Podcasts about Syrian Democratic Forces

Banu Guven, a widely respected TV presenter, became the first Turkish journalist to host Kurdish leader Mazlum Kobane on national TV in Turkey. Until recently, interviewing the former commander of the now dissolved Syrian Democratic Forces was a punishable offense. But with Kurdish peace talks underway in Turkey and the integration of Kurdish structures in Syria's northeast advancing, the mood has shifted.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

CAPTION 1888 DAMASCUSSyrian Integration Brings Hope and RiskAhmad Sharawi outlines regional developments in the Middle East, starting with a US-mediated agreement involving the IAEA and Syria to monitor nuclear material from the bombed Al-Kibar site. Although supervised by the IAEA, the material remaining in Syria poses a risk of theft or exploitation by neighbors. Sharawi also details the finalized integration of Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces into the national military, granting Kurds citizenship and language rights while expanding state control to ninety-seven percent of Syrian territory. This satisfies Turkey by ending hopes of Kurdish autonomy. Finally, he notes impending US sanctions against Oman for sanctions-busting. (8)

CAPTION 1857 WALL STREET, 230 PM, PANICCONTENTS OF THE JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW 9-1-2026Economic Strength Persists Despite Oil PressuresLiz Peek observes that while Wall Street is split on whether the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in September, the American economy remains robust. Consumer spending is strong, small business profitability is at yearly highs, and hiring remains resilient. The primary economic headwind is rising oil prices fueled by the war in Iran. Additionally, she analyzes the investment potential of rebuilding Venezuela's ruined oil infrastructure, estimating it will take five years to yield significant production increases. Finally, Peek highlights how progressive groups like the Democratic Socialists of America and Chinese misinformation bots actively oppose crucial domestic data center development. (1)Russian Hybrid Attacks Destabilize European SecurityJudy Dempsey discusses European frustration over the unexpected presence of Russia's finance minister at a G20meeting, which highlighted a lack of communication within the transatlantic alliance. She details the Leipzig drone incident—a critical near-miss attack at a vital logistics hub for Ukraine—which is suspected to be a Russian hybrid operation. Dempsey explains how Russia leverages cyber and physical threats to instill fear, polarization, and anxiety among voters. This instability directly bolsters the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which capitalizes on eastern Germany's demographic decline, economic resentment, and euroskeptic nationalism. (2)Hidden Fiscal Challenges Facing Modern EconomiesJoseph Sternberg warns Americans about the hidden burdens of a Value Added Tax (VAT), a consumption tax common in Europe. Although pitched as simple, Sternberg argues that this tax creates immense compliance burdens for small businesses, requiring a full working week annually to administer. This complexity fosters a cash-based gray market to evade the tax. Furthermore, because the tax is concealed within product prices rather than added at checkout, politicians can easily hike rates without public outcry. Sternberg also contrasts Europe's expensive, highly regulated data center shortage with America's resistance to building the AI infrastructure crucial for its economic future. (3)Canada Navigates Trade Rupture With AmericaCharles Burton highlights the geopolitical fallout from the breakdown of US-Canada trade negotiations, which resulted in a fifty percent tariff penalty on Canada. This dispute sparked a surge of anti-American nationalism, boosting political support for Mark Carney, particularly in Quebec over French-language protection concerns. Consequently, Canada is rapidly diversifying its trade away from the United States, aligning closer with China and the European Union. Burton warns that Beijing stands to benefit immensely, offering trade access if Canada ceases opposing Chinese geostrategic interests, while Ottawa prioritizes west coast pipelines to ship oil directly to China. (4)Global Chaos Drives Rise of NationalismGregory Copley outlines how global actors leverage chaos to achieve strategic goals, noting China's aggressive attempts to disrupt the Pacific Islands Forum in Palau due to Taiwan's participation. Beijing's hostile diplomacy also targets Eswatini, Africa's sole state recognizing Taiwan, to strip Taiwan of international support. Copley notes that energy security is governed by transportation bottlenecks, highlighting the strategic importance of Cuban cobalt for future energy storage. Finally, he explains how uncontrolled migration and Russian hybrid operations drive resurgent European nationalism, prompting a breakdown of supranational systems like the European Union. He also touches on British royal dynamics. (5)Frustrated Voters Navigate Challenging Midterm DynamicsThaddeus McCotter interprets midterm election polling, explaining how the president's approval rating influences independent voters seeking checks and balances in Congress. He notes that high, near-identical disapproval ratings for both major parties reflect widespread voter frustration with outdated governing paradigms. Rather than outright anger, Americans are frustrated by the lack of sane, competent governance and positive, aspirational platforms. McCotter highlights how voters connect abstract foreign policies, such as ongoing operations in Iran, directly to their daily lives and pocketbooks through tangible domestic indicators like high gasoline prices. (6)University Core Curriculum Reform Offers PromisePeter Berkowitz discusses university core curriculum reform, pointing to a promising new proposal at the University of Texas at Austin. He argues that traditional core curricula fail because tenured faculty prioritize narrow research interests over student needs, leaving graduates without a foundational understanding of Western civilization, American political ideas, or global cultures. Under UT Austin's top-down initiative, the curriculum is divided into arts and humanities, social sciences, and STEM, offering deep introductions to major issues. Berkowitz contrasts this structured reform with conventional systems that students merely view as arbitrary academic hoops. (7)Syrian Integration Brings Hope and RiskAhmad Sharawi outlines regional developments in the Middle East, starting with a US-mediated agreement involving the IAEA and Syria to monitor nuclear material from the bombed Al-Kibar site. Although supervised by the IAEA, the material remaining in Syria poses a risk of theft or exploitation by neighbors. Sharawi also details the finalized integration of Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces into the national military, granting Kurds citizenship and language rights while expanding state control to ninety-seven percent of Syrian territory. This satisfies Turkey by ending hopes of Kurdish autonomy. Finally, he notes impending US sanctions against Oman for sanctions-busting. (8)

