Kalam

This is a special edition of Kalam Podcast due to the dramatic events in Lebanon, effectively escalating the already intense regional tensions in the Middle East. In this conversation, Lebanese journalist Ralph Baydoun joins Edgar for a frank conversation about the precarious state of Lebanon. A country that went from being a top exporter of arts and culture to a place mired in devastating conflic...

Terror struck large swathes of Lebanon yesterday as hundreds of explosions went off all over the country. Hezbollah members' pagers (the communication device of choice since Israel easily hacks into smartphones) suddenly exploded in their pockets. This left nearly 3,000 people injured - 200 in critical condition - and killed at least 11 people, including an 8-year-old girl, according to the Lebane...

This is a teaser for the final episode of our three-part series on Hamas for Kalam Shorts. Hamas wrote what they refer to as a "covenant" in 1988 with some.. let's say problematic content. In 2017 they released a policy document with wildly different values and ideas. So what do they actually believe in? Listen to the full episode on patreon.com/kalampodcast For continuous updates follow us on Ins...

Abed Alrahman Shabaneh is a Palestinian writer and curator. In addition to writing novels and essays, Abed also worked on urban planning in Jerusalem. From this experience he gained invaluable insights into how colonialism and occupation is constructed. In his conversation with Edgar, Abed speaks about his ideas about where the technological future will take us, expressed through his slightly dyst...

In this week's news summary, Edgar and Sam discuss the latest deadly airstrikes on Gaza, follow up on the Polio vaccine and the conditions for back to school season in Gaza. In other news, a Jordanian truck driver gunned down three Israeli border police and the culture wars in Israel deepen while the economy is in free fall. These are some of the headlines spoken about in today's episode. If you e...

After a screening of the documentary Where the Olive Trees Wheep Edgar sits with the Swedish writer Bernt Hermele and the Palestinian-French curator of books, Sarah Dahman Hallgren for a conversation about trauma and resistance. Thank you to everyone who came to see us live! If you enjoy Kalam Podcast and want to suppor the show, there is an excellent way to do so - by signing up to our Patreon. F...

Today's guest, Amer Shomali, was appointed as the General Director of the Palestinian Museum on October 5, 2023. Two days later, we all know what happened. Amer Shomali is a visual artist who directed one of the most innovative documentaries we have seen as of late. The Wanted 18 follows a number of "Israeli" cows gifted to the Palestinian town of Bayt Sahur. Over the course of our conversation, w...

We are delighted to announce the first episode in our 13 part series from Ramallah on the occupied West Bank. Today's guest is an icon of Palestinian journalism and advocacy, Mariam Barghouti. In this episode, Mariam speaks about the hypocrisy of Western media, the pain she feels in reporting on resistance fighters and about being targeted herself by the Israeli military. This episode is video rec...

On today's weekly news summary, Edgar and Sam discuss Israel's incursion into the West Bank, as well as the latest on the distribution of the Polio vaccine in Gaza, the Houthi's latest operations and the UK cutting 10% of its arms sales to Israel. Our main story concerns the general strike that began today in Israel - paralysing large parts of the country including the airports. The Israeli Labour...

This is a teaser, to hear the full episode head over to patreon.com/kalampodcast and sign up for just $3/month and gain access to lots of great bonus content. It's closing in on half a year of Kalam Podcast! Edgar, Sam and Arthur sit down for a reflection session on a balcony in Stockholm. We want to begin by thanking everyone who has listened to the podcast and shared our content and especially t...

On today's episode of Kalam Podcast Edgar speaks with the founder of Uncivilized Media , Salem Barahmeh. Uncivilized is a channel that tells stories about people and places that are unrepresented, silenced or erased. Very similar to what we do here at Kalam Podcast. Edgar first met Salem on a cold, rainy day in Stockholm several years ago. At the time, he was working with PIPD, the Palestinian Ins...

In this week's news summary, Sam and Edgar discuss the failing ceasefire negotiations and the recent escalation between Israel and Hezbollah. In addition, we look at the Israeli Minister for National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, and his violent settler supporters who recently stormed the Al Aqsa Mosque compound, harassing Palestinian worshippers and proclaiming the building of the third temple. In h...

