Episodes
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Is the new Syrian administration reflective of society and is it able to build a country free of political authoritarianism? A member of the Syrian Women’s Political Movement joins us to discuss this and more.
We are now three months on from the fall of the Bashar Al-Assad regime in Syria ending 54-years of his family's rule. The ending of his dictatorship has left the Mediterranean country facing a new reality and taking on new tasks; how to build a new country free of political authoritarianism and injustice. The Levetine nation lies in ruins after a 13-year civil war and now so much of the responsibility falls onto the shoulders of Syrian society and its new rulers. The new interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa and members of the now disbanded Hay'at Tharir Al-Sham (HTS) now find themselves in government, while Al-Sharaa promises to rebuild a new Syria that in reflective of the society, concerns about his Islamist background and appointments to the interim government have been raised. Does the new administration have what it takes to build a new Syria? Helping us make sense of all of this is Sarah Hunaidi.
Hunaidi is a Syrian writer and member of the Syrian Women’s Political Movement. She writes in English and Arabic, and her work has been published by Foreign Policy, the Independent, Chatham House, Buzzfeed, the New Arab among other publications. She provides political analysis and expert commentary on refugee and gender issues and has appeared regularly on channels like NPR, BBC and Al Jazeera. She holds a Master's degree in Near and Middle Eastern Studies from Harvard University, and a Bachelor’s in International Studies at DePaul University. After her exile from Syria in 2014 due to her opposition to the Syrian regime, she started working on her first book project about the missing activist Samira Al-Khalil, exploring exile, siege and survival.
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People in Lebanon are angry at the level of state corruption and dysfunction, and Salafist movements are offering them an alternative.
Nationalist populism has been sweeping the world in the last decade overturning traditional politics in countries ranging from the US, Hungary, India, Italy, Britain and others. But populism is not only something nationalists engage in, religious populism has also seen a rise in popularity in Lebanon. The decline in political and economic power of the Sunni community in the country, the assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Harari and the withdrawal of Syrian troops in 2005 unleashed a new political Salafism, especially in the Mediterranean country's northern city of Tripoli. People are angry, very angry, Lebanon's general corruption and state dysfunction means the Levantine nation moves from crisis to crisis. Salafi movements are channeling people's frustration and embody anti-elite and anti-establishment politics that we see elsewhere. Israel's war on Gaza, Lebanon and the fall of the regime of Bashar Al-Assad in Syria has created a new opening for these movements - but who are they and what do they want? Joining us to discuss this is Giulia Gozzini.
Gozzini is a PhD Candidate in Islamic Studies at Lund University. She holds a Master’s degree in Middle East and North Africa Politics from the University of Turin and a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from the University of Florence. As part of her Master’s program, Giulia completed an Erasmus exchange at Université Saint Joseph in Beirut. She has also worked as a Junior Research Fellow in the Mediterranean, Middle East, and Africa and Italian Foreign Policy programs at the Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) and is a member of the editorial board of Maydan. Her research investigates the concept of Islamic populism and focuses on the study of Sunni Islamist movements in Lebanon, with a specific emphasis on the ideological and political evolution of contemporary Salafism, particularly in the context of the city of Tripoli. In her work, she proposes to adopt the concept of populism, considering the overlooked nexus between populism and religion, to investigate how religio-political populism relates to the ideological and social formation of Salafism.
Her current research builds on her Master’s thesis where she explored the multiple crises affecting Lebanese Sunnism and the subsequent appeal of Sunni populism and Salafism within the context of Lebanese sectarian politics. -
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Accusations of anti-Semitism have shaped the way governments and institutions respond to Israel’s actions over the past 15 months, but this not only limits open discussion, but also hurts the Jewish community, the journalist and author says.
