twenty years of field experience in Yemen where she worked with tribes, civil society, local authorities, security actors, and non-state armed groups. Nadwa is currently a nonresident Scholar with the Middle East Institute and a fellow at the Center on Armed Groups. In episode 36 of Tahrir Podcast, Al-Dawsari joined me from Washington D.C to speak on Yemen‘s Houthis, their ideologies, origins, Iran links, and the Red Sea...

Omenya is a Khartoum resident who joined me from Wad Madani, Sudan as it fell to the RSF to talk about the harrowing situation unfolding there. A safe haven for those who fled from Khartoum as the war broke out in April 2023, Wad Madani fell to the RSF just four days ago. A safe haven no longer, hundreds of civilians are now trapped in the city. Hospitals are no longer functional. Tune in to hear from one of the people there. Episode on YouTube: ⁠⁠https://youtu.be/4_ovZNIB6qY Streaming...

In this episode, I carry on from where I left off in EP 30, further analyzing Egypt's 2024 Presidential Election, touching on nearly everything related to it now that we're only nearly two weeks away. Episode on YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r45NY89FUk4 Streaming everywhere! ⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/TahrirPodcast⁠⁠ Support us on Patreon for as low as $2 per month ($20 per year)! ⁠https://www.patreon.com/TahrirPodcast⁠ (Use VPN if in Egypt) Reach out! [email protected]

Hind Khoudary is a Palestinian journalist based in Gaza. One of the only people in Gaza with a connection to the outside world, Khoudary joins me in this episode to talk about how things are looking on the ground as the Israeli ground invasion commences, the communication blackout, Israel's carpet-bombing of Gaza, and her message to the people of the world. Episode on YouTube: ⁠https://youtu.be/_nLTe_78D04⁠ Hind's Twitter: @Hind_Gaza Hind's Instagram: @HindKhoudary Streaming everywhere!...

In this episode, I share some thoughts on the Egyptian state's war on reality. I go into depth about how the state tricked, bribed, and blackmailed thousands of Egyptians into 'endorsing' the president (which I witnessed in real time by going to one of these rallies in Cairo), how media is manipulated, and ultimately the Orwellian nature of the Egyptian regime. Tune in for a light and unedited episode. Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/LX34yTs2kWk Streaming everywhere!...

On the 25th of September 2023, Egypt's National Election Authority announced the dates for the presidential election. Set to take place in December and with a tight schedule, the self-explanatory title "Egypt's Microwave Election" perfectly captures that image. In this episode of Tahrir Podcast, joined by Mahmoud Salem, an award-winning writer and commentator on Egyptian politics, we analyze the current state of affairs now that the presidential election dates have been released, what it...

Dr. Jean-Loup Samaan is a senior research fellow at the Middle East Institute of the National University of Singapore, as well as a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative. He is also an associate research fellow with the French Institute of International Relations. In episode 29 of Tahrir Podcast, we discussed his book, "New Military Strategies in the Gulf: The Mirage of Autonomy in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar," and in turn touched...

Dr. Sharan Grewal is an Assistant Professor of Government at the College of William & Mary, a nonresident fellow at the Brookings Institution, and a nonresident senior fellow at the Project on Middle East Democracy.  In episode 28 of Tahrir Podcast, we discussed his book, "Soldiers of Democracy? Military Legacies and the Arab Spring." Analyzing the conduct of the Egyptian and Tunisian militaries within the context of the Arab Spring, Grewal presents the compelling argument that the...

Dr. Arash Azizi is an Iranian journalist, author, and adjunct instructor at NYU. In episode 27 of Tahrir Podcast, we discussed his book "The Shadow Commander: Soleimani, the U.S, and Iran's Global Ambitions." The book looks at the life and influence of General Qassem Soleimani. Assassinated by a U.S drone strike in 2020, Soleimani was almost the second most powerful person in Iran and lead militias & proxies from Lebanon to Yemen. Episode on YouTube:...

Cameron Hudson is a senior associate at the Africa Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). An analyst and consultant on African peace, security, and governance issues, Hudson has held various positions such as Intelligence analyst in the Africa Directorate at the Central Intelligence Agency, Chief of Staff to successive presidential special envoys for Sudan and Director for African affairs on the staff of the National Security Council at the White House during...