What does Hamas do when it takes over Gaza? It implements an Islamist agenda and mobilises the population for resistance against Israel. In Part 2 of our series on Hamas for Kalam Shorts, Edgar and Sam discuss how Hamas act once they gain formal political power. They also discuss Hamas' international appeal with parts of the Western Left. This is a teaser, to hear the full episode head over to pat...

This week has seen massive upheaval on the West Bank - a new pogrom-style burning of a village as well as settler encroachment at the Gaza border. Edgar and Sam discuss the possibilities of an Iranian strike as the US Foreign Secretary, Antony Blinken, visits Tel Aviv. In related news, the Democratic National Convention is kicking off in Chicago where tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protester...

On 27 July, 2024 a rocket hit a football pitch in the village of Majdal Shams in the occupied Golan Heights. 12 children and teenagers were killed and it has yet to be determined who is responsible. In today's episode, Edgar speaks with artist and activist Wael Tarabieh, born and raised in Majdal Shams. The conversation ranges from the history of the Druze in southern Syria to the politics of occu...

In this feature episode, recorded live at the Swedish night club Trädgården, Edgar sits with Dawood, a Swedish-Lebanese photographer who recently exhibited his project Unstraight Stories from Egypt. This is a collection of photographs and stream of consciousness anecdotes depicting queer life in the Arab World's most populous country. Special guest feature is Nayuk, a non-binary queer activist fro...

This is the first installment of Kalam Digest, a weekly news summary bringing you the latest political developments in the Middle East. In today's episode, Edgar and Sam speak about Israel's new wartime strategy of striking schools in Gaza, while the US delivers $3.5 billion in fresh aid. According to leaks from within Israeli intelligence, Iran is expected to strike Israel within the next few day...

What is Hamas? Depending on who you ask, a resistance group or a terrorist organisation. For the people of Gaza, oftentimes, authoritarian thugs. This is part one of a three part Kalam Shorts series on Hamas - on their founding as an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood in the 60's and 70's, and their rise to power in the aftermath of the failure of the Oslo Process. If you would like to hear parts...

The Israeli military, the IDF, ordered the Hannibal Directive on October 7 to Prevent Hamas Taking Soldiers Captive, according to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. The IDF has long denied the existence of such a directive, although leaks and ex-soldier testimonies seems to prove otherwise. So what is the Hannibal Directive? On this episode of Kalam Shorts, Sam speaks to Edgar about the origins of the...

Earlier this week, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu received standing ovations as he spoke at the US Congress in Washington DC. He was applauded, while he is accused of a series of war crimes by the International Criminal Court in the Hague, which is imminently expected to issue an arrest warrant against Netanyahu. Abdelghany Sayed is an expert on International Law and a teacher of it...

Mariam Nezar, who goes by Mia, is co-founder of Bellies en-Route , which provides food tours of Cairo as well as cooking classes. Together, Edgar and Mia eat their way through the streets of downtown. Foul, taameya, molokheyya, koshary, and even cow brain are on the menu today! Get a feel for the street food of Cairo, as well as the history behind many of the city's most iconic dishes and restaura...

"How can you be gay and support Palestine?" is a question that bugs Swedish club icon Fredrik "Apollo" Asplund. For him, it's obvious - the 1969 Stonewall Riots (protesting New York police harassing the city's queer communities) and the Palestinian Intifada are about the same struggle for freedom and dignity. In the 80's and 90's gay people were killed in the millions by AIDS. Today, the people of...

We proudly present Dr. Hanan Ashrawi – one of the foremost Palestinian activist and politicians of the last half century. On this episode she speaks to Edgar about the First Intifada, of which she was a guiding spirit and a crucial player. And the Oslo Peace Process – which was the fruit of much of her labour, while resulting in catastrophe. So what does this Palestinian political veteran thi...

What is the Kuffiyeh, known by many simply as the “Palestine scarf”? How did this humble piece of clothing come to take on the political overtones it does today – and what more exactly does it signify? In this episode, Sam speaks to Edgar about the origins, both historical and etymological, of this iconic scarf. The sound above is a teaser, to listen to the full episode sign up to Klub Kalam...

Diana Buttu speaks to Edgar in the city of Haifa in historic Palestine, today's Israel. The impending war with Lebanon and the genocide in Gaza is strongly felt in this mixed city of Israelis and Palestinians. Diana speaks about what it is like to be a Palestinian citizen of Israel in this moment - living in a "sick society". For continuous updates, follow us on Instagram @kalampodcast If you like...