In this episode of MEMO in Conversation, Rachel Shabi joins us to discuss her latest book 'Off-White: The Truth About Antisemitism' . Shabi, a British journalist and commentator, examines how anti-Semitism has been politically weaponised, often used to silence criticism of Israel and suppress Palestinian advocacy. She explains why discussions about anti-Semitism have become so divisive, making it harder to confront real threats against Jews while allowing bad-faith actors to manipulate the issue.
With the war in Gaza ongoing, Shabi reflects on how accusations of anti-Semitism have shaped the way governments and institutions respond to Israel’s actions. She also draws on her own experience as an Iraqi Jew, discussing the erasure of Arab Jewish identity and how Zionism placed Jewish identity within a Western framework, often sidelining Jews from the Middle East and North Africa.
The conversation also explores how Jewish communities in Europe and North America were “absorbed into whiteness” after the Holocaust, affecting both Jewish identity and the way anti-Semitism is understood today. Shabi explains why the fight against anti-Semitism is now more closely linked to right-wing politics, while progressive movements, traditionally the vanguard in the fight against racism, face accusations of anti-Semitism. She also critiques the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism and the “new anti-Semitism” narrative, questioning how these frameworks limit open discussion, particularly on Israel-Palestine.
Finally, we discuss the contradictory relationship between the far-right and Zionism, where nationalist movements that have long promoted anti-Semitic ideas now claim to be pro-Israel. Shabi looks at how the idea of a Judeo-Christian civilisation is used to include Jews in Western identity while excluding Muslims and other minorities. .Shabi is also the author of 'Not the Enemy – Israel’s Jews from Arab Lands' and writes for the Guardian newspaper.
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Joe Biden was said to be the most pro-Israel US president in decades, with Donald Trump taking over the White House, we ask what will Washington do next?
Israel's 15-month genocidal assault on the besieged Gaza Strip was aided by the United States of America. While in his outgoing address, President Joe Biden cited obtaining a ceasefire as among his administration's crowning achievements. However, contrary to the image he wished to portray, Biden offered total support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and took the unusual step of stating there were 'no red lines' as far as Washington was concerned as Israel's war on the Palestinians began. The lack of restraints on Israel has some commentators arguing that Biden was the most pro-Israel US president in decades. Previous US presidents, while offering Israel total backing, would place limits on how far Israel could go, but with Biden, Israel faced no such pressure. As the Trump administration takes the reins of power, we are asking what will Biden's legacy be and what will Trump do next? Joining us to answer these questions is Khaled Elgindy.
Elgindy is a visiting scholar at Georgetown University Centre for Contemporary Arab Studies. He is the author of the 2019 book, 'Blind Spot: America and the Palestinians, from Balfour to Trump'. Elgindy previously served as director of the Middle East Institute’s Program on Palestine and Palestinian-Israeli Affairs. From 2010 through 2018, he served as a resident scholar in the Foreign Policy programme at the Brookings Institution. Prior to arriving at Brookings, he served as an advisor to the Palestinian leadership in Ramallah on permanent status negotiations with Israel from 2004 to 2009, and was a key participant in the Annapolis negotiations of 2007-08.
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How will the new year shape the ever changing Middle East? And will US President-elect Donald Trump give in to pressure from Israel and take military steps against Iran and widen the unrest in the region?
2025 is finally here and as ever Middle East Monitor is keeping an eye out on trends, developments and issues impacting the MENA region. The year opens with Israel's ongoing genocide in Gaza and expanding war in the occupied West Bank and with a ceasefire deal on the horizon - what can we expect for Palestinians going forward? As Donald Trump takes office as US president and Israel pushes for a tougher stance on Iran, will Trump get the US into a military confrontation with Tehran? Since December 2024 Syria has been free of the rule of the Assad family, but with the new Islamist government talking about forming committees to develop a new government, will the new Syria be inclusive of the country's diverse population? Lastly, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed Bin Salman is five-years away from the completion of his 2030 social and economic reform vision, how will this impact Riyadh's politics this year? Joining us to help identify the trends and issues in the MENA region in 2025 is Professor Nader Hashemi.
