An ex-Al Qaeda jihadi turned MI6 spy and a former monk turned filmmaker, have been embedded at the heart of conflicts in the Middle East. Together Aimen Dean and Thomas Small unpack the realities of war, fundamentalism and their global implications through first-hand experience.
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Zohran Mamdani and the Ascendancy of Third Worldism (01:19:26)
Amid controversy surrounding Zohran Mamdani’s rise to power in New York City, Hussein Mansour tells Thomas all about the history of Third Worldism — where it comes from, what it originally meant, and why the term has resurfaced.
Thomas and Hussein discuss:
Zohran Mamdani as a symbol, not a cause, of a broader elite transformation
The Third Estate, the French Revolution, and the revolutionary inheritance of modern radical politics
Interwar Paris and the emergence of Third Worldist intellectuals
Négritude, anti-colonial humanism, and the promise of historical redemption
Decolonisation, revolutionary violence, and the crisis of postcolonial states
How ideological failure was reinterpreted as structural oppression
The migration of Third Worldist ideas into Western universities and institutions
Edward Said, postcolonial theory, and the institutionalisation of grievance
Third Worldism today less as a political programme than an elite posture
Subscribe to Hussein’s Substack The Abrahamic Metacritique here: https://critiqueanddigest.substack.com
Follow Hussein on X here: https://x.com/HusseinAboubak
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm
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Conflicted is a Message Heard production.
Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.
This episode was produced and edited by Thomas Small.
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2025 Year in Review (00:52:01)
As 2025 draws to a close, Thomas and Aimen take an unconventional tour of the Islamic world — looking beyond the usual headlines to the under-the-radar shifts that happened in 2025, with the potential to shape 2026 and beyond.
They discuss:
Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger forming the Alliance of Sahel States and what a new Sahel bloc might mean
The geopolitical ‘cluster fuck’ of the Sudanese civil war
The European Union’s re-entry into Central Asia
The Gabala Summit and the rising Turkic axis
How Bangladesh is diversifying away from India
Southern Thailand’s Malay-Muslim insurgency and why it’s so rarely discussed
In Iraq, Kata’ib Hezbollah and the breakdown of state sovereignty
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
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Conflicted is a Message Heard production.
Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.
Produced by Thomas Small and edited by Lizzy Andrews.
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Inside the Trenches of Ukraine (01:22:38)
The war in Ukraine is back in the headlines as a peace agreement appears increasingly probable - though with major concessions to Russia. So as a Christmas present to our listeners, we’ve brought this episode from August out from behind the paywall.
In it, Thomas speaks with his old university friend Jakub - a former Slovak Army officer who volunteered to fight in Ukraine - about the lived reality of modern warfare, from trench fighting to FPV strike drones. Drawing on nearly eighteen months at the front, Jakub offers an unvarnished account of combat, morale, fear, boredom, and survival - and challenges many popular assumptions about how this war is actually being fought.
Thomas and Jakub discuss:
Why Jakub left academia to fight in Ukraine
Life as a foreign volunteer inside a regular Ukrainian infantry battalion
The psychological reality of trench warfare
How artillery, drones, and attrition have reshaped the battlefield
The limits of NATO doctrine when confronted with peer warfare
What this war suggests about the future of European security
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm
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Conflicted is a Message Heard production.
Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.
This episode was produced and edited by Thomas Small.
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2025 Conflicted Christmas Special (00:49:10)
What is ‘the Christmas story’ really? And how does it change when you tell it from within a different religious tradition? In Conflicted’s first-ever Christmas Special, Thomas and Aimen retell the Nativity as it appears in the Gospels and in the Qur’an.
They discuss:
Who were the Magi? Zoroastrian priests or Nabataean nomads?
How the Nativity story differs between the Bible and the Qur’an
A controversial theory about how local Christian traditions may have shaped the Qur’anic telling
The overlooked reason why Qur’an presumes its audience already knows the underlying stories
Christ’s ‘unfinished business’ in Islam: the Second Coming and the fight against the Antichrist
The sharpest divergence: the Crucifixion and what it implies about Jesus’ mission
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
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Conflicted is a Message Heard production.
Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.
Produced by Thomas Small and edited by Lizzy Andrews.
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What Trump’s 2025 National Security Strategy Means For The World (01:00:26)
In this Conflicted Conversation, Thomas speaks with global finance and security analyst Giri Rajendran about the Trump Administration’s newly published National Security Strategy — what it signals, what it omits, and what it suggests about America’s role in a multipolar world.