Nearly a week after the Syrian Democratic Forces agreed to dissolve, the consequences are beginning to take shape for Syria's Kurds and neighbouring Turkey. As the former US-backed force is absorbed into the Syrian state, questions remain over what the country's Kurds have secured in return – from language and political rights to protections for women – and what the end of more than a decade of Kurdish-led autonomy means for Turkey's own conflict with Kurdish militants. SDF leader Mazloum Abdi announced the force's dissolution last Tuesday, saying its fighters would be integrated into the Syrian army. At its height, the predominantly Kurdish force numbered around 100,000 fighters and controlled nearly a fifth of Syrian territory in the northeast, including major oil fields and fertile land. Under SDF rule, Kurds gained cultural and political rights denied to them under previous governments in Damascus. “It means the end of Kurdish autonomy. After more than one decade of freedom, now they are under the control of Damascus,” said Syria expert Fabrice Balanche of Lyon University, who frequently visited the region. Kurdish rights “There are no guarantees for the Kurdish language because it's just a presidential decree: ‘let the Kurds use their language and teach Kurdish in schools,' but there is nothing in the constitution,” Balanche said. The decree, issued by President Ahmed al-Sharaa in January, recognised Kurdish as a national language and allowed it to be taught in schools in areas with significant Kurdish populations. It also restored citizenship to Kurds who had been left stateless under measures stemming from a controversial 1962 census and made Nowruz, the Kurdish New Year festival, an official national holiday. The Education Ministry followed up on 27 August with rules providing for three Kurdish-language classes a week in public and private schools in areas with significant Kurdish populations, with marks counting towards pupils' final grades. ‘Words and promises not enough' as Syria's Kurds face uncertain future Abdi was also appointed as an adviser to al-Sharaa on Friday, days after announcing the SDF's dissolution. It remains unclear whether the role will be more than ceremonial. But questions remain over what the end of the Kurdish-led administration will mean for women. The SDF and affiliated institutions used a system in which governing bodies were jointly headed by a man and a woman. “During these 10 years of autonomy, men and women were equal,” Balanche said. “In the region's administration. It was always a co-presidency. In Raqqah, for example, the mayor was Leyla Mustafa, a woman, and the co-president was a man. Now that is no longer the case.” Balanche also said the change could threaten restrictions on polygamy introduced under the Kurdish-led administration. Another unresolved question is what will happen to female SDF fighters as the force is absorbed into Syria's armed forces, which currently have no female troops. Shifting alliances For years, the SDF was Washington's main partner on the ground in Syria in the fight against the Islamic State group. But its position weakened as the United States built closer relations with Syria's new rulers. A Syrian government offensive in January seized large areas held by the SDF and pushed the Kurdish-led force back into negotiations over integration with Damascus. Washington, meanwhile, has increasingly embraced al-Sharaa's government, dismantling broad sanctions against Syria in 2025 and last week removing the country from its list of state sponsors of terrorism. Turkey has emerged as one of al-Sharaa's main foreign allies and has long pressed for the SDF to disarm and integrate into the Syrian state. Ankara considers the SDF a terrorist organisation linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which launched an insurgency against the Turkish state in 1984. The SDF has rejected Turkey's claim that it is an extension of the PKK. A year after Assad's fall, Syrian hopes for transitional justice are fading The United States and European Union designate the PKK as a terrorist organisation, but not the SDF. Turkey has carried out several cross-border military operations against the SDF in northern Syria since 2016 and still has thousands of troops stationed in the country. Ankara says those forces will remain until the security threats it faces have been eliminated. The SDF's dissolution therefore achieves a longstanding Turkish objective in Syria. Turkey's ruling AK Party welcomed the move last week as an important step towards strengthening Syria's unity. “Stability in Syria means Turkey perhaps being able to divert some of the resources it's been spending on counterterrorism into other areas of its defense that are absolutely necessary at a time like this, a time of regional turmoil,” said Turkey expert Asli Aydintasbas of the Washington-based Brookings Institution. Turkey's Kurdish conflict The SDF's dissolution could also remove an obstacle to the fragile peace process between Ankara and the PKK. The process is intended to end the PKK's decades-long armed campaign against the Turkish state through the group's disarmament and dissolution. Jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan called on the group to disarm and disband in February 2025, and the PKK announced three months later that it would do so. A group of militants symbolically burned their weapons at a ceremony in northern Iraq in July 2025. Turkey's parliament passed a law in August establishing a legal framework for the PKK's disbandment. Kurdish politicians have said broader democratic and legal reforms will also be needed for lasting peace. Macron to become first Western European leader to visit post-Assad Syria For Ankara, however, the process does not stop at Turkey's borders. It has repeatedly insisted that the SDF must also dissolve, because it regards the Syrian force as part of the same militant movement as the PKK. The SDF has disputed that characterisation, with Abdi saying in 2025 that the PKK's decision to disarm did not apply to his forces in Syria. The dismantling of groups Ankara regards as PKK affiliates across the region is essential to the process, said Middle East expert Serhan Afacan of Istanbul's Marmara University. “The PKK should not exist anywhere in the region. This is what Ankara has been saying for more than a year,” Afacan said. “If there is going to be any kind of peace process or reconciliation, the PKK is not supposed to exist anywhere in this region, in Turkey, in Iran, in Iraq, Syria.”

Subscribe now⁠ for an ad-free experience and all of our episodes. American Prestige brand MREs use Argentinian beef, but don't worry, it's the good kind. In this week's news: the US launches a new sanctions campaign against Iran (1:36); Iran and Oman negotiate the management of the Strait of Hormuz (5:50); a Haitian gang killing (9:28); the Israeli government takes bids for its E1 settlement (12:00); the US removes Syria from the terrorism sponsors list (14:38); the Syrian Democratic Forces announces its dissolution (15:51); Trump submits the Saudi nuclear deal to Congress (18:39); progress is made in negotiations between the DRC and M23 (23:46); the Ebola outbreak in the DRC continues to expand (26:33); the CIA director visits Russia (28:14); US-Canada trade talks collapse (31:17); and the United States prepares a deep sea mining auction around overseas territories (35:42). Don't forget Derek's Substack, ⁠Foreign Exchanges⁠. Enjoy Danny's new Substack, I⁠mperialist Realism⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

American Prestige brand MREs use Argentinian beef, but don't worry, it's the good kind. In this week's news: the US launches a new sanctions campaign against Iran (1:35); Iran and Oman negotiate the management of the Strait of Hormuz (5:49); a Haitian gang killing (9:20); the Israeli government takes bids for its E1 settlement (11:52); the US removes Syria from the terrorism sponsors list (14:30); the Syrian Democratic Forces announces its dissolution (15:43); Trump submits the Saudi nuclear deal to Congress (18:31); progress is made in negotiations between the DRC and M23 (23:46); the Ebola outbreak in the DRC continues to expand (26:26); the CIA director visits Russia (28:07); US-Canada trade talks collapse (31:10); and the United States prepares a deep sea mining auction around overseas territories (35:35).Don't forget Derek's Substack, ⁠Foreign Exchanges⁠.Enjoy Danny's new Substack, I⁠mperialist Realism⁠.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

A group of Kurdish-led fighters in Syria that once battled Islamic State forces is joining up with the new government. AP correspondent Jennifer King reports.

US President Donald Trump secretly switched planes in Turkey last month during the Nato summit after US intelligence identified a credible Iranian assassination threat, according to a new report by The Washington Post. The White House did not disclose the switch publicly, raising questions about transparency. Sources have told The National that the Houthis are seeking to widen the Yemen conflict to take on a more powerful regional role in support of Iran and maximise leverage. In Syria, the return of more than 400 Kurdish families to the country's north-east was marred by reports of attacks on their convoy. The process was part of an agreement to integrate the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces into the state and facilitate the return of displaced residents. Meanwhile, Lebanon and the World Bank have signed a $150 million loan deal to help modernise the country's digital infrastructure and make government services easier to access. And in the UAE, Indian visitors can now get free entry visas when visiting Abu Dhabi as part of the emirate's drive to encourage tourism. Trending Middle East is AI-assisted, using original reporting published in The National and curated and edited by humans

The United States has pulled its troops out of Syria, ending a decade-long presence. But the fight isn’t over. As power shifts on the ground, Kurdish forces, regional tensions, and fragile negotiations are reshaping the country’s future. What’s behind the decision, and what comes next? In this episode: Natacha Danon (@natacha_danon), Journalist Episode credits: This episode was produced by David Enders, Marcos Bartolomé and Sarí el-Khalili with Catherine Nouhan, Tuleen Barakat, and our guest host, Kevin Hirten. It was edited by Noor Wazwaz and Tamara Khandakar. Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

Headlines:A ten-day ceasefire is now in effect in Lebanon.The Treasury Department issued a fresh batch of sanctions targeting a network of people, companies, and ships involved in illicitly smuggling Iranian oil.A group of U.S. senators sent a letter to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche asking him to explain why the Trump administration dropped a criminal case against Turkey's Halkbank.Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammed Al-Jolani, met with a pair of Kurdish leaders yesterday to discuss the integration of the Syrian Democratic Forces — or SDF — into Syria's state forces.Word on the street is that there was meeting between the U.S. and Hamas in Cairo earlier this week.--FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer provides timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with H.R. McMaster, former National Security Advisor to the President of the United States and chairman of FDD's Center on Military and Political Power.Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief

For today's episode, Lawfare Senior Editor Scott R. Anderson sits down with Charles Lister, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute and head of its Syria Initiative, to talk about the dramatic developments that have taken place in Syria the past few weeks, which have ultimately led to the impending withdrawal of U.S. troops after more than a decade in country.Together, they discuss the challenges Syria has faced since the fall of the Assad regime, how the new transitional government in Damascus has managed its relationship with the Syrian Democratic Forces, what the exit of U.S. troops means for efforts to combat the Islamic State terrorist group, and the role the United States has played in it all—and is likely to play moving forward.To receive ad-free podcasts, become a Lawfare Material Supporter at www.patreon.com/lawfare. You can also support Lawfare by making a one-time donation at https://givebutter.com/lawfare-institute.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What next for the Syrian detention camps and their residents? After the fall of the so-called “caliphate”, tens of thousands of women and children from around the world - followers of the Islamic State group as well as its victims - ended up in a handful of camps in north-eastern Syria. Once run by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, those camps are now in the process of being closed down by the Syrian authorities. This series from the Global Jigsaw explores the trauma that led to the prolonged existence of the camps and what the future might hold for their residents. In part three, we discuss justice and rehabilitation, as well as where the latest dramatic events leave the story.Contributors: Mina al-Lami, Barry Marston, Clare Denning, Samia Hosny, Mohammed al-Jumaily, Bryn Windsor Producer: Kriszta Satori, Elchin Suleymanov Presenter: Krassi Ivanova Twigg Music: Pete Cunningham