Hashemi is the Director of the Alwaleed Centre for Muslim-Christian Understanding and an Associate Professor of Middle East and Islamic Politics at the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. He obtained his doctorate from the Department of Political Science at the University of Toronto and previously was an Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow at Northwestern University and a Visiting Assistant Professor at the UCLA Global Institute. Hashemi was previously the founding Director of the Centre for Middle East Studies at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver.
His intellectual and research interests lie at the intersection of comparative politics and political theory, in particular debates on the global rise of authoritarianism, religion and democracy, secularism and its discontents, Middle East and Islamic politics, democratic and human rights struggles in non-Western societies and Islam-West relations. He is the author of 'Islam, Secularism and Liberal Democracy: Toward a Democratic Theory for Muslim Societies' and co-editor of 'The People Reloaded: The Green Movement and the Struggle for Iran’s Future', 'The Syria Dilemma' , 'Sectarianisation: Mapping the New Politics of the Middle East'and a four-volume study on 'Islam and Human Rights: Critical Concepts in Islamic Studies' . His next book project is called 'The Global Divide Over Israel and Palestine'. He is frequently interviewed by PBS, NPR, CNN, Al Jazeera, Pacifica Radio and the BBC and his writings have appeared in the New York Times, Newsweek, Wall Street Journal, the Nation, Al Jazeera Online and CNN among other media outlets. He is also a Non-Resident Fellow at Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN). -
The 'international division of humanity' is central to imperialist logic and explains the reasons behind the treatment of Palestinians by the Global North, but this very concept is leading to the West's waning power on the world stage, journalist and historian Prashad tells MEMO.
In this episode of MEMO in Conversations we sit down with Vijay Prashad, one of the world’s leading Marxist thinkers and the author of around 40 books. Prashad offers his insights on the Gaza ceasefire deal and its broader implications, unpacking its timing, its connection to President Joe Biden’s presidency and legacy, and whether it can be seen as a Palestinian victory given Israel’s inability to achieve its declared aim of eradicating Hamas.
The conversation also revisits some of Prashad’s key theoretical frameworks, such as the “international division of humanity.” This concept, which Prashad identifies as central to imperialist logic, serves as a lens to examine the treatment of Palestinians and the global reactions to the genocide in Gaza. He reflects on how these dynamics expose the moral contradictions of the Global North and its waning ability to lead on the world stage.
Prashad explores the concept of hyper-imperialism and provides a wider geopolitical context for the Gaza crisis. He connects the events in Gaza to broader global trends of authoritarianism and resistance, delving into how these forces intersect and shape contemporary world order, while highlighting the lessons Gaza holds for the Global South. Prashad emphasises how the events in Gaza offer an opportunity to rethink global power structures and build solidarity among nations striving for justice and self-determination. -
In its recent report, War Child revealed that 96% of children in Gaza believe death is imminent, while 49% expressed a wish to die due to Israel's relentless bombing campaign, making Gaza 'the most horrifying places in the world to be a child'. King unpacks the report and speaks of his first hand experience after returning from Gaza.
Over the past 15 months, the world has witnessed heartbreaking scenes from Gaza, where children have borne the brunt of relentless military aggression. With conservative estimates putting the number of children killed by Israeli occupation forces at nearly 18,000, the devastating toll on Gaza’s youngest and most vulnerable residents is clear. Yet, the psychological scars inflicted by this violence often remain unseen.
In this week’s MEMO in Conversation, we speak to Kieran King, head of humanitarian at War Child, who has just returned from Gaza. He shares his firsthand experience of the unfolding humanitarian catastrophe. Our discussion centres on War Child’s recent report - the first of its kind - exploring the psychological impact of Israel’s genocide on Gaza’s most vulnerable children. The report provides a stark reminder that Gaza has become one of the most horrifying places in the world to be a child.
Kieran sheds light on his experiences in Gaza, painting a vivid picture of the human suffering he encountered and the immense challenges faced by children living in such harrowing conditions. The report’s findings are staggering: 96 per cent of children feel death is imminent, nearly half wish to die and 87 per cent display severe fear. -
Israel has deep historical ties with oppressive regimes, arming many that have been accused of genocide. But how is Tel Aviv using expertise it is gaining during its war on Gaza to make a profit?
Israel has transformed its occupation of Palestine into a lucrative global enterprise, exporting methods of control and surveillance worldwide. Joining MEMO in Conversation to discuss Israel’s role in the global arms and surveillance technology trade is Antony Loewenstein, author of groundbreaking new book 'The Palestine Laboratory'.
Loewenstein, an investigative journalist, examines Israel's deep historical ties with oppressive regimes, from its support of South African apartheid to its current relationships with far-right governments. Loewenstein shares insights from his 17-year journey investigating Israel’s arms industry, drawing parallels between his earlier work on disaster capitalism and the commodification of Palestinian suffering. He explores Israel’s willingness to arm regimes accused of genocide, from Rwanda to Myanmar, and its cultivation of relationships with openly anti-Semitic far-right leaders like Hungary's Viktor Orban.
Loewenstein argues that Israel’s military actions in Gaza reflect long-established patterns of weaponising its expertise in occupation for profit.
Loewenstein is an independent journalist, best-selling author, filmmaker and co-founder of Declassified Australia. He's written for the Guardian, the New York Times, the New York Review of Books and many others. His books include 'Pills, Powder and Smoke', 'Disaster Capitalism', 'The Palestine Laboratory' and 'My Israel Question'. His documentary films include 'Disaster Capitalism' and Al Jazeera English films 'West Africa's Opioid Crisis' and 'Under the Cover of Covid'. -
Pamphlets were the social media of their time, they helped spread dissent and were pivotal to the polarisation of politics during the Ottoman Empire, Nir Shafir guides us through the communications revolution of the 16th and 17th centuries.
The Ottoman Empire banned the printing press and stifled intellectual and economic development in the Middle East due to religious objections. At least this has been the popular narrative about the Ottomans for decades, despite the fact there is no evidence of a ban and throughout the empire's history, different printing presses emerged. However, the print press would not take off in a major way until the 18th century, but that does not mean a communication revolution did not occur in the Islamic world. Indeed the pamphlet took off across the empire in the 16th and 17th centuries, leading a radical transformation in ideas, identities, politics and to the creation of a public square. Pamphlets were the social media of their day and, much like today, they were pivotal to the polarisation of politics in the Empire. The Kadizadeli, a new religious movement, emerged through the pamphlet, fermenting dissent and discord. A new book 'The Order and Disorder of Communication: Pamphlets and Polemics in the Seventeenth-Century Ottoman Empire' takes us into the world of Ottoman polarisation. To discuss the book and the communication revolution during the Ottoman Empire MEMO in Conversation is joined by author Nir Shafir.
Shafir is an associate professor of history at University of California, San Diego (UCSD) whose work focuses on the Ottoman Empire/Middle East from 1200 to 1800. At UCSD, he teaches graduate and undergraduate classes on the history of the early modern and medieval Middle East, the history of science, global history and historical approaches to disinformation, misinformation and propaganda. He is an occasional contributor and editorial board member of the Ottoman History Podcast and served as its editor in 2018. Future projects include a social history of the Turkish language in the Ottoman Empire and an investigation into the cultural role of antiquity and antiquarianism in the early modern Middle East. -
The war on Gaza is raging on, with Israel looking set to impose a permanent security zone in the Strip. With less than one month before US President-elect Donald Trump enters the White House, what should Europe do to bring peace to the region and justice for the Palestinians?