Thomas and Giri discuss:
How this report differs from previous US National Security Strategies
The end of the old rules-based order of liberal internationalism
The Middle East: a phase shift toward deeper economic engagement
China: economic and industrial competition, not ideological crusade
Europe: NATO burden-sharing, culture-war politics, and coercion by inducement
Russia as a potential ally, no longer an enemy
Whether global governance can exist without global institutions
Follow Giri on X here: https://x.com/Trajan1898
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm
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Conflicted is a Message Heard production.
Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.
This episode was produced and edited by Thomas Small.
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The 2026 Middle East Forecast (00:52:58)
What does the future hold for the Middle East — and the world — in 2026?
In this special episode of Conflicted, Thomas instructs Aimen to peer into his crystal ball and offer his forecasts for the year to come.
In this episode, Aimen and Thomas discuss:
How professional geopolitical analysts make forecasts
The impossibility of foreseeing Black Swan events
Why an end to the war in Ukraine could reshape Middle Eastern geopolitics
The likelihood of a U.S. war against the Houthis in Yemen
Renewed hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon
The strategic importance of the Gulf states
Iran’s nuclear programme, proxy network, and the risk of renewed confrontation
Add your predictions to your 2026 Forecast Card here: https://forms.gle/sMCbRFmFTBdcfEDd8
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
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Conflicted is a Message Heard production.
Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.
Produced by Thomas Small and edited by Lizzy Andrews.
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What the U.S. Gets Wrong About the Muslim Brotherhood (01:03:45)
In this Conflicted Conversation, Thomas speaks with Lorenzo Vidino, Director of the Programme on Extremism at The George Washington University.
What happens when an ideological movement is neither a terrorist organisation nor an ordinary religious group — but something in between? One of the world’s leading experts on the Muslim Brotherhood explains…
The early history of Islam in America
The first Brotherhood-linked students arriving in the U.S. in the 50s and 60s
The formation of the first American Brotherhood cells
The Brotherhood’s gradual institutional influence across the 80s and 90s
Why CAIR (the Council on American-Islamic Relations) is so controversial
Germany’s three-fold classification system and what the U.S. can learn from it
Follow Lorenzo on: X, BlueSky, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
Check out his books:
The New Muslim Brotherhood in the West (Columbia University Press, 2010)
The Closed Circle: Joining and Leaving the Muslim Brotherhood in the West (Columbia University Press, 2020).
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm
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Conflicted is a Message Heard production.
Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.
This episode was produced and edited by Thomas Small.
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Saudi Arabia’s New Bargaining Chip (00:55:30)
The Middle East is shifting again, and fast. In this wide-ranging overview, Aimen and Thomas break down the hidden forces reshaping the geopolitical chessboard as 2025 draws to a close.
In this episode, Aimen and Thomas uncover:
The power of Saudi Arabia’s discovery of vast rare-earth reserves
The U.S.–Saudi grand bargain
Why the F-35 sale to Saudi Arabia rattled Israel and what it means for the future of the Abraham Accords
Iran’s deepening water crisis and Gulf states’ preparations for instability
The simmering tensions between India and Pakistan
Afghanistan’s compounded crises
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
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Conflicted is a Message Heard production.
Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.
Produced by Thomas Small and edited by Lizzy Andrews.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Has the Muslim Brotherhood Infiltrated the UK? (00:51:12)
In this Conflicted Conversation, Thomas speaks with Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat about the Muslim Brotherhood.
What happens when a Western democracy encounters an ideological movement it no longer has the language — or the institutions — to understand?
The former Security Minister and long-time observer of the Middle East explains what the Brotherhood is, how it operates, and why the British state is struggling to deal with it.
In this episode, Thomas questions Tom about…
Tom’s time in Egypt during the Arab Spring
His conversations with Brotherhood members
The UK government’s secretive 2014 review of the Brotherhood a nd why Parliament challenged it
The institutional blind spots inside Whitehall and MI5
How Brotherhood-linked networks operate in Britain today
Why talking openly about the Brotherhood is so politically and legally fraught
Strategies for the UK government to tackle the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
Subscribe to Tom Tugendhat’s Substack here: https://tomtugendhat.substack.com/
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Conflicted is a Message Heard production.
Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.
This episode was produced and edited by Thomas Small.
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Conflicted Returns: A New Era Begins (00:52:29)
Conflicted is back. Aimen and Thomas return with a renewed mission and a bold vision for the future of the show. In this special relaunch episode, they look back at the journey so far, celebrate the global community that’s grown around Conflicted, and reveal what’s coming next in an ever-more turbulent world.
In this episode, Aimen and Thomas:
Offer a sweeping recap of Conflicted’s story arcs, themes, and analyses
Reveal what the next phase of Conflicted has in store for dear listeners
Reassert Conflicted’s commitment to rising above the polarisation and simplifications dominating mainstream media
Celebrate the many friends of the show—journalists, scholars, analysts—who have helped Conflicted become a global phenomenon
Thank the listeners whose engagement, questions, and curiosity have shaped Conflicted’s direction (and good-naturedly endured Aimen’s dad jokes)
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
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This week on Conflicted, we’re unlocking another episode we first released for members of the Conflicted Community.