What next for the Syrian detention camps and their residents? After the fall of the so-called “caliphate”, tens of thousands of women and children from around the world - followers of the Islamic State group as well as its victims - ended up in a handful of camps in north-eastern Syria. Once run by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, those camps are now in the process of being closed down by the Syrian authorities. This series explores the trauma that led to the prolonged existence of the camps and what the future might hold for their residents. In part three, we discuss justice and rehabilitation, as well as where the latest dramatic events leave the story.Contributors: Mina al-Lami, Barry Marston, Clare Denning, Samia Hosny, Mohammed al-Jumaily, Bryn Windsor Producer: Kriszta Satori, Elchin Suleymanov Presenter: Krassi Ivanova Twigg Music: Pete Cunningham

What next for the Syrian detention camps and their residents? After the fall of the so-called “caliphate”, tens of thousands of women and children from around the world - followers of the Islamic State group as well as its victims - ended up in a handful of camps in north-eastern Syria. Once run by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, those camps are now in the process of being closed down by the Syrian authorities. This three-part series from the Global Jigsaw explores the trauma that led to their prolonged existence and how it might affect their future. In part two, we examine where governments are drawing the line on repatriation, from Britain's tough stance to Kazakhstan's model of success. Contributors: Mina al-Lami, Jiyar Gol, Barry Marston, Clare Denning, Mohammed Al-Jumaily, Bryn Windsor Producer: Kriszta Satori, Elchin Suleymanov Presenter: Krassi Ivanova Twigg Music: Pete Cunningham

What next for the Syrian detention camps and their residents? After the fall of the so-called “caliphate", tens of thousands of women and children from around the world - followers of the group as well as its victims - ended up in a handful of camps in north-eastern Syria. Once run by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, those camps are now in the process of being closed down by the Syrian authorities. This three-part series from The Global Jigsaw explores the trauma that led to the prolonged existence of these camps and what the future might hold for their residents. In part one, we zoom in on the tent city of al-Hol.Contributors: Mina al-Lami, Jiyar Gol, Barry Marston, Mohammed Al-Jumaily Producer: Kriszta Satori, Elchin Suleymanov Presenter: Krassi Ivanova Twigg Music: Pete Cunningham

What next for the Syrian detention camps and their residents? After the fall of the so-called “caliphate”, tens of thousands of women and children from around the world - followers of the Islamic State group as well as its victims - ended up in a handful of camps in north-eastern Syria. Once run by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, those camps are now in the process of being closed down by the Syrian authorities. This three-part series explores the trauma that led to their prolonged existence and how it might affect their future. In part two, we examine where governments are drawing the line on repatriation, from Britain's tough stance to Kazakhstan's model of success. Contributors: Mina al-Lami, Jiyar Gol, Barry Marston, Clare Denning, Mohammed Al-Jumaily, Bryn Windsor Producer: Kriszta Satori, Elchin Suleymanov Presenter: Krassi Ivanova Twigg Music: Pete Cunningham

The notorious Al Hol camp in north-east Syria finally closed its doors this week. Thousands of alleged ISIS members and their families had been held there for years in inhumane conditions and without charge or trial.  Human rights groups had long advocated for the camp to be closed but the events that unfolded before it was emptied were described as chaotic. The disorganised handover of the camp from the Syrian Democratic Forces to government authorities created a power vacuum that allowed for thousands of residents to escape. Those remaining were moved to a new camp in Aleppo with better conditions. Some of them are children who have never known a life outside Al Hol. The hope is they will eventually be reintegrated into society. But there is a fear that those with hardline ideologies could be recruited by ISIS, which just declared war against President Ahmad Al Shara and his government. In this episode of Beyond the Headlines, host Nada AlTaher asks, 'what happens next after the closure of Al Hol and can an ISIS resurgence in Syria be contained?' We hear from The National's correspondent Nada Maucourant Atallah and Alexander McKeever, an independent researcher based in Damascus.

What next for the Syrian detention camps and their residents? After the fall of the so-called “caliphate", tens of thousands of women and children from around the world - followers of the group as well as its victims - ended up in a handful of camps in north-eastern Syria. Once run by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, those camps are now in the process of being closed down by the Syrian authorities. This three-part series explores the trauma that led to the prolonged existence of these camps and what the future might hold for their residents. In part one, we zoom in on the tent city of al-Hol.Contributors: Mina al-Lami, Jiyar Gol, Barry Marston, Mohammed Al-Jumaily Producer: Kriszta Satori, Elchin Suleymanov Presenter: Krassi Ivanova Twigg Music: Pete Cunningham

Subscribe now for the full episode. Derek speaks with Alexander McKeever, publisher of This Week in Northern Syria, about the defeat of the Syrian Democratic Forces' (SDF) autonomous project and its integration into the new Syrian state. They discuss the fall of the Assad regime, the March 2025 integration agreement between Damascus and the SDF, the breakdown of negotiations and January fighting in Aleppo, the rapid collapse of SDF control in Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor, tribal defections and grievances against the autonomous administration, and the uncertain future for Kurdish rights under the centralized Syrian government. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Syria is at a pivotal moment. After the fall of Bashar al-Assad, the country's new leadership under President Ahmed al-Sharaa is working to reunify a fractured state — and the biggest test is unfolding in the northeast, where the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have operated autonomously for nearly a decade.In recent weeks, a fragile ceasefire and phased integration agreement has put Syrian Interior Ministry forces back into major cities like Hasakeh and Qamishli. On paper, the deal could mark the beginning of Syria's re-centralization. However, that fragility was exposed in early 2026, when fighting broke out between the SDF and Syrian government forces, raising fresh doubts about whether integration can hold.In this episode of The Burn Bag, A'ndre Gonawela sits down with Charles Lister, Senior Fellow and Director of the Syria Initiative at the Middle East Institute, to provide a clear, ground-level primer on what's actually happening — and what could come next.Together, they unpack how Syria's political map shifted after Assad's fall and why the Syrian Democratic Forces remain central to the country's trajectory. The discussion breaks down what the March 2025 integration framework actually required, why talks stalled ahead of the January escalation, and what Interior Ministry deployments into Hasakeh and Qamishli signal about Damascus' return to the northeast. They also examine how Arab tribal defections reshaped eastern Syria, whether ISIS is quietly adapting, how the U.S. posture may evolve, and the most likely paths ahead — consolidation, hybrid control, or renewed conflict.Follow Charles on X @Charles_Lister and check out his other work here.