 المؤرخ الدكتور خالد فهمي أستاذ التاريخ ينضم إلي التحرير بودكاست من بوسطن لتناول العديد من الموضوعات ومنها أهمية كتابة ودراسة الماضي، الديمقراطية، المعوقات التي تواجه الباحثين المصريين وال٢٠١١ This episode is in Arabic. English subtitles are available on YouTube.  In episode 25 of Tahrir Podcast, I flew out to Boston to record in-person with renowned Egyptian historian Dr. Khaled Fahmy about the importance of history-writing, democracy, hurdles that face Egyptian researchers, and the...

Dr. Aaron Salzberg is a distinguished Holzworth professor in the department of environmental sciences and engineering at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH), and is the director of the Water Institute. He was previously the U.S State Department's First Special Coordinator for Water where he led the development and implementation of U.S foreign policy on water and sanitation, water resources management, and transboundary water and conflict.  In episode 24 of Tahrir...

Dr. Elizabeth R. Nugent is an assistant professor of politics at Princeton University. Her research focuses on the politics of authoritarianism and religion in the Middle East.   Dr. Nugent's first and award-winning book, After Repression: How Polarization Derails Democratic Transition, documents repression and polarization among the opposition in Egypt and Tunisia. She presents a theory of polarization under authoritarianism, highlighting the repression that defines these contexts. On the...

Dr. Kyle J. Anderson is an assistant professor at the State University of New York (SUNY) Old Westbury.  Anderson's most recent book, "The Egyptian Labor Corps: Race, Space, and Place in the First World War," (University of Texas Press 2021) tells the history of Egypt's involvement in World War I (WWI) by telling the story of the Egyptian Labor Corps (ELC) and how the treatment of these primarily rural workers influenced the 1919 Egyptian Revolution.  In episode 22 of Tahrir Podcast,...

On the 27th of April 2022, Egypt's incumbent president reactivated the presidential pardon committee and called for a national dialogue. At least one person has been documented to have been arrested as a result of criticizing the president's call for dialogue. As of the 30th of June 2022, only 236 political prisoners have been released, most of whom are already widely known within the Egyptian political sphere––activists, legitimate party members––or have been on hungerstrike...

Dr. Zaynab El Bernoussi is an assistant professor of International Politics at Sciences Po Rabat, International University of Rabat.  El Bernoussi’s most recent publication and first book, “Dignity in the Egyptian Revolution: Protest and Demand During the Arab Uprisings,” (Cambridge University Press 2021) explores the concept of Dignity (or Karama in Arabic) in the context of the Egyptian Revolution (#Jan25). Based on interviews with participants in the 2011 protests and analysis of the art...

Dr. Andrew Simon is a lecturer and research associate in Middle Eastern Studies at Dartmouth College.   Simon's most recent publication and first book, "Media of the Masses: Cassette Culture in Modern Egypt," (Stanford University Press 2022) draws on a wide array of audio, visual, and textual sources that exist outside the Egyptian National Archives, and in so doing, provides a new entry point into understanding everyday life and culture. He investigates the social life of the cassette tape...

Mahmoud Salem is an award-winning blogger, government toppler, former politician, political campaignist, and death list survivor.    Salem, under his online nom de guerre 'Sandmonkey' rose to fame amid his blog,  'Rantings of a Sandmonkey'  claiming him various awards including best Middle East and Africa blog in 2006 and 2007, best English blog in the Deutsche Welle Best of Blogs award in 2011. Salem was one of the leading voices of the Egyptian revolution. In 2011, he ran for parliament. In...

Dr. Dana Moss is an Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Notre Dame. Her research investigates how authoritarian forces repress their critics and how collective actors resist this repression in a globalized world. She is also the founding director of the Yemen Peace Project.  Her most recent publication and first book, “The Arab Spring Abroad: Diaspora Activism Against Authoritarian Regimes,” (Cambridge University Press, 2022) investigates when diaspora actors mobilize, how...

Dr. Erin A. Snider is an assistant professor in the Department of International Affairs at the Bush School of Government & Public Service at Texas A&M University. Dr. Snider’s most recent book, “Marketing Democracy: The Political Economy of Democracy Aid in the Middle East,” (Cambridge University Press, 2022) examines the construction and practice of democracy aid in Washington DC and in Egypt and Morocco, two of the highest recipients of US democracy aid in the region. Drawing on...

Ido Levy is an associate fellow with The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, specializing in military and counterterrorism operations, particularly relating to jihadist groups. Formerly editor-in-chief of the Georgetown Public Policy Review, he has written for publications including Studies in Conflict & Terrorism and Middle East Policy. He holds a master’s degree from Georgetown University.   His first book and most recent publication, "Soldiers of End-Times: Assessing the...