In this interview from last January, I talk with Martin Plaut, a distinguished journalist who has reported on conflicts across Africa for decades, and whose book Understanding Ethiopia’s Tigray War was an essential resource for us in preparing our series on Ethiopia. We discuss:
Ethiopia’s recent Tigray War and why it proved so consequential for the Horn of Africa
How the federal government — with Eritrean support — turned against the Tigray region despite its long rule in Ethiopia
Martin’s personal story of growing up in apartheid South Africa and his early political activism
His current work on the history of African slavery and common misconceptions surrounding it
Speaking of slavery in Africa, Martin’s latest book Unbroken Chains: A 5,000-Year History of African Enslavement has recently been published. I hope to get Martin back onto the podcast to talk all about it!
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
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India and the Future of World Order: A Conversation with T.V. Paul (01:14:22)
This week on Conflicted, Thomas is joined by T.V. Paul, Distinguished James McGill Professor in the Department of Political Science at McGill University.
Prof. Paul is one of the world’s leading thinkers in international relations and author of Restraining Great Powers: Soft Balancing from Empires to the Global Era and The Unfinished Quest: India’s Search for Major Power Status from Nehru to Modi.
In this wide-ranging conversation, Thomas speaks with Prof. Paul about:
India’s strategy as a rising power in a shifting multipolar world
How ‘soft balancing’ works as an alternative to military alliances
The benign and malign dimensions of American hegemony
Why globalization both empowered and destabilized the global middle class
India’s complex status anxiety and its quest for recognition
How China and India navigate rivalry, nationalism, and regional threats
The future of the liberal international order—and whether it can survive
What a new global settlement might require from the West, China, and India alike
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
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Conflicted Revisited… Husam Mahjoub – How Foreign States are Fuelling Sudan’s Civil War (01:16:00)
This week on Conflicted, we’re unlocking for everyone an episode we first released a year ago for members of the Conflicted Community — an interview with Hussam Mahjoub, a Sudanese journalist, political activist, and founder of the independent TV channel Sudan Bukra, which has become a vital source of truth amid the chaos of war.
When it was recorded, Sudan was already sliding into catastrophe. But in the months since, the country has fallen even further into one of the world’s most devastating wars. The conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces has shattered the country: communications have collapsed, hospitals have shut, and millions are displaced or facing famine.
In this conversation, Hussam helps us understand how Sudan got here. He traces the rise of the RSF from the Janjaweed militias that terrorised Darfur twenty years ago, and walks us through Sudan’s modern history, from the long dictatorship of Omar al-Bashir, to the 2019 revolution, and the collapse of hopes for civilian rule.
Hussam also offers an insider’s view of the regional powers shaping Sudan’s fate — Egypt, the Gulf states, and Russia’s Wagner network — and how rivalries over gold, trade, and influence have turned Sudan’s agony into a proxy struggle.
Listening now, his analysis feels prophetic. The structural forces he identified then have since erupted into the full-scale war we see today.
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CC: Patrick McGee – How Apple Built a Superpower (01:14:44)
This week on Conflicted, Thomas Small is joined by Patrick McGee, technology reporter and author of the phenomenal new book, Apple in China. Patrick provides an exclusive look at how Apple, in its relentless pursuit of operational excellence, drove a unique form of globalization that profoundly reshaped the economic and geopolitical world.
Thomas and Patrick dissect the story of Apple's pivot from near-bankruptcy to becoming a global superpower, focusing on the often-overlooked genius of CEO Tim Cook - the operations mastermind who built a manufacturing model that, while pioneering, effectively hollowed out US industrial capacity. They explore the critical role of Taiwan’s Foxconn and its founder, Terry Gou, who understood that Apple’s demanding processes were not exploitation, but a unique, fast-track training program that turned China into an advanced manufacturing powerhouse. The conversation follows the narrative from production to consumption, revealing the chaos and extraordinary demand of the Chinese retail market, the political awakening of the company under Xi Jinping's rising power, and the ultimate irony: Apple, the champion of individual liberty, forging a $275 billion partnership with America's foremost geopolitical rival. The episode is a must-listen for understanding the true forces that built the 21st-century global economy.
You can find Patrick @patrickmcgee_
To listen to more episodes like this - and to get lots more benefits upcoming very soon - you’ll need to subscribe to the Conflicted Community. And don’t forget, subscribers can also join our Conflicted Community chatroom, where you can interact with fellow dearest listeners, discuss episodes past and future, get exclusive messages from Thomas and Aimen, ask future Q&A questions and so much more.
