The New Arab Voice

With the return of President Donald Trump, we also saw the return of the 'maximum pressure' campaign. The maximum pressure campaign was the hallmark of Trump's Iran foreign policy during his first term, and took the form of a raft of sanctions, which targeted individuals and the country's economy. This week on The New Arab Voice podcast, we look at what the return of Trump means for Iran, if the regime can survive four more years of Trump, and what the Iranian regime is doing to mitigate and circumvent the sanctions.To help us navigate Iran and the maximum pressure sanctions, we speak with Alex Vatanka (@AlexVatanka), a Senior Fellow at the Middle East Institute (@MiddleEastInst), specialising in Iran, and the author of The Battle of the Ayatollahs in Iran: The United States, Foreign Policy, and Political Rivalry since 1979. This podcast is written and produced by Hugo Goodridge (@hugogoodridge).Theme music by Omar al-Fil with additional music from Audio Network.To get in touch with the producers, follow then tweet us at @TNAPodcasts or email podcast@newarab.com

The Assad regime has gone. After 14 years of war, and 54 years of one family's rule, Syria is now stepping into a new period of its history. Led by the transitional government of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, Syria will now have to build a new state and hopefully create a path to a new constitution and free and fair elections. Joining us to help us explain the problems facing this new Syria, we speak with Joseph Daher (@JosephDaher19),  Syrian academic and expert on the political economy of the Middle East and Syria, and author of the book Syria after the Uprisings:The Political Economy of State Resilience. Also, Natasha Hall (@NatashaHallDC), a senior fellow with the Middle East program at the Center for Strategic International Studies (@CSISMidEast).And to help us understand the economic problems in the country, we speak with Jihad Yazigi (@jihadyazigi), economist and editor-in-chief of economics publication The Syria Report (@TheSyriaReport).This podcast is written and produced by Hugo Goodridge (@hugogoodridge).Theme music by Omar al-Fil with additional music from Audio Network.To get in touch with the producers, follow then tweet us at @TNAPodcasts or email podcast@newarab.com

Lebanon finally has a new president. After an over two year wait, Joseph Aoun was chosen to be the new President of Lebanon, with a healthy majority of the votes in parliament .Aoun, who is also the commander-in-chief of the Lebanese Armed Forces comes into office with a bulging in tray of problems to sort out. This week on The New Arab Voice podcast, we examine what Aoun's priorities will and what are the challenges that he will have to face? Can Aoun bring stability to the Israel/Lebanon border? And following their war with Israel, where does Hezbollah stand in this new phase of Lebanon’s history. Joining us to discuss the new president is Paul Salem (@paul_salem), the Vice President for international Engagement at the Middle East Institute (@MiddleEastInst).This podcast is written and produced by Hugo Goodridge (@hugogoodridge).Theme music by Omar al-Fil. To get in touch with the producers, follow then tweet us at @TNAPodcasts or email podcast@newarab.com

A ceasefire has finally been agreed between Israel and Hamas. The news came as a great relief to the people of Gaza, but many questions regarding the deal still remain.This week on The New Arab Voice podcast we look at the details of the ceasefire deal. When will Israeli forces leave Gaza, what are the terms of the prisoner swaps, and what does it say about reconstruction. Additionally, we explore why the ceasefire deal was agreed now and not six months ago, what does the future hold for Hamas in Gaza, can Netanyahu continue as prime minister now that a deal has been done, who will pay for the reconstruction efforts, and what does the political horizon in Gaza look like.To discuss the ceasefire deal and what it means for Gaza, we speak with Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib (@afalkhatib), a resident senior fellow at the Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative at the Atlantic Council (@AtlanticCouncil).And to lead us through what the deal means for Israel, we speak with Nimrod Goren (@GorenNimrod), President and Founder of The Mitvim Institute (@Mitvim), a foreign policy think tank.This podcast is written and produced by Hugo Goodridge (@hugogoodridge).Theme music by Omar al-Fil. To get in touch with the producers, follow then tweet us at @TNAPodcasts or email podcast@newarab.com