In this week’s MEMO in Conversation we examine a timely new report from the European Council on Foreign Relations that assesses Gaza's future as Donald Trump prepares to return to the White House. Our guest Muhammad Shehada, a visiting fellow with ECFR's Middle East and North Africa programme, brings his expertise as both a researcher and Gazan to unpack this critical analysis.
The discussion reveals the realities on the ground in Gaza, moving beyond official narratives to explore how Israel’s targeting of civilians, mass starvation and decimation of basic governance structures has fundamentally altered daily life in the territory. Shehada provides fresh insights into Hamas’s current position and the widespread breakdown of social order.
One of the most striking elements of the conversation focuses on Israel’s plans for Gaza’s future administration, including the controversial prospect of working with local clans. Shehada explains how Netanyahu’s government appears set on transforming Gaza into a permanent security zone rather than pursuing meaningful negotiations.
Drawing from his deep understanding of Gaza and extensive research, Shehada maps out practical steps for the international community, particularly European states, to avoid the nightmare scenario Israel is presenting. His analysis offers valuable perspective on navigating these challenges as Trump’s return threatens to dramatically reshape regional dynamics.A researcher, writer and human rights advocate from Gaza, Muhammad Shehada's work focuses on investigating human rights violations in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, and more broadly in the Middle East and Europe, with an emphasis on the treatment of migrants, refugees and civilians in conflict zones.
He is currently serving as the chief of communications and programmes at the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor. He has contributed to a wide range of international publications such as the Forward, Al Jazeera, Newsweek, the Nation and the New Arab. -
When Daesh was defeated in 2017, many thought their crimes would be forgotten and their victims would have the terrors they experienced swept under the carpet, but a new online museum has been launched to preserve and educate people about the group's atrocities.
Over a decade ago, the world was fixated on the emergence of Daesh or so-called Islamic State, the terror group that took control of vast swaths of territory across Syria and Iraq. Daesh governed the lives of millions of people and ran a vast police state, their defeat in 2017, led to concerns that their crimes would soon be forgotten and what people endured would be swept under the carpet. A new online digital archive aims to preserve and educate people about some of the atrocities committed by the group. The ISIS Prisons Museum is a virtual museum space that uses state-of-the-art technology to forensically investigate the group's crimes and to tell stories that promote awareness of what happened in Daesh custody. Joining us to speak about the project is its English Editor Robin Yassin-Kassab.
Yassin-Kassab is the author of the novel 'The Road From Damascus', and co-author of 'Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War'. He is deputy editor of, and contributor of essays to, the Critical Muslim.
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Germany has repeatedly stressed its unwavering support for Israel and its actions in Gaza over the past 14 months, but what is underpinning this position and will it ever shift?
Against the backdrop of Israel's devastating assault on Gaza, Germany has emerged alongside the US as one of Israel’s most ardent defenders. While US support has been crucial in allowing Israel to carry out its genocide, Germany's backing is rooted in complex historical and political factors, including its concept of 'Staatsraison' - the commitment to Israel's security as a reason of the German state. Joining us to discuss how Germany’s past continues to shape its present policies is Professor Jurgen Mackert.A distinguished sociologist from the University of Potsdam, author of 'On Social Closure' and an expert on political sociology, Mackert offers unique insights into Germany's support for Israel and its deeper historical underpinnings. He explores the controversial relationship between Germany's historical obligation stemming from the Holocaust and its current position on Gaza and examines how this affects Berlin's stance on international law, its response to ICC arrest warrants, and its reaction to ICJ rulings. Most provocatively, he discusses his recent work arguing that the same settler-colonial logic that drove the Holocaust continues to animate German politics today.
This timely conversation delves into whether Germany's unwavering support for Israel truly reflects public opinion and what might cause this position to shift in the future.
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For many, the civil war in Syria has been a distant memory, but that all changed when in a sudden turn of events, rebel groups captured the country's second largest city, Aleppo, and began to move towards other northern cities. But why is all this happening now? Syrian journalist Hussam Hammoud joins us to explain.