All the information you need to sign up is on this link: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
Conflicted is proudly made by Message Heard, a full-stack podcast production agency which uses its extensive expertise to make its own shows such as Conflicted, shows for commissioners such as the BBC, Spotify and Al Jazeera, and powerfully effective podcasts for other companies too. If you’d like to find out how we can help get your organisation’s message heard, visit messageheard.com or drop an email to hello@messageheard.com!
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Conflicted Revisited… Hamza Howidy – Protest, Exile, and a Post-Hamas Vision of Gaza (01:35:23)
Another revisited interview from the Conflicted Community Interview archive this week, as we get ready for more Conflicted episodes coming soon… This time, the FULL interview with Hamza Howidy - a Gazan who years ago was forced to flee to Europe, telling us about his experiences and his vision for a post-Hamas Gaza…
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This week, Thomas speaks with Hamza Howidy, a Palestinian activist originally from Gaza now living in exile in Germany. Hamza shares his extraordinary story of growing up under Hamas rule and the constant threat of Israeli military action on the one hand, and the brutality of Hamas on the other.
Hamza was forced to leave Gaza due to his involvement in protests against Hamas in 2019 and 2023, taking the dangerous journey across the Mediterranean from Turkey to Europe to do so. Hamza offers a vital and nuanced perspective on life in Gaza, the internal political dynamics between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority, and his vision for a future free from Hamas's governance. He candidly discusses the brutal realities faced by those who dissent against Hamas and his own experiences of protest and imprisonment.
Conflicted is proudly made by Message Heard, a full-stack podcast production agency which uses its extensive expertise to make its own shows such as Conflicted, shows for commissioners such as the BBC, Spotify and Al Jazeera, and powerfully effective podcasts for other companies too. If you’d like to find out how we can help get your organisation’s message heard, visit messageheard.com or drop an email to hello@messageheard.com!
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CC: Emma Ashford – The Collapse of America's Unipolar Moment (00:24:19)
This week on Conflicted, Thomas Small is joined by Dr. Emma Ashford, a Senior Fellow at the Stimson Center and an expert on US grand strategy. Emma brings a clear-eyed, realist perspective to the current global debates, arguing that the emerging multipolar world is an opportunity, not a catastrophe, for the United States.
Thomas and Emma dissect the end of the American unipolar moment, exploring whether the US's pivot to global primacy after the Cold War was driven by naive idealism or institutional hubris. They analyze the four competing camps in US foreign policy - from Liberal Order Primacists to America First Hawks - and champion the case for realist restraint as the most pragmatic way forward. The conversation delves into the strategic implications of a truly multipolar world, including how nuclear weapons change the dynamics of great power competition and why the US must retrench from costly, over-leveraged commitments in the Middle East to prioritize competition in Asia.
You can find Emma on X @EmmaMAshford
To listen to the full episode, you’ll need to subscribe to the Conflicted Community. And don’t forget, subscribers can also join our Conflicted Community chatroom, where you can interact with fellow dearest listeners, discuss episodes past and future, get exclusive messages from Thomas and Aimen, ask future Q&A questions and so much more.
All the information you need to sign up is on this link: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
Conflicted is proudly made by Message Heard, a full-stack podcast production agency which uses its extensive expertise to make its own shows such as Conflicted, shows for commissioners such as the BBC, Spotify and Al Jazeera, and powerfully effective podcasts for other companies too. If you’d like to find out how we can help get your organisation’s message heard, visit messageheard.com or drop an email to hello@messageheard.com!
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The Gaza Peace Deal: Behind the Scenes with Aimen Dean (01:11:46)
This week on Conflicted, Thomas Small is joined by co-host Aimen Dean, who returns to the show to provide a vital debrief on the recent Gaza peace deal. The episode focuses on the fragile ceasefire deal brokered by President Trump, which has brought a temporary halt to hostilities between Israel and Hamas. Aimen is back with his signature, deeply informed analysis, answer your and Thomas’ questions to get beyond the narrative we normally hear about the conflict…
Thomas and Aimen unpack the hidden diplomatic maneuvers behind the deal, including the motivations of key players like Saudi Arabia and France, whose diplomatic efforts set the stage for peace talks by applying intense pressure on the Israeli government. Aimen shares his explosive, albeit speculative, intel on the Israeli airstrike on Doha in September and its profound consequences, including the potential for Saudi Arabia to acquire nuclear weapons as a deterrent. The conversation also delves into the military realities on the ground in Gaza, assessing the successes and failures of the IDF's campaign and the prospects for Hamas's future. The