Babel: Translating the Middle East

Babel Special: Jon Alterman's Next Chapter

This week on a special edition of Babel, Will Todman speaks with Jon Alterman, the creator of Babel and the show’s host since it began in 2019. They discuss Jon’s reflect

Mohanad Hage Ali: Hezbollah and the Captagon Trade

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Dr. Mohanad Hage Ali, deputy director for research at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut. Mohanad's latest paper for C

Analysis: Will Trump’s Houthi Deal Stick?

On Tuesday, May 6, President Trump declared that the United States would immediately halt its bombing of Houthi targets, bringing an end to months of intensified U.S. str

Dina Esfandiary: Will Iran Make a Deal with Trump?

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Dina Esfandiary, the Middle East Geoeconomics Lead at Bloomberg. Previously, Dr. Esfandiary served as a senior adviser for th

Analysis: Trump’s Novel Middle East Diplomacy

The United States is currently engaged in several high-stakes negotiations across the Middle East and around the world. President Trump has departed from traditional dipl

Craig Larkin: The Politics of Memory, From Mosul to Beirut to Gaza

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Dr. Craig Larkin, director of the Center for the Study of Divided Societies at King’s College London. Dr. Larkin is also a re

Analysis: Iran, Deal or No Deal?

While seated beside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on April 7, President Trump announced that the United States will imminently initiate talks with Iran over i

Dahlia Scheindlin: Israel’s Political Turmoil

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Dr. Dahlia Scheindlin, a Tel Aviv-based political analyst and Haaretz columnist. Scheindlin also serves as a fellow at Centur

Analysis: Trump Takes on the Houthis

On March 15, the United States launched a wave of attacks on Houthi targets in Yemen. The Trump administration had pledged to step up efforts initiated by President Biden

Nicolas Pelham: Ahmed al-Sharaa and Syria’s Future

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Nicolas Pelham, the Middle East correspondent for The Economist. Nicolas has worked in the Middle East and North Africa for m

Renad Mansour and Sanam Vakil: Iranian Networks in the Middle East

On March 4, Jon Alterman spoke with Renad Mansour, senior research fellow and director of the Iraq Initiative at Chatham House, and Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle Ea

Analysis: Trump’s Middle East Strategy

On Tuesday night, President Trump delivered the first broadcast address of his second term to Congress. Though his remarks on the Middle East were sparing and largely exp

Max Bergmann: Does Europe Matter in the Middle East?

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Max Bergmann, head of the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program at CSIS. Previously, Max held a variety of positions at the Sta

Analysis: Are U.S.-Russia Talks a Win for the Saudis?

On Tuesday this week, Saudi Arabia hosted the first set of high-level talks between the United States and Russia since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Saudi Arabia’s role i

Alessandro Accorsi: Disinformation Warfare in the Middle East

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Alessandro Accorsi, a senior analyst for social media and conflict at the International Crisis Group. Prior to joining ICG, h

Analysis: Netanyahu Comes to Washington

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is President Trump’s first foreign visitor since he re-entered the White House in January. The two men will meet Tuesday night,

Sinem Adar: Turkey's Syria Challenge

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Sinem Adar, a researcher at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), where she works at the Centre

Analysis: Gaza Peace?

Last Sunday, Hamas released three female Israeli hostages that it had kidnapped on October 7, in exchange for 90 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli custody. The deal was th

eL Seed: Arabic Calligraffiti

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with eL Seed, an award-winning French-Tunisian artist whose monumental artwork blending the styles of Arabic calligraphy and graff

Analysis: Syria’s Bid for Sanctions Relief

Just a month after Bashar al-Assad fell in Syria, the country is in the midst of a swirl of regional diplomacy. The new Syrian foreign minister is on another regional swi