POPULAR FRONT

I'm away filming a documentary for Popular Front this week and didn't have time to get the planned episode ready in time. To avoid going a week without Popular Front I've used one of the Patreon bonus episodes to fill the void. It's the first and last time we'll do this. We'll hear from Abu Academic, who claims to be former Russian special forces. He's now using the skills he claims to have learne...

We got journalist Christopher Miller back on to talk about last week's clashes between Russia and Ukraine in the Sea of Azov. Everything you wanted to know about this escalating situation is right here.   - www.patreon.com/popularfront - www.popularfront.co - www.twitter.com/jake_hanrahan - www.instagram.com/popular.front

Independent researcher Jakub Janovsky tells us how the Assad regime's tank fleet, one of the world's biggest, was reduced almost entirely to scrap metal and smouldering debris.    - www.patreon.com/popularfront - www.popularfront.co - www.twitter.com/jake_hanrahan - www.instagram.com/popular.front  

There's a lot of hype and nonsense when it comes to reporting on cyber warfare, so we spoke to one of the best tech journalists around to explain what the real threats of cyberwar are right now.    - www.patreon.com/popularfront - www.popularfront.co - www.twitter.com/jake_hanrahan - www.instagram.com/popular.front  

Phillip Smyth takes us on a deep dive into the world of the Hashd al-Shaabi, the Iranian backed militias (also known as the PMU, PMF, and "Shia Militias") fighting in Iraq. They've documented their own war crimes, shot unarmed protesters, and have been building the groundwork for their movement for years... So who are they?   - www.patreon.com/popularfront - www.popularfront.co - www.twitter.com/j...

It's Halloween, so we're doing something a bit different. For this episode we teamed up with the guys from War College to have a chat about how nuclear war has so often influenced the pop culture around us.  - patreon.com/popularfront - www.popularfront.co - twitter.com/jake_hanrahan - twitter.com/War_College

Alexander McKeever tells us all about the mysterious assassination squads of Afrin in Northern Syria. We hear about the tactics of Wrath of Olives and how Afrin was looted and ruined after the invasion by Turkish backed rebels.   - patreon.com/popularfront - www.popularfront.co - @jake_hanrahan

Yago Rodríguez tells us about Wilayat Sinai, the branch of ISIS in Egypt. We hear how they're launching well organised military attacks, trading weapons with Libya, and doing deals with Gaza.  - patreon.com/popularfront - popularfront.co - @jake_hanrahan

We speak to Giancarlo Fiorella from In Venezuela Blog about the crushed rebellion in Venezuela. He tells us all about the street clashes, the food crisis, the drone bomb, and the last stand of Oscar Perez.  - patreon.com/popularfront - popularfront.co - @jake_hanrahan

We speak to Firat Batman as he takes a brief rest from fighting against ISIS in their last stronghold in Syria. Firat is a Kurd from Rojava who grew up in Sweden. He's been fighting in Rojava for the YPG for three years and is currently on the final push to chase ISIS out of the last areas they control.  - patreon.com/popularfront - popularfront.co - @jake_hanrahan

Gregory Waters tells us all about the Tiger Forces in Syria, the pro Assad regime militia that's seen as heroes to some and war criminals to others. We'll find out why their leader is so enigmatic, how they're working with the Russian military, and what power they really hold over the region.  - patreon.com/popularfront - popularfront.co - @jake_hanrahan  

We speak to Ora Szekely about the role of female combatants within various irregular conflicts, from the Colombian rebels of FARC to the Kurdish female fighters of the YPJ in Syria.  - patreon.com/popularfront - popularfront.co - @jake_hanrahan

We speak to Everest65, who's been working extensively to gather information about insurgent suppressor use in battle in the Middle East and North Africa. This one is about as niche as it gets. - patreon.com/popularfront - popularfront.co - @jake_hanrahan

The region of Idlib in northwestern Syria has been a fiefdom for jihadist forces for some time, most notably the al-Qaeda offshoot Hayat Tahrir al-Sham who rule about 60% of the region. Russia and the Assad regime are likely to launch an offensive on Idlib very soon, but with three million people living there and many unhappy civilians, it's not as simple as wiping out extremists. Sasha Ghosh-Simi...

We speak to Cody Wilson of Defense Distributed about his highly controversial 3D printed gun project. He also talks about crypto-anarchy, untraceable firearms, and his long battle with the US government.  - patreon.com/popularfront - popularfront.co - @jake_hanrahan

The conflict in East Ukraine has become a slow but constant battle from the trenches. Young soldiers are killed almost every week and the separatist held regions are still under the rule of an iron fist, yet the media, both in Ukraine and internationally, seems to have forgotten that Ukraine is still at war. We got some updates on the current state of the conflict from Radio Free Europe's Christop...

In Cameroon a conflict between English speaking Cameroonian rebels and the French speaking Cameroon state forces is rapidly getting worse. Whole villages are being burned, civilians are being killed, and young men are forming militias. There's little coverage in the media about this conflict so far, so we spoke to the only reporter who's been on the ground with the Anglophone militias to find out...

Ever wondered why some warlords get all the best guns and others are left to craft their own? Or how British made muskets end up on Afghanistan gun markets? Or why the Marines now have a dedicated drone person? If so, you'll love this episode. Discover all things small arms with Silah Report. - patreon.com/popularfront - popularfront.co - @jake_hanrahan

Hear Pawel Wojcik talking about how ISIS has gone international, spreading its jihadist Caliphate across the world, setting up effective cells in Libya, Afghanistan, Nigeria, and East Asia. Find out why the fall of Raqqa was not the end of ISIS. - patreon.com/popularfront - popularfront.co - @jake_hanrahan

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Independent Aum Shinrikyo researcher Sarah Hightower tells us how the Japanese death cult became a terrorist organisation with more than 10,000 members. They produced Sarin gas, they built their own assault rifles, and they even tried to buy bombs from the former Soviet Union. To this day Aum Shinrikyo still exists.  - patreon.com/popularfront - popularfront.co - @jake_hanrahan

A first person account from reporter Sean Williams (New Yorker, Harpers) of what it was like inside the battle of Marawi, where Filipino ISIS fighters laid siege to the island city in 2017 for six months.  - patreon.com/popularfront - popularfront.co - @jake_hanrahan

A very detailed introduction to the many different facets of the so-called "Christian militias" fighting in Iraq and Syria, talking about the history and motivations of the Assyrian/Syriac/Chaldean community. - patreon.com/popularfront - jakehanrahan.com/popularfront - @jake_hanrahan

After recently returning from El Salvador, journalist Danny Gold tells us about the violence of MS-13 and how evangelical Christianity is tying to quell it. He also explains how paramilitary death squads are organising via WhatsApp to slaughter the gangs in their own neighbourhoods.    - jakehanrahan.com - patreon.com/popularfront - @jake_hanrahan

Aram Shabanian tells us why the forgotten "frozen conflict" between Armenia and Azerbaijan could explode into a full blown war that pulls in everyone from Russia to India.    - jakehanrahan.com - patreon.com/popularfront - @jake_hanrahan