The Lede

Rime Allaf is a Syrian-born writer and political analyst. In a wide-ranging conversation with New Lines Magazine's Faisal Al Yafai, she recalls living through the end of the Hafez al-Assad era and traces the Bashar years from the initial optimism of Syrians, through the end of the Lebanon occupation and the Iraq War, to the start of the Syrian revolution.

Arash Azizi is the author of “Shadow Commander: Soleimani, US & Iran's Global Ambitions” and the author of an essay for New Lines Magazine on Iran’s new president. In this podcast with New Lines Magazine's Rasha Elass and Cameron Khansarinia, policy director at the National Union for Democracy in Iran, based in Washington DC, they explore the new president’s background, whether Iran is going throu...

Peter Pomerantsev is senior fellow at the Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University and the author of "This Is Not Propaganda: Adventures in the War Against Reality." In this podcast with New Lines Magazine's Faisal Al Yafai and Idrees Ahmad, he discusses “Memory Wars”, the attempt to rewrite history to fit current political objectives, why that attempt is as relevant in Ukraine and Russia as it...

Nafees Hamid is a cognitive scientist of political violence who wrote an essay for New Lines Magazine on why people join violent groups. In this podcast with New Lines Magazine's Faisal Al Yafai, he discusses his essay, “The Neuroscience of ‘Devoted Actors’ Within Extremist Groups”, explores similarities between jihadists who joined ISIS and the insurrectionists who stormed the U.S. Capitol – and...

Nick Foretek is the author of “The Philosopher’s Wine”, a long-read for New Lines Magazine that tells the story of several years in the life of one Syrian fighter. In this podcast with New Lines Magazine's Faisal Al Yafai and Idrees Ahmad, he discusses how he first met the fighter in Cairo, what prompted him to tell the story, why he made certain literary decisions – and whether he thinks the figh...

Mustafa Akyol is the author of a new book, Reopening Muslim Minds: A Return to Reason, Freedom and Tolerance. In this podcast with New Lines Magazine's Faisal Al Yafai, he discusses being arrested by the Malaysian religious police; why Islam needs reform; the coercive power of modern Muslim states; the revolutions of Turkey and Tunisia; and why his criticisms of Islam don’t include the role of pow...

In the midst of conflict in Israel and Palestine, award-winning journalist Rula Jebreal and Lisa Goldman, cofounder of +972 magazine, are in conversation with New Lines Magazine's Faisal Al Yafai about politics, ideology and war. In this podcast, Jebreal discusses her essay for the magazine on the similarities between Israel’s right-wing political parties and the Republican Party under Donald Trum...

The “Great Replacement” theory is behind the far right’s worst acts of terrorism, from Christchurch to El Paso. It has its roots in the Balkans, where it inspired Serb Nationalists to genocide. In this podcast, Jasmin Mujanović and Una Hajdari join New Lines Magazine's Faisal Al Yafai for a conversation about why the American far-right are so obsessed with the wars of Yugoslavia, how a cartoonish...

Alex Skolnick, lead guitarist for Testament, wrote a popular essay for Newlines Magazine about the importance of artists speaking up at a time of political turmoil. In this conversation with New Lines Magazine's Faisal Al Yafai and Idrees Ahmad he explains why artists should speak honestly about social and political upheaval, why he doesn’t worry about losing fans who disagree with him – and why h...