2024 is coming to an end and The New Arab Voice is bringing you our annual round up of the year's biggest stories from the Middle East and North Africa. We gathered a host of journalists and editors to look at the conflict, tragedies, confrontations, elections, and shocks that made the year so memorable. This podcast is written and produced by Hugo Goodridge (@hugogoodridge).Theme music by Omar al-Fil. To get in touch with the producers, follow then tweet us at @TNAPodcasts or email podcast@newarab.com

2024 is coming to an end and The New Arab Voice is bringing you our annual round up of the year's biggest stories from the Middle East and North Africa. We gathered a host of journalists and editors to look at the conflict, tragedies, confrontations, elections, and shocks that made the year so memorable. This podcast is written and produced by Hugo Goodridge (@hugogoodridge).Theme music by Omar al-Fil. To get in touch with the producers, follow then tweet us at @TNAPodcasts or email podcast@newarab.com

President Donald Trump won a resounding mandate at the start of November, and he will return to the White House in January. This week on The New Arab Voice podcast we look at how a new Trump administration might approach the Middle East, what will they want to achieve, and how will the region’s governments deal with Trump this time round.Can Trump end the ongoing war in Gaza? Will the Abraham Accord negotiations be restarted, and will Trump be able to get Saudi Arabia on board? And what will happen with Iran? Can a deal be done, or will it be a return to a campaign of maximum pressure?We speak with Brian Katulis (@Katulis), a Senior Fellow for US Foreign Policy at the Middle East Institute (@MiddleEastInst), and Imad K. Harb (@Harb3Imad), the Director of Research and Analysis at Arab Center Washington DC (@ArabCenterWDC).This podcast is written and produced by Hugo Goodridge (@hugogoodridge). Theme music by Omar al-Fil. To get in touch with the producers, follow then tweet us at @TNAPodcasts or email podcast@newarab.com

This week on The New Arab Voice podcast we look at the escalating conflict in Lebanon.In recent months Israeli airstrikes have ramped up, targeting Hezbollah's military stores, infrastructure, and its leadership. Additionally, Israeli troops have crossed the border and are confronting Hezbollah on the ground. Efforts are now ramping up to bring about a ceasefire, but nothing has been agreed yet, and it is still unclear what the terms of the deal would be. Also up for discussion is the state of Hezbollah as an armed group.How is Lebanon coping with the rising violence and the ever growing risks? Is this the end of Hezbollah? And can a deal be done so that Lebanon avoid the same fate that Israel has imposed on Gaza?Joining us, we speak with Yazan al-Saadi, The New Arab's International Editor, based in Beirut. Also, David Daoud (@DavidADaoud),  senior fellow at The Foundation for Defense of Democracies (@FDD), focused on Lebanon and Hezbollah. And Charles Dunne (@CharlesWDunne), Adjunct Professor at the Elliott School of International Affairs at the George Washington University (@ElliottSchoolGW) and non-resident fellow at the Arab Center Washington D.C. (@ArabCenterWDC). This podcast is written and produced by Hugo Goodridge (@hugogoodridge). Theme music by Omar al-Fil. To get in touch with the producers, follow then tweet us at @TNAPodcasts or email podcast@newarab.com

Women in Afghanistan continue to be suppressed and marginalised by the Taliban government, with a steady stream of new laws and edicts, dictating what they can and can't do.This has alarmed and shocked human rights defenders in Afghanistan, and across the world. Also expressing their outrage are governments around the world.And yet, many are still trying to find a way through that would allow them to do business with the Taliban, and condemn human rights violations.This week on The New Arab Voice podcast, we look at how the international community should approach the Taliban. Engage or disengage? How can they be pressured to reverse the draconian measures against women? And how can the Taliban authorities be held accountable for their human rights atrocities without penalising the population?We're joined by Kate Clark (@KateClark66), co-director of Afghanistan Analysts Network (@AANafgh), Zahra Nader (@ZahraYusufi), Afghan journalist and editor-in-chief of Zan Times (@ZanTimes), based in North America, and Shaharzad Akbar (@ShaharzadAkbar), director of civil society group Rawadari (@rawadari_org), human rights activist and Academy Fellow at Chatham House (@ChathamHouse).This podcast is written and produced by Rosabel Crean (@CreanRosabel), with additional help from Hugo Goodridge (@hugogoodridge). Theme music by Omar al-Fil. To get in touch with the producers, follow then tweet us at @TNAPodcasts or email podcast@newarab.com