The Fire These Times

For episode 194, I am joined by Amos Goldberg, Professor of Holocaust History at the Department of Jewish History and Contemporary Jewry at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Goldberg is among the most vocal Israeli historians of the Holocaust to have called Israel’s actions in Gaza genocide. In 2024, he wrote a paper for the Journal of Genocide Research on the question of intent, which we explor...

For episode 193, Elia Ayoub is joined by Amos Goldberg, Professor of Holocaust History at the Department of Jewish History and Contemporary Jewry at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Goldberg is among the most vocal Israeli historians of the Holocaust to have called Israel’s actions in Gaza genocide. In 2024, he wrote a paper for the Journal of Genocide Research exploring how the question of ‘in...

This is part 2 of the episode. Part 1 was released a few days ago, and you can also listen to the full version for free on ⁠ our Patreon ⁠ . Presented by guest hosts Michelle and Daniel, Cracks in the Walls: Global Perspectives on Migration brings together eight individuals active in migration struggles around the world (Mexico, Haiti, U.S., and Europe) for a discussion on root causes of migration...

This is part 1 of the episode. Part 2 will be released in a few days, but you can listen to the full version for free on our Patreon . Presented by guest hosts Michelle and Daniel, Cracks in the Walls: Global Perspectives on Migration brings together eight individuals active in migration struggles around the world (Mexico, Haiti, U.S., and Europe) for a discussion on root causes of migration, curr...

We got a new podcast! We're happy to announce that Syria: The Inconvenient Revolution (STIR) is now out on Patreon and wherever you listen to podcasts. In this episode, ⁠ ⁠Leila Al-Shami⁠⁠ ( ⁠⁠Burning Country⁠⁠ ) and Elia Ayoub ( ⁠⁠The Fire These Times⁠⁠ , ⁠ ⁠Hauntologies⁠⁠ ) introduce themselves and the podcast. What is STIR about? From the Assad regime to the Arab Spring and beyond, we will...

Elia Ayoub and Lebanese journalist Justin Salhani have one thing in common: their parents lived through the Lebanon wars (1975-1990). Claude Salhani was a well-known photojournalist  United Press International and Reuters. The photo featured in this episode shows him in the middle, injured after an Israeli strike on Beirut in 1982. We also talked about a recent gallery of Claude’s photographs publ...

For episode 190 of The Fire These Times, Dr. Michael Paarlberg talks to guest host Dana El Kurd about El Salvador’s ‘state of exception’ under Nayib Bukele, how Trump sees that as a model, the conditions of Salvadorian prisons and what happens to the Venezuelan and other refugees and migrants deported from the USA by Trump and the unaccountable state actors doing his bidding. Paarlberg is associat...

For episode 189 of The Fire These Times, Elia Ayoub is joined by friend of the pod Molly Crabapple to talk about the Jewish Labor Bund and how their concept of Doikayt (‘Hereness’) can help us build a better world than the hellscape being proposed by techno-dystopianism and end-time fascism. Molly’s upcoming book is called “here where we live is our country: the story of the jewish labor bund.”  S...

How did Sudanese revolutionaries organize neighborhood and resistance committees to resist state and non-state violence? What are some of the principles underpinning their worldview? What can we learn from them? For episode 188 of The Fire These Times, Elia Ayoub is joined by Sudanese journalist Eiad Husham to talk about his piece " revolutionary aid in Sudan " for The New Internationali...

This is a special announcement episode broadcast on all FTP channels. We at FTP are hosting a series of weekly film screenings and discussions on the Lebanese wars starting this Sunday April 20. In this short episode, Elia and Ayman go through the list of films they selected, what you can expect from the screenings, and how you can participate. To sign up and join the watch parties head over to ⁠o...

Elia reads and comments on his essay "⁠ Restorative vs reflective nostalgia ⁠" for ⁠Hauntologies.net⁠   The Hauntologies Podcast is a production of From The Periphery  and part of The Fire These Times  podcast. A newsletter version exists at hauntologies.net but most recordings will be for Patreon supporters only. To support us, please head out to Patreon.com/fromtheperiphery  to subscribe. For Mo...

Our very own Ayman Makarem released his new video essay ‘ ⁠Where Are the Arabs?⁠ ’ on March 9, 2025. In this round table, he is joined by Elia and israa to expand on the topics discussed in the video, the context around it, and the need for more intellectual and class-based analysis on Arab nationalism and its many manifestations. If you haven’t watched the video yet you’ll still be able to follow...

Our very own Ayman Makarem released his new video essay ‘ Where Are the Arabs? ’ on March 9, 2025. In this round table, he is joined by Elia and israa to expand on the topics discussed in the video, the context around it, and the need for more intellectual and class-based analysis on Arab nationalism and its many manifestations. If you haven’t watched the video yet you’ll still be able to follow t...

For episode 185, Elia Ayoub is joined by Ukrainian journalist and repeated guest Romeo Kokriatski to talk about the recent developments in Ukraine, especially in light of the Trump administration's open intentions to shift USA support from Ukraine to Russia, and what this means for Ukraine, Europe and the USA. Support: You can support my work with ⁠ ⁠a one-off or monthly donation⁠ ⁠ on Ko-fi M...

On Feb 27, Abdullah Öcalan, the long-time jailed leader of the PKK (Kurdish Worker’s Party), released a statement that shocked many. In the statement he called for the PKK to lay down their arms, which could spell the end of the 40-year long armed struggle against the Turkish state, and for the creation of a legal, diplomatic framework to ensure inclusion, rights, and dignity for the Kurdish commu...

In this special collab episode between Obscuristan  and The Fire These Times, Karena Avedissian and Anna are joined by Daniel Voskoboynik to discuss the life of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and what his death means for those of us not quite at the heart of the Russian empire. Obscuristan and The Fire These Times are proud members of ⁠⁠ ⁠From The Periphery (FTP) Media Collective⁠⁠⁠ . Ch...

This is a conversation with ⁠ William C. Anderson⁠ , author of the book ⁠ The Nation on No Map⁠  (AK Press 2021) and co-author of ⁠ As Black as Resistance⁠  (AK Press 2018). He’s also the co-founder of ⁠ Offshoot Journal⁠  and provides creative direction as a producer of the ⁠ Black Autonomy Podcast⁠ . Support: You can support my work with ⁠ ⁠a one-off or monthly donation⁠ ⁠ on Ko-fi Masterclass o...

Elia reads and comments on his essay " Punishing the land: Israeli symbolism during the Gaza genocide " for Hauntologies.net  He was also on Al Jazeera to talk about how the Israelis mark the lands they destroy (link in the newsletter). Support: You can support my work with ⁠⁠ ⁠a one-off or monthly donation⁠⁠⁠ on Ko-fi Masterclass on Modern Lebanon: ⁠⁠ ⁠Registration is now open⁠⁠⁠ Newsle...

Elia Ayoub goes into his essay for hauntologies.net  in which he asks: what does it mean to lose the future? The film explored is Maher Abi Samra's 'We Were Communists' (2011). It will be part of our upcoming movie club on the patreon . The Hauntologies Podcast is a production of From The Periphery and part of The Fire These Times podcast. A newsletter version exists at hauntologies.net . To suppo...

It's finally happening. Ayman has finished his new video essay 'Where are the Arabs?'. 'Where are the Arabs?' is a long-form video essay about the history, failures, and nostalgia of Arab Nationalism. It's one Arab leftist's attempt to sift through this trend, see its remnant today, nd dispell its myths. Today, there is no Arab solidarity in action. But was there ever?...

Elia Ayoub reads from his Hauntologies.net piece "⁠ This Moment. Or, Why I Cannot Mourn Gaza ⁠" which is available for free. Support: You can support my work with ⁠⁠ ⁠a one-off or monthly donation⁠⁠⁠ on Ko-fi Masterclass on Modern Lebanon: ⁠⁠ ⁠Registration is now open⁠⁠⁠ Newsletter : Subscribe to ⁠⁠ ⁠Hauntologies⁠⁠⁠ Social Media : I’m on ⁠⁠ ⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠ , ⁠⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠ ⁠Mastodon...

For episode 183, Leila and Elia are joined by Wendy Pearlman to discuss her newest book, The Home I Worked to Make: Voices from the New Syrian Diaspora as well as her previous book We Crossed a Bridge and Trembled .  Note that we recorded this episode on November 9, 2024 – just weeks prior to the ousting of the Assad regime. As such, a few small details of the conversation are now ‘outdated’, howe...

For episode 182, Elia, Anna, and Dana are joined by author, scholar, and activist Naomi Klein to discuss her most recent book, Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World , and the myriad connections her analysis of the cultural rise of fascism has to our work at From the Periphery.  Support: You can support my work with ⁠⁠ ⁠a one-off or monthly donation⁠⁠⁠ on Ko-fi Masterclass on Modern Lebanon: ⁠...

Elia Ayoub reads from his newsletter piece " Merry Christmas Homs: Tribute to Bassel Shehadeh's Last City " which is available for free. It is a reference to a short film directed by Bassel during Christmas 2011 in Homs under heavy shelling by the Assad regime. You can watch it on YouTube . Trigger warning: this audio features some sounds from the original film, including airstrikes....

For episode 181, Elia Ayoub is joined by Margaret Killjoy to talk about her piece " ⁠The Sky is Falling; We've Got This⁠ " published on her newsletter. We recorded this shortly after Trump was announced as the winner of the US elections and many people were feeling despair, understandably so. Check out Margaret's new book and first novel " The Sapling Cage " with Femini...