What a difference a few days make. Up until the end of November 2024, Syria's second largest city Aleppo was firmly under the control of President Bashar Al-Assad and to many outsiders the Mediterranean country's civil war was a distant memory. Many assumed the war was either over or at least frozen and then in the space of a few days Syrian rebels, who are opposed to the rule of Al-Assad, launched a lightning offensive and captured Syria's second city. Fighting is now taking place in different parts of the Levantine country, but what is actually happening? Why is it happening now? And who are those involved? In this MEMO in Conversation special we are joined by Hussam Hammoud to delve into events in Syria.
Hammoud is a Syrian journalist who specialises in the Syrian conflict and beyond. He is known for his field reporting and focus on human rights, highlighting stories from war zones and displacement crises in both Syria and Ukraine. His work has mostly appeared on the European Cultural Chanal ARTE.
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Many have wondered how states have allowed the massacres in Gaza to continue for over a year and what can be gained from them. Investigative journalist Kennard exposes corporate power and state intervention to highlight why the genocide in Gaza has been allowed to continue.
In this episode, MEMO is in Conversation with investigative journalist and author Matt Kennard who joins us to delve into Western complicity in the Gaza genocide and examine how deeply this complicity runs. Known for his groundbreaking books 'The Racket' and 'Silent Coup', Kennard brings his expertise in exposing corporate power and state intervention to shed light on the forces driving the genocide in Gaza.
Kennard explores how Israel's actions fit into a broader pattern of Western imperial power and examines the evolving US-Israel relationship, the surprising alliance between far-right groups and Israel, and how these developments are reshaping international dynamics.
The conversation takes a critical look at the media landscape, exploring how the stark contrast between social media coverage and mainstream narratives of Gaza has contributed to a collapse in public trust in traditional media outlets. Kennard provides unique insights into how global perception of Western support for Israel is shifting in the wake of genocide charges at the ICJ and ICC arrest warrants.
As co-founder of Declassified UK and a former Financial Times journalist, Kennard offers a seasoned perspective on how the Gaza crisis represents a potential turning point in public understanding of Western complicity in state violence.Kennard has previously written for the New Statesman, the Guardian, OpenDemocracy and the Intercept. He is the author of 'Irregular Army: How the US Military Recruited Neo-Nazis, Gang Members, and Criminals to Fight the War on Terror', 'The Racket: A Rogue Reporter vs. the Masters of the Universe' and co-author of 'Silent Coup: How Corporations Overthrew Democracy'.
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From raising a family to a nation, how debates around modernisation, democracy and capitalism gave birth to a new Arab woman.
In the 1850s the Arab world underwent a gendered revolution brought about by western missionaries, integration into the global capitalist economy, the print press and reform efforts. Life in the eastern Mediterranean within a few decades after the 1850s was unrecognisable from a few years prior. Women, gender and childrearing were at the centre of tension and changes taking place. Tarbiya, or cultivation, took on a new urgency in Arabic thought, before the 1850s Tarbiya was often used in the context of teachers or sheikh cultivating their students’ intellectual development, but after the 19th century it referred more specifically to women and the raising of children. Raising a child became a political act and the failure to instil ‘good’ ethical and moral norms could bring down nations, it was feared. The notion of women’s work and a good mother being at home became a feature of political debates and tensions. Gendered notions like Tarbiya sit at the cross section of modernisation, democratisation and nation building ideas. Joining us is Susanna Ferguson who is the author of a new book called Labors of Love: Gender, Capitalism, and Democracy in Modern Arab Thought, a review to her book can be found here: https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20241023-labors-of-love-gender-capitalism-and-democracy-in-modern-arab-thought/
Susanna Ferguson is a historian of women, gender, and intellectual life in the Eastern Mediterranean and Assistant Professor of Middle East Studies at Smith College. Her research focuses on how questions about gender, sex, and science shaped political imaginaries in the 19th- and 20-century Arab world. Her work has appeared in various scholarly journals, including Modern Intellectual History, the Journal of Middle East Women's Studies, Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East and the Arab Studies Journal. She is a longtime host, former editor-in-chief and now associate producer at the Ottoman History Podcast, where she also co-curates the series on “Women, Gender, and Sex in the Ottoman World.” Ferguson's first book, Labors of Love: Gender, Capitalism, and Democracy in Modern Arab Thought, was published by Stanford University Press in September 2024.
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The 16 and 17 centuries saw an eruption in espionage, spying and covert operations, with a growing network of Christian clergymen, traders, slaves, travellers, nobles and others who were also intelligence operatives for Istanbul. We speak to the author of the book 'Spies for the Sultan' to find out more.
The Bishop of Heraclea, an Orthodox clergyman, approached the Habsburg royal family with a devious plot, the Austro-Spanish dynasty could form a secret alliance with the Persian Shah to take control of the Ottoman Empire. Together they could back the son of Sultan Suleiman I, Prince Selim, to seize power away from his brother Prince Mustafa. Little did the Habsburgs know, the cleric was also an Ottoman spy and part of a growing network of Christian clergymen, traders, slaves, travellers, nobles and others who were also intelligence operatives for Istanbul. The 16 and 17 centuries saw an eruption in espionage, spying and covert operations. A book recently translated from Turkish into English 'Spies for the Sultan' delves into the murky world of surveillance. Joining us for MEMO in Conversation is the book's author Emrah Safa Gurkan.
Professor Gurkan teaches at the Istanbul 29 Mayis University’s department of political science and international relations. In 2012, he was awarded a doctorate in history from Georgetown University. He was the recipient of the Promising Scientist of the Year award at the 14th Kadir Has Awards in 2018. He received the the Outstanding Young Scientist Award from the same institution. He has written a number of articles in English, Turkish, Italian, Spanish and German as well as two scientific monographs, the first of which received the Scientific Monograph of the Year Award from the Turkish Academy of Sciences (TUBA).
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As an anti-apartheid activist, Stavit Sinai has repeatedly taken action against the occupation state of Israel, but she made headlines when, in 2022, she was one of two Israelis arrested for storming the site of Israeli arms manufacturer Elbit Systems in the UK, she speaks to MEMO about why it's important not to stay silent.
Elbit Systems is Israel's premier arms and military technology company, which claims that its drones are the backbone of the Israeli occupation forces. With 18,000 employees and sites across the world, its weaponry boasts being field tested i.e. used on Palestinians in the West Bank and the besieged Gaza Strip. Israeli military officials and politicians serve on its board and sell weapons worldwide. On 15 May 2022, a group of activists with Palestine Action UK, stormed the Elbit Systems site in Bristol, aiming to disrupt its operations while highlighting what the company does. The direct action protest led to the seven activists being arrested, charged and convicted in the British court. Two of the seven were Israeli dissidents with a track record of Palestinian rights activism. In this second of a two-part conversation, we are joined by Stavit Sinai, one of the two Israeli activists involved in the protest.
Dr. Stavit Sinai is a philosophy lecturer and Israeli anti-apartheid activist based in Berlin. She was formally imprisoned for taking direct action against Elbit Systems in the UK.
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CAPTION: On Nakba Day in 2022, 7 activists stormed the site of Israel's largest weapons manufacturer Elbit Systems in an effort to disrupt its operations and highlight the atrocities its 'field tested' weapons have caused against Palestinians. Two of the activists were Israeli and they spoke to MEMO to discuss why they continue to protest.
Elbit Systems is Israel's premier arms and military technology company, which claims that its drones are the backbone of the Israeli occupation forces. With 18,000 employees and sites across the world, its weaponry boasts being field tested i.e. used on Palestinians in the West Bank and the besieged Gaza Strip. Israeli military officials and politicians serve on its board and sell weapons worldwide. On 15 May 2022, a group of activists with Palestine Action UK, stormed the Elbit Systems site in Bristol, aiming to disrupt its operations while highlighting what the company does. The direct action protest led to the seven activists being arrested, charged and convicted in the British court. Two of the seven were Israeli dissidents with a track record of Palestinian rights activism. In the first of a two-part episode we speak to Ronnie Barkan, one of the two activists.Barkan is co-founder of Boycott from Within and member of Palestine Action. Most recently Barkan was harassed by the German secret police following his Munich talk at Professor-Huber-Platz, where he connected the legacy of the White Rose who opposed Nazism with direct action in opposition to Zionism. He is also considering taking on the UK legal system in international forums for violating his rights by forcing him to pay a fine to an arms company involved with Israel's genocide.
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The anti-Zionist Jewish movement has led numerous anti-war protests calling for an end to the genocide in Gaza, but what’s the history of Jewish opposition to Zionism?
Israel claims to be working to protect world Jewry, but as it continues its bombing of Gaza and expands its military operation into southern Lebanon, the anti-Zionist Jewish movement continues to declare the state’s actions are ‘not in our name’. But where does Jewish opposition to Zionism stem from? What are its ideological foundations and real life implications of a political ideology that seeks to create a Jewish supremacy in Historic Palestine. Joining us to discuss the root of anti-Zionist Jewish ideology is historian Zachary Foster.
Foster, a Princeton University graduate and active social media commentator, brings his wealth of knowledge to challenge common misconceptions about Zionism. Including debunking simplistic definitions such as those which claim Zionism is a national movement for Jewish self-determination and examining the theological opposition from within Jewish communities. Foster also runs a course called ‘Zionism 101’.
The discussion also looks into the historical relationship between Christian and Jewish Zionism, the changing attitudes among younger generations of Jews towards Israel, and the ongoing debates surrounding Jewish identity and nationalism.
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Algeria won its War on Independence because it won a media war against the French following help from Yugoslavia. But what did the images coming out of Algiers show and how did they frame its battle for a new beginning?
France lost the Algerian War (1954-1962) diplomatically because it lost the media war and this forced it to end its 132-year rule of the North African country. The fight for independence was led by the Algerian National Liberation Front or FLN, who had help from abroad. One country that assisted them was Yugoslavia led by Marshal Josip Tito, who was looking for a way to expand Yugoslavia's reach in the world following its isolation from the Soviet Union. Helping Algeria was part of a new and alternative politics Belgrade was fashioning for countries who did not want to fall into either the American or Soviet orbit, called the non-alignment movement.
Based around 'third world' solidarity, decolonisation, development and independence, the movement today has 120 members. Tito aided the FLN by helping them win the information war, he sent his favourite cameraman Stevan Labudovic, who snuck into Algeria and filmed many hours of footage of FLN raids and helped give rise to Algerian media independent of France. His reels are the subject of a new film 'Cine-Guerrillas/Non-Aligned: Scene from the Labudovic Reels', which shows not only Algeria's fight for independence, but the development of an idea, the non-alignment movement. Joining us on MEMO Conversation is filmmaker Mila Turajlic.
Born in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, Turajlic is an award-winning filmmaker and archive ‘artivist’ whose works include 'Cinema Komunisto' and IDFA-winner 'The Other Side of Everything'. She is the founder of the Non-Aligned Newsreels research project, an artistic exploration of the ‘orphaned’ status of film archives made by Yugoslavia in a gesture of ‘ciné-solidarity’ with the non-aligned world. Performative and video iterations of the project were curated for IDFA on Stage, international exhibitions and biennials (Berlin’22, Belgrade’22, Sharjah’25). In 2020 Mila was invited to join the AMPAS (Oscars) Documentary Branch. She was named Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres by the French government in 2022.
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