A little over a year from the start of the new government in Syria, violence returned to Aleppo. In January, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the forces of the interim Syrian government clashed in the Aleppo areas of Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyah.The SDF came off worse and were forced to retreat back to the northeast; and such was the scale of the defeat, they were forced into signing a deal that will see the SDF integrated into the Syrian army.For almost a year, the SDF has been resisting such a deal. This week, we look at the fighting in Aleppo, the deal that has been signed, and why, the status of the SDF and Syria's Kurds, and what these event mean for the Syria that President al-Sharaa is building.We're joined by Dr. Rahaf Aldoughli (@r_aldoughli), senior editor at Cogent Social Sciences and fellow at the Arab Reform Initiative (@ArabReform_ARI), and also, Joseph Daher (@JosephDaher19), a Syrian academic and specialist on the political economy of the Middle East.This podcast is written and produced by Hugo Goodridge (@hugogoodridge).Theme music by Omar al-Fil with additional music from Audio Network.To get in touch with the producers, follow then tweet us at @TNAPodcasts or email podcast@newarab.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US military has begun to transfer up to 7000 Islamic State (IS) group detainees held in prisons in Syria to Iraq, which officials say is to prevent prisoners breaking out and regrouping. The transfer comes weeks after the US led large-scale strikes on IS group targets in Syria. The move comes after clashes between the Syrian government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, which last week ended in a deal that would see the gradual integration of Kurdish forces and institutions into the state, and transfer control of the prisons to Damascus. Today we talk to Josh Baker, investigative journalist and host of the BBC podcast I Am Not A Monster, about the state of the IS group, and whether the country's instability could lead to a resurgence in Syria The Global Story brings clarity to politics, business and foreign policy in a time of connection and disruption. For more episodes, just search 'The Global Story' wherever you get your BBC Podcasts.Producers: Sam Chantarasak and Lucy Pawle Senior news editor: China Collins Mix: Travis Evans Photo: A member of the Syrian security forces stands in front of the gate of the Al-Hol camp, which houses families of suspected Islamic State (IS) group fighters. Credit: Mohammed al-Rifai/EPA/Shutterstock

The US military has begun to transfer up to 7000 Islamic State (IS) group detainees held in prisons in Syria to Iraq, which officials say is to prevent prisoners breaking out and regrouping. The transfer comes weeks after the US led large-scale strikes on IS group targets in Syria. The move comes after clashes between the Syrian government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, which last week ended in a deal that would see the gradual integration of Kurdish forces and institutions into the state, and transfer control of the prisons to Damascus. Today we talk to Josh Baker, investigative journalist and host of the BBC podcast I Am Not A Monster, about the state of the IS group, and whether the country's instability could lead to a resurgence in Syria Producers: Sam Chantarasak and Lucy Pawle Senior news editor: China Collins Mix: Travis Evans Photo: A member of the Syrian security forces stands in front of the gate of the Al-Hol camp, which houses families of suspected Islamic State (IS) group fighters. Credit: Mohammed al-Rifai/EPA/Shutterstock

This week, we spoke with Donna Mae, a longtime resident of Minneapolis and registered nurse working mostly with people who are unsheltered and use injection drugs. Donna lives in a neighborhood of the city that has had very heavy ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and CBP (Customs and Border Patrol) activity and speaks for the hour about the last two months of invasion, organizing with neighbors, the legacy of the George Floyd Uprising and the aftermath of the murders of Renée Good and Alex Pretti, the recent General Strike and lessons for preparing in the next incursion, wherever that may be. Some links for support Fundraiser for folks in the Phillips neighborhood: https://gofund.me/0ba86917d Southside Harm Reduction Services: https://shrs.org/get-involved/donate/ Minneapolis Indian Women's Resource Center: https://miwrc.salsalabs.org/miwrcgeneraloperations/index.html Additional Links Facial Recognition Tech Used in Minneapolis to Target Protestors: in the Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/jan/27/ice-facial-recognition-minnesota in Politico: https://www.politico.com/news/2026/01/29/ice-tracking-tools-protesters-00755703 Rojava Updates Podcast Release Recently, armed conflict has flared between the Syrian Democratic Forces and both the Turkish-backed, so-called Syrian National Army militia and the forces aligned with the Syrian transitional government. In coming days we'll be sharing a timely podcast featuring an interview with a member of Tekoşîna Anarşîst and another with a western activist on the ground in Qamişlo to share their perspectives on the situation and updates on the changing terrain. We talk about the danger of a resurgence of ISIS, the humanitarian crisis growing due to the seige in Kobane and the fears of a renewed patriarchal governance, but also about organizing and international solidarity. This is a good time to get together with community in your area to figure out how you can support the revolution in Rojava. If you don't have a Rojava solidarity group in your area (start one), keep an ear out for calls to action via the Emergency Committee for Rojava: https://www.defendrojava.org/ In the meantime, check out this first podcast by the Youth Media project, Ronahi: https://www.ronahi.eu/2026/ronahi-podcast-episode-1/ . ... . .. Featured Track: TFSR by The Willows Whisper

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened up 31-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 32,095 on turnover of $9.3-billion N-T. The market smashed closing records on Monday after breaching the 32,000-point mark as buying rotated to the old economy sector. Analysts say the main board's momentum extended from the recent significant gains, as raw material suppliers attracted strong investor interest, while interest in tech stocks saw a downturn. Japanese artists to build lantern floats for Taiwan Lantern Festival Two Japanese Nebuta artists will be crafting (手工製作) the large lantern floats for this year's Taiwan Lantern Festival in Chiayi County. Artists Makoto Suwa and Hiromi Hayashi from Japan's Aomori City were invited to create the lantern floats for the General Association of Chinese Culture. Nebuta are traditional lantern floats handmade with wood, metal wire and paper. According to the association, the two artists will create nebuta for Chiayi County's Pei Tien Temple, featuring the deities Mazu and Hu Ye, for Lantern Festival - which will be taking place from March 3 through 15. Both Suwa and Hayashi have previously visited Taiwan to exhibit their nebuta works, but this will be the first time they produce nebuta from scratch in Taiwan. The floats will be taking part in the festival parade on the evening of March 7. UN Aid Delivered to Kobani Syria A U.N. aid convoy has delivered humanitarian supplies to Kobani in northeast Syria. This marks the first aid delivery since fighting began between Syrian government forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces earlier this month. A ceasefire, announced Tuesday and extended Saturday, is mostly holding despite sporadic skirmishes (斷斷續續的小規模戰鬥). Kobani residents have faced electricity and water cuts and shortages of essentials (必需品). The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said 24 trucks delivered supplies, including food and medical kits. The fighting has displaced over 173-thousand people. A new agreement aims to merge SDF fighters with government forces. UK and EU Countries Join Wind Power Project The UK is among ten other European countries to work on a clean energy scheme (方案) by producing more wind farms in the North sea. The aim of the project, to be agreed at a summit in Germany, is to move away from fossil fuels and strengthen energy security. Lara Bentley reports Canada Last Captive Whales May Be Exported to US Canada's last captive whales have a received a reprieve from death after the Canadian government conditionally approved a plan to export them to the United States. The country's fisheries minister met with officials from Marineland, the shuttered theme park and zoo in Niagara Falls, Ontario, to talk about its proposed plan to move the animals south. The park is in discussions with four U.S. institutions to take its 30 belugas and four dolphins. The park had said it was running out of funds and the animals would be euthanized (安樂死) if the export permits were not authorized by Jan. 30-th. That was the I.C.R.T. EZ News, I'm _____. －－－－以下為 SoundOn 動態廣告－－－－ 新感覺夾心土司 多種口味隨心挑選 讓你隨時隨地都有好心情 甜蜜口感草莓夾心、顆粒層次花生夾心、濃郁滑順可可夾心 主廚監製鮪魚沙拉、精選原料金黃蛋沙拉 輕巧美味帶著走，迎接多變的每一天 7-Eleven多種口味販售中 https://sofm.pse.is/8qducm -- Hosting provided by SoundOn

Iraq has tightened security along its border with Syria amid fears of an Islamic State resurgence, following the takeover by government forces of prisons previously guarded by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces that hold thousands of IS fighters.

The Syrian Army has made sweeping gains against Kurdish-led forces in northeast Syria, dealing a major blow to Syrian Kurdish autonomy and handing victories to both Damascus and neighbouring Turkey. With Washington abandoning its backing of the militia alliance, the Syrian Democratic Forces now face disbandment or renewed fighting. Within days, Syrian government troops swept aside the SDF and took control of vast areas of territory. The offensive followed the collapse of talks on integrating the SDF into the Syrian Army. Washington's shift proved decisive. “The game changer was the American permission, the American green light to [Syrian President] Ahmed al-Sharaa. That opened the door to Damascus launching the offensive,” said Syria expert Fabrice Balanche, of Lyon University. The SDF had been a key US ally in the fight against Islamic State and relied on American support to deter an attack by Damascus. But with Islamic State now weakened and Sharaa joining Washington's alliance against the group, the Kurds lost their leverage. “Trump viewed the relationship as temporary, not a true alliance,” said Balanche, a municipal councillor with France's rightwing Republicans party. French journalist arrested in Turkey while covering pro-Kurdish protest released US withdrawal and rapid collapse As Washington ended its support, many Arab tribes quit the Kurdish-led coalition. They aligned with Damascus, allowing government forces to advance quickly in Arab-majority areas. Several prisons holding Islamic State members fell to government control, with reports that hundreds escaped. Fears of wider instability pushed Washington to broker a ceasefire between the SDF and the Syrian government. Under the deal, SDF forces are to disband and merge into Syrian government units, a move backed by Ankara. Turkey has strongly supported the Damascus offensive. It accuses Kurdish elements within the SDF of links to the PKK, which has fought a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state. “Turkey is certainly behind all these operations,” said international relations professor Huseyin Bagci of Ankara's Middle East Technical University. “The Turkish defence minister, General Chief of Staff, has recently been in Syria. So there is probably a common action.” Turkey blocks calls for regime change in Iran as protests escalate Kurdish tensions inside Turkey The assault has triggered protests by members of Turkey's large Kurdish minority in support of Syrian Kurds. It has also coincided with talks between the pro-Kurdish Dem Party, the Turkish government and the outlawed PKK aimed at ending the conflict. The PKK declared a ceasefire and pledged to disband last year, but talks stalled months ago. Ankara has blamed the deadlock on the SDF's refusal to join the PKK's disarmament commitment. The fighting in Syria could deepen Kurdish disillusionment with the peace process, political analyst Sezin Oney, of the Politikyol news portal, warned. “They pictured this peace process as a big win for the PKK that finally all these rights, all the political rights, cultural rights, everything would be recognized, and a new era would begin," Oney said. "It's not that, and it won't be that there is nobody in Turkey on the side of the government who was envisioning such a change or anything of the sort." The Dem Party had few options left. “The only thing Dem can do is rally the Kurdish public in Turkey, and it is just going to be disbursed,” Oney added. Syrian army offensive in Aleppo draws support from Turkey Risk of wider bloodshed Turkish police have broken up many pro-SDF protests using water cannon and gas, carrying out hundreds of arrests. French journalist Raphael Boukandoura was detained and later released, in a move rights groups said was meant to intimidate foreign media. Without US intervention, Damascus would push further into Kurdish-held areas, Balanche warned. “Sharaa will seize everything." The risk of large-scale violence, he added, was growing in a region marked by tribal rivalries and years of war. “Northeastern Syria is a very tribal area. The tribal leaders who are mobilizing their groups, their fighters, and they're attacking," Balanche said. “Because of 10 years of civil war, you have a lot of vengeance that was under the table, and now everything is exploding. So it could be very bloody.”

After days of fighting, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces and government troops under President Ahmad Al Shara agreed to a fragile ceasefire. But in that short time – and with each side still accusing the other of attacks – the landscape has already changed. Areas that were under SDF control, mostly in the north-east, are now in possession of the government. The Kurdish-led group was previously backed by the US in the fight against ISIS during the Syrian civil war, but that support had been fading as Washington gravitated closer to Mr Al Shara, even before the latest developments. Now many questions remain about what happens to resources in north-eastern Syria, how the new power dynamics will shape regional geopolitics, and what happens to ISIS members who had been detained in SDF facilities. Host Nada AlTaher speaks to The National's deputy foreign editor Aveen Karim to break down what led to the clashes and what comes next.

In this episode, Aaron Zelin returns to Conflicted to unpack the extraordinary collapse of the Syrian Democratic Forces' position in northeast Syria over the past week — and what the fallout could mean for Syria's fragile post-Assad order. Aaron explains: Why the March 2025 framework agreement ultimately failed Why Sunni Arab tribes abandoned the SDF — and how Damascus prepared the ground How and why fighting erupted in Kurdish neighbourhoods of Aleppo The rapid fall of SDF-held areas in Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, and Hasakah What happened at ISIS prisons and detention camps during the collapse Why claims of ‘Kurdish abandonment' by the United States are misleading The PKK factor — and the risk of a new insurgency or terrorism campaign What Syria's consolidation means for ISIS, regional stability, and the country's future Follow Aaron on X: https://x.com/azelin This episode includes BONUS MATERIAL after the credits ONLY for subscribers to the Conflicted Community. Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm  Find us on X: https://x.com/MHconflicted And Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MHconflicted And Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/conflictedpod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Conflicted is a Message Heard production. Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren. This episode was produced and edited by Thomas Small. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For over fourteen years, the Kurds and the Syrian Democratic Forces were central to United States (US) efforts against the IS group. Recent shifts under the Trump administration, led by envoy Tom Barrack, indicate the US is pulling back support from the Kurds and instead backing Syria's interim president, Ahmed al-Shara. In an interview, with senior fellow at the New Lions Institute and former spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition against IS group in Syria and Iraq, Colonel Myles Caggins lll analyses the implications of this change. - Zêdetirî 14 salan Kurdên li bakur-rojhilatê Sûriyê û Hêzên Sûriya Demokratîk di şerê li dijî DAIŞê de hevkarên sereke yê Amerîka bûn. Lê di bin serokatiya Serok Trump de, rêveberiyê - bi rêya nûner Tom Barrack - piştgiriya xwe ji Kurdan û HSDê vekişand û piştgiriya xwe guherand hukûmeta Sûriyê ya demkî di bin serokatiya Ehmed El Şera de. Myles Caggins III berdevkê berê yê hevpeymaniya bi pêşengiya Amerîkayê ji bo têkbirina DAIŞê li Sûriye û Iraqê bû. Me hevpeyvînek derbarê rewşê bi wî re pêk anî.

Donald Trump says "we will work something out" over Greenland, ahead of meetings with European leaders at the World Economic Forum. Mr Trump made the remarks at a news conference to mark the first anniversary of his second term. Also: Snapchat's parent company settles a social media addiction lawsuit. The Syrian government announces another ceasefire deal with Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces. Relatives of anti-government protesters killed in a crackdown by the Iranian authorities struggle to identify the bodies of missing loved ones. Environmental activists are angry at plans to restart oil drilling in Nigeria. Scientists say they've developed a robotic hand that could be better than a human's. And the Swiss cow that has the ability to use tools. The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight.Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment. Get in touch: globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk

Firas explains why the Atlantic is the American Mare Nostrum, where the Ukraine negotiations are, and the collapse of the Syrian Democratic Forces.

U.S. President Donald Trump says missing out on the Nobel Peace Prize means he's under no obligation to pursue peace. ChongLy Thao tells Reuters what it was like to be dragged out of his home and into the snow by ICE. The truce between the Syrian government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces is off to a rocky start. Hundreds protest plans for a Chinese mega embassy in London. Plus, Brooklyn Beckham breaks his silence on the family rift.  Listen to Morning Bid podcast ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Sign up for the Reuters Econ World newsletter ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Listen to the Reuters Econ World podcast ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Find the Recommended Read here. Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit megaphone.fm/adchoices to opt out of targeted advertising. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Groong Week in Review - January 18, 2026Topics:Syria, Kurds, Turkish advanceIran unrest, war postponedTRIPP and sovereignty dispute2026 elections, foreign influenceGuest: Sergei MelkonianHosts:Hovik ManucharyanAsbed BedrossianEpisode 508 | Recorded: January 19, 2026SHOW NOTES: https://podcasts.groong.org/508VIDEO: https://youtu.be/LDI5e7Tcu8k#ArmenianNews #Syria #Iran #ZangezurCorridor #TRIPP #GeopoliticsSubscribe and follow us everywhere you are: linktr.ee/groong

Officials say China's GDP in 2025 grew five percent, meeting the annual target (01:09). Relations between the U.S. and Europe continue to sour over the Greenland issue, with both sides considering tariffs (14:08). The Syrian interim authority and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces sign a new ceasefire and integration agreement (24:54).

① China's economy grew by 5% last year, meeting the country's target. We explore a series of factors underpinning China's growth in 2025. (00:51) ② China's Shenzhou-20 spacecraft has returned to Earth after spending nine months in orbit. We look at how its experience raises concerns about the danger to space travel posed by space debris? (13:38) ③ Will the US tariff threats over Greenland risk a dangerous downward spiral in transatlantic ties? (24:52) ④ The Pentagon has reportedly placed some 1,500 active-duty soldiers on standby for possible deployment to Minnesota, as protests continue against raids carried out by ICE officials. How far can President Trump push the boundaries of his power in Minnesota? (34:57) ⑤ The Syrian government has announced a ceasefire with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces. Will it pave the way for renewed dialogue and cooperation towards a unified Syria? (45:49)

Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen says "Europe won't be blackmailed", as she and other European leaders continue to weigh their response to US President Donald Trump's tariff threats over Greenland. Trump says he will impose new taxes on eight European nations, including Denmark, in February if they oppose his proposed takeover of Greenland. Also on the programme: The Syrian government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces have agreed an immediate ceasefire after nearly two weeks of fighting; and we hear about revolutionary treatment for people with an aggressive form of leukaemia, or blood cancer, which is being offered to patients in the UK.(Photo: Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen speaks at a press conference in Copenhagen, Denmark on the 13th of January 13, 2026. Credit: Liselotte Sabroe/Ritzau Scanpix/via REUTERS)

AP correspondent Donna Warder reports on the announcement of a ceasefire in Syria.

Will the Syrian army end up controlling all the country's Kurdish-held areas? The army has made significant territorial gains after intense battles with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in recent days. So, how will this play out within Syria and the wider region? In this episode: Omar Abu Laila, Syrian Affairs Analyst. Scott Lucas, Professor, US and International Politics, University College Dublin. Kamaran Palani, Kurdish Principal Investigator, PeaceRep Iraq Programme, London School of Economics and Political Science. Host: James Bays Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

Turkey is opposing calls for regime change in Iran as security forces carry out a deadly crackdown on nationwide protests. The Turkish government accuses Israel of exploiting the unrest, and is leading efforts to block any military action against Iran – warning that a collapse of the regime could destabilise the region. Since protests began across Iran almost three weeks ago, Turkey has tried to play down the scale of the unrest. It has distanced itself from Western allies calling for regime change and avoided offering explicit support for those demands. The protests began on 28 December after a currency collapse triggered demonstrations by merchants and traders in Tehran. The unrest quickly spread nationwide. Activists say more than 2,000 protesters have been killed. Alongside Saudi Arabia, Oman and Qatar, Turkey has lobbied Washington against any military response to the killings. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said such a move would worsen the situation. “We oppose military intervention against Iran; Iran must resolve its own problems,” Fidan said. “We want the issue resolved through dialogue.” France summons Iran envoy over 'unrestrained' protest crackdown Fear of regional collapse According to The Guardian newspaper, US President Donald Trump's decision to step back from attacking Iran was influenced by Turkey and its Arab allies – who warned of regional chaos if an attack went ahead. Turkey fears that Iran could descend into civil war similar to Iraq after the collapse of its regime, said Serhan Afacan, head of the Ankara-based Center for Iranian Studies, adding the consequences would be more severe due to Iran's size and diversity. “Iran has a population of about 90 million, including many ethnic minorities such as Turks, Kurds, Arabs and Baluchis,” Afacan explained. “If a conflict erupts among these groups, it could result in a prolonged civil war. Any resulting immigration from Iran to Turkey could reach millions.” Turkey and Iran unite against Israel as regional power dynamics shift PKK security fears Turkey already hosts about three million refugees. Experts say Ankara's biggest security concern is the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, which has fought Turkey for an independent Kurdish state and has an Iranian affiliate, PJAK. Although the PKK announced a ceasefire last year and pledged to disband, Ankara fears unrest in Iran could give the group new opportunities, said Iranian expert Bilgehan Alagoz, of Marmara University. “Day by day, we have started to see the PKK groups in certain cities of Iran demanding some separatist demands, and this is the main concern for Turkey,” he said. Ankara also accuses Israel of exploiting the situation in Iran. “Israel has targeted all these PKK groups and tried to motivate the PKK groups inside Iran,” Alagoz said. “Any instability inside Iran can create a space for the PKK.” Fidan has also accused Israel of manipulating the protests. Turkey is already confronting another PKK-linked group in Syria, the Syrian Democratic Forces, which controls large parts of the country. Ankara accuses Israel of supporting the SDF, adding Iran to a broader Israeli-Turkish regional rivalry. France's Iranian diaspora divided over deadly protests back home Energy pressure Turkey could also clash with Washington over Iran if the protests continue. Trump has warned that countries trading with Tehran could face 25 percent tariffs. Iran supplies Turkey with about one-fifth of its gas needs, according to Atilla Yesilada, an analyst at the Global Source Partners think tank. “Iran pumps 10 billion cubic metres of gas to Turkey every year, roughly one-fifth of total consumption,” he said. That supply could theoretically be replaced by liquefied natural gas imports, but Yesilada warned that Turkey is already struggling to cut its dependence on Russia, its main energy supplier. “Combine this with increasing American and EU pressure to cut gas purchases from Russia, and Turkey is in a very difficult situation,” he said.

At least 23 civilians have died from attacks on residential neighborhoods in the Syrian city of Aleppo. Health authorities said the casualties resulted from attacks attributed to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.

Renewed clashes in the Syrian city of Aleppo between the army and Kurdish fighters are undermining efforts to achieve national unity. The violence erupted after a failure to implement a deal on incorporating fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces into the army. Can tension be contained this time? In this episode: Labib Nahhas, Syria analyst Omer Ozkizilcik, Nonresident fellow for the Syria Project in the Atlantic Council's Middle East Program Rob Geist Pinfold, Lecturer in International Security at King's College London Host: James Bays Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

In this episode of Hold Your Fire!, Richard is joined by Dareen Khalifa, Crisis Group's senior adviser for dialogue promotion, to discuss Syria's transition after the fall of the Assad regime and the political evolution of President Ahmed al-Sharaa. They talk about al-Sharaa's recent trip to the White House and Washington's evolving Syria policy and sanctions relief. They examine how life has changed under Syria's new leadership and the daunting task the authorities face in unifying the country's armed groups, including efforts to integrate the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in the north east. They also delve into outbreaks of sectarian violence in Alawite and Druze-majority areas, concerns about the political transition's inclusiveness and Syria's complicated relations with Israel. Finally, they trace al-Sharaa's evolution from his militant past to the Syrian presidency and discuss whether domestic headwinds could derail his achievements on the world stage.For more, check out our Syria page. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Strategic Crossroads, host Zara Farouk sits down with journalist and analyst Wladimir van Wilgenburg to unpack the landmark March agreement between the Syrian Democratic Forces and the Syrian government. Together they explore what this deal means for Kurdish self-rule, the future of gender parity in governance, and the mounting pressures on Syrian minority communities such as the Druze. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not an official policy or position of New Lines Institute.

Subscribe now for the full episode! Derek welcomes back historian Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi for a discussion about developments in Syria under the new government, which toppled that of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. They talk about the massacres of Alawites at the beginning of this year, the non-governmental militias still operating in the country, clashes between Druze and Bedouin armed groups in the southern city of Suwayda, Israeli involvement, Syrian Democratic Forces activity in the northeast of the country and Turkey's role, and whether the government under Ahmed al-Sharaa can make a “Syria for all Syrians.” Check out Aymenn's book The Conquest of al-Andalus: a Translation of Fath al-Andalus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we talk about the PKK, Turkey, and the DEM Party.We also discuss terrorism, discrimination, and stateless nations.Recommended Book: A Century of Tomorrows by Glenn AdamsonTranscriptKurdistan is a cultural region, not a country, but part of multiple countries, in the Middle East, spanning roughly the southeastern portion of Turkey, northern Iraq, the northwestern portion of Iran, and northern Syrian. Some definitions also include part of the Southern Caucasus mountains, which contains chunks of Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan.So this is a sprawling region that straddles multiple nations, and it's defined by the presence of the Kurdish people, the Kurds, who live all over the world, but whose culture is concentrated in this area, where it originally developed, and where, over the generations, there have periodically been very short-lived Kurdish nations of various shapes, sizes, and compositions.The original dynasties from which the Kurds claim their origin were Egyptian, and they governed parts of northeastern African and what is today Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan. That was back in the 8th to 12th century, during which Saladin, who was the sultan of both Egypt and Syria, played a major historical role leading Muslim military forces against the Christian Crusader states during the Third Crusade, and leading those forces to victory in 1187, which resulted in Muslim ownership of the Levant, even though the Crusaders continued to technically hold the Kingdom of Jerusalem for another hundred years or so, until 1291.Saladin was Kurdish and kicked off a sultanate that lasted until the mid-13th century, when a diverse group of former slave-soldiers called the mamluks overthrew Saladin's family's Ayyubid sultanate and replaced it with their own.So Kurdish is a language spoken in that Kurdistan region, and the Kurds are considered to be an Iranian ethnic group, because Kurdish is part of a larger collection of languages and ethnicities, though many Kurds consider themselves to be members of a stateless nation, similar in some ways to pre-Israel Jewish people, Tibetan people under China's rule, or the Yoruba people, who primarily live in Nigeria, Benin, and Togo, but who were previously oriented around a powerful city-state in that region, which served as the central loci of the Ife Empire, before the Europeans showed up and decided to forcibly move people around and draw new borders across the African continent.The Kurds are likewise often politically and culturally powerful, and that's led to a lot of pushback from leaders in the nations where they live and at times operate as cultural blocs, and it's led to some very short-lived Kurdish nations these people have managed to establish in the 20th century, including the Kingdom of Kurdistan from 1921-1924, the Republic of Ararat from 1927-1930, and the Republic of Mahabad, which was formed as a puppet state of the Soviet Union in 1946 in northwestern Iran, following a Soviet push for Kurdish nationalism in the region, which was meant to prevent the Allies from controlling the region following WWII, but which then dissolved just a few months after its official formation due to waning support from the Kurdish tribes that initially helped make it a reality.What I'd like to talk about today is the Kurdistan Worker's Party, and why their recently declared ceasefire with Turkey is being seen as a pretty big deal.—The Kurdistan Worker's Party, depending on who you ask, is a political organization or a terrorist organization. It was formed in Turkey in late-1978, and its original, founding goal was to create an independent Kurdish state, a modern Kurdistan, in what is today a small part of Turkey, but in the 1990s it shifted its stated goals to instead just get more rights for Kurds living in Turkey, including more autonomy but also just equal rights, as Kurdish people in many nations, including Turkey, have a long history of being discriminated against, in part because of their cultural distinctiveness, including their language, manner of dress, and cultural practices, and in part because, like many tight-knit ethnic groups, they often operate as a bloc, which in the age of democracy also means they often vote as a bloc, which can feel like a threat to other folks in areas with large Kurdish populations.When I say Kurdish people in Turkey have long been discriminated against, that includes things like telling them they can no longer speak Kurdish and denying that their ethnic group exists, but it also includes massacres conducted by the government against Kurdish people; at times tens of thousands of Kurds were slaughtered by the Turkish army. There was also an official ban on the words Kurds, Kurdistan, and Kurdish by the Turkish government in the 1980s, and Kurdish villages were destroyed, food headed to these villages was embargoed, and there was a long-time ban on the use of the Kurdish language in public life, and people who used it were arrested.As is often the case in such circumstances, folks who support the Kurdish Worker's Party, which is often shorthanded as the PKK, will tell you this group just pushes back against an oppressive regime, and they do what they have to to force the government to backtrack on their anti-Kurdish laws and abuses, which have been pretty widespread and violent.The PKK, in turn, has been criticized for, well, doing terrorist stuff, including using child soldiers, conducting suicide bombings, massacring groups of civilians, engaging in drug trafficking to fund their cause, and executing people on camera as a means of sowing terror.Pretty horrible stuff on both sides, if you look at this objectively, then, and both sides have historically justified their actions by pointing at the horrible things the other side has done to them and theirs.And that's the context for a recent announcement by the leader of the PKK, that the group would be disarming—and very literally so, including a symbolic burning of their weapons in a city in northern Iraq, which was shared online—and they would be shifting their efforts from that of violent militarism and revolution to that of political dialogue and attempting to change the Turkish government from the inside.Turkish President Erdogan, for his part, has seemed happy to oblige these efforts and gestures, fulfilling his role by receiving delegates from the Turkish, pro-Kurd party, the DEM Party, and smilingly shaking that delegate's hand on camera, basically showing the world, and those who have played some kind of role in the militant effort against the Turkish government, that this is the way of things now, we're not fighting physically anymore, we're moving on to wearing suits and pushing for Kurdish rights within the existing governmental structures.The founder of the PKK, Abdullah Ocalan, got in on the action, as well, releasing a seven-minute video from prison, which was then broadcast by the PKK's official media distribution outlet, saying that the fighting is over. This was his first appearance on camera in 26 years, and he used it to say their effort paid off, the Kurds now have an officially recognized identity, and it's time to leverage that identity politically to move things in the right direction.Erdogan's other messages on the matter, to the Kurdish people, but also those who have long lived in fear of the PKK's mass-violence, have reinforced that sentiment, saying that the Kurds are officially recognized as a political entity, and that's how things would play out from this point forward—and this will be good for everyone. And both sides are saying that, over and over, because, well, child soldiers and suicide bombings and massacres conducted by both sides are really, really not good for anyone.By all indications, this has been a very carefully orchestrated dance by those on both sides of the conflict, which again, has been ongoing since 1978, and really picked up the pace and became continuous and ultra-violent, in the 1980s.There was an attempted peace process back in the 20-teens, but the effort, which included a temporary truce between 2013 and 2015, failed, following the murder of two Turkish police officers, the PKK initially claiming responsibility, but later denying they had any involvement. That led to an uptick in military actions by both groups against the other, and the truce collapsed.This new peace process began in 2024 and really took off in late-February of 2025, when that aforementioned message was broadcast by the PKK's leader from prison after lawmakers from the pro-Kurdish DEM Party worked to connect him and the Turkish government, and eventually helped negotiate the resulting mid-May of 2025 disarmament.Turkey's military leaders have said they will continue to launch strikes against PKK-affiliated groups that continue to operate in the region, and the PKK's disarmament announcement has been embraced by some such groups, while others, like the Syrian Democratic Forces, which is tied to the PKK, but not directly affiliated with them, have said this truce doesn't apply to them.Most governments, globally, have heralded this disarmament as a major victory for the world and Turkey in particular, though the response within Turkey, and in Kurdish areas in particular, has apparently been mixed, with some people assuming the Turkish government will backtrack and keep the DEM Party from accomplishing much of anything, and worrying about behind-the-scenes deals, including a reported agreement between Erdogan's government and the DEM Party to support Erdogan's desire to transform the Turkish government into a presidential system, which would grant him more direct control and power, while others are seemingly just happy to hear that the violence and fear might end.Also notable here is that a lot of Turkey's foreign policy has revolved around hobbling and hurting the PKK for decades, including Turkey's initial hindering of Sweden's accession to NATO, which was partly a means of getting other nations to give the Turkish government stuff they wanted, like upgraded military equipment, but was also a push against the Swedish government's seeming protection of people associated with the PKK, since Sweden's constitution allows people to hold all sorts of beliefs.Some analysts have speculated that this could change the geopolitics of the Middle East fundamentally, as Turkey has long been a regional power, but has been partly hobbled by its conflict with the PKK, and the easing or removal of that conflict could free them up to become more dominant, especially since Israel's recent clobbering of Iran seems to have dulled the Iranian government's shine as the de facto leader of many Muslim groups and governments in the area.It's an opportune time for Erdogan to grab more clout and influence, in other words, and that might have been part of the motivation to go along with the PKK's shift to politics: it frees him and his military up to engage in some adventurism and/or posturing further afield, which could then set Turkey up as the new center of Muslim influence, contra-the Saudis' more globalized version of the concept, militarily and economically. Turkey could become a huge center of geopolitical gravity in this part of the world, in other words, and that seems even more likely now that this disarmament has happened.It's still early days in this new seeming state of affairs, though, and there's a chance that the Turkish government's continued strikes on operating PKK affiliated groups could sever these new ties, but those involved seem to be cleaving to at least some optimism, even as many locals continue hold their breath and hope against hope that this time is different than previous attempts at peace.Show Noteshttps://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/heres-what-to-know-about-turkeys-decision-to-move-forward-with-swedens-bid-to-join-natohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_PKK%E2%80%93Turkey_peace_processhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013%E2%80%932015_PKK%E2%80%93Turkey_peace_processhttps://carnegieendowment.org/emissary/2025/05/turkey-pkk-disarm-disband-impacts?lang=enhttps://www.middleeasteye.net/news/pkk-claims-deadly-suicide-bombing-turkish-police-stationhttps://web.archive.org/web/20161016064155/https://hrwf.eu/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Child-soldiers-in-ISIS-PKK-Boko-Haram%E2%80%A6.pdfhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurdistan_Workers%27_Partyhttps://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2025/jul/11/kurdistan-workers-party-pkk-burn-weapons-in-disarming-ceremony-videohttps://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/7/18/turkiye-pkk-analysis-recalibrates-politicshttps://time.com/7303236/erdogan-war-peace-kurds/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/7/19/unidentified-drone-kills-pkk-member-injures-another-in-iraqhttps://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/unidentified-drone-kills-pkk-member-injures-another-near-iraqs-sulaymaniyah-2025-07-19/https://www.aljazeera.com/video/inside-story/2025/7/11/why-has-the-pkk-ended-its-armed-strugglehttps://archive.is/20250718061819/https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/2025-07-17/ty-article-opinion/.premium/how-the-possible-end-to-turkeys-kurdish-problem-could-become-israels-turkey-problem/00000198-1794-dd64-abb9-bfb5dbf30000https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurdistanhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurdshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Kurdish_dynasties_and_countrieshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_Kurdish_nationalism This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe

SPONSORS: 1) Brunt: Get $10 Off at BRUNT with code JULIAN at https://www.bruntworkwear.com/JULIAN #Bruntpod 2) Huel: Get Huel today with this exclusive offer for New Customers of 15% OFF + a FREE Gift with code JULIAN at https://huel.com/JULIAN (Minimum $75 purchase). PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/JulianDorey (***TIMESTAMPS in Description Below) ~ Mike Benz is a former official with the U.S. Department of State and current Executive Director of the Foundation For Freedom Online, is a free speech watchdog organization dedicated to restoring the promise of a free and open Internet. MIKE's LINKS: X: https://x.com/MikeBenzCyber WEBSITE: https://foundationforfreedomonline.com/ FOLLOW JULIAN DOREY INSTAGRAM (Podcast): https://www.instagram.com/juliandoreypodcast/ INSTAGRAM (Personal): https://www.instagram.com/julianddorey/ X: https://twitter.com/julianddorey LISTEN to Julian Dorey Podcast Spotify ▶ https://open.spotify.com/show/5skaSpDzq94Kh16so3c0uz Apple ▶ https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trendifier-with-julian-dorey/id1531416289 JULIAN YT CHANNELS - SUBSCRIBE to Julian Dorey Clips YT: https://www.youtube.com/@juliandoreyclips - SUBSCRIBE to Julian Dorey Daily YT: https://www.youtube.com/@JulianDoreyDaily - SUBSCRIBE to Best of JDP: https://www.youtube.com/@bestofJDP ****TIMESTAMPS**** 00:00 – Censorship, AI Wack-a-Mole, Deep Blue, DARPA Docs 12:34 – Weapons of Mass Deletion, NetzDG, Election Control, Russiagate, USAID, Trump Hold-Ups 23:29 – USAID Origins, Sopranos Agencies, Shadow Networks, EU DSA, CIA Outsourcing 32:40 – USAID Scandals, Identity Dominance, Cuba HIV Hoax, ZunZuneo 44:32 – Social Media Control, CIA & Rap, Media Machine, Vatican–CIA–Mafia 57:12 – George Kennan, Political Warfare, Plausible Deniability, CIA in Italy 1:07:32 – USAID = Plausible Deniability, Tom Donilon 1:22:55 – Mike Donilon, Shadow Cabinet, BlackRock, Pentagon Black Hole, Congressional Favors 1:34:17 – Gorbachev Pizza Ad, Systemic Corruption, Pepsi–Allende Coup 1:42:31 – The Blob, Friedman's Free Market Lie, Empire Blindspot 1:53:15 – USAID = Bribes, Mike Benz Dual Role, Dirty Roots 1:57:40 – MAGA Blindspot, Empire Preservation 2:09:02 – USAID–Supreme Court, Norm Eisen, Bread & Corruption 2:18:19 – Opium Wars, Institute of Peace, Syrian Democratic Forces, George Foote 2:35:13 – Peace Institute Overthrows, Drug-Funded Empire, Pitchfork & Scalpel 2:44:14 – State Dept vs CIA, 1961 Reorg, Visas for Terror 3:00:57 – Elon & DOGE, ROI, Reloading Strategy 3:12:25 – Tesla vs Unions, Unions as Ops Tools OTHER JDP EPISODES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: - Episode 307 - Roya Hakakian: https://youtu.be/NQeoCeSk_Zc - Episode 303 - Martin Dugard: https://youtu.be/rcoiIUfz_N4 - Episode 97 - Andrew Bustamante: https://youtu.be/2PUs7l2jW9c - Episode 107 - Andrew Bustamante: https://youtu.be/7jNz3-WPV5I - Episode 150 - Andrew Bustamante: https://youtu.be/dUlc2d6fDzg - Episode 224 - Andrew Bustamante: https://youtu.be/Gv-YWfNWwkM - Episode 249 - John Kiriakou: https://youtu.be/5_FDZozJ9zE - Episode 250 - John Kiriakou: https://youtu.be/5HuyORiWoDM - Episode 278 - John Kiriakou: https://youtu.be/_CFWmuIgQIE - Episode 279 - John Kiriakou: https://youtu.be/scrGRKVa-Q4 CREDITS: - Host, Editor & Producer: Julian Dorey - COO, Producer & Editor: Alessi Allaman - https://www.youtube.com/@UCyLKzv5fKxGmVQg3cMJJzyQ - In-Studio Producer: Joey Deef - https://www.instagram.com/joeydeef/ Julian Dorey Podcast Episode 309 - Mike Benz Music by Artlist.io Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Congressional Democrats were split over whether to support the bill that would avert a government shutdown. In the end Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer voted for the bill.A federal judge ordered several federal agencies to rehire tens of thousands of probationary employees who were fired. President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff discussed Washington's ceasefire proposal to end the war in Ukraine with Moscow officials. Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was "in favor" and agreed in principle to the plan but has some conditions.The government of Syria's Mohammad Al Sharaa announced a partnership with the Syrian Democratic Forces, a U.S. backed Kurdish rebel group. The move could be key in Syria's rebuilding.Want to support 1A? Give to your local public radio station and subscribe to this podcast. Have questions? Connect with us. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Ahmad Sharawi joins Bill for an update on Syria's ongoing conflict, including:The recent Alawite insurgency against the government led by Abu Muhammad al-Jawlani,The role of jihadist groups and involvement of the Syrian National Army and Syrian Democratic Forces,Israel's position on minority protection in Syria, andThe feasibility of military action in the region.

The Trump administration has revoked Chevron's license to pump oil in Venezuela, accusing its president of not making progress on electoral reforms. In response, Venezuela said it will stop receiving deportees from the US. Also, a new abortion clinic opens across from the Polish parliament despite the country's strict abortion ban. And, Syria's interim government signs a deal with the Syrian Democratic Forces, the Kurdish militia that controls the northeast. Plus, a London comedy club bans audience members with Botox injections after performers complain about unresponsive faces in the crowd.Listen to today's Music Heard on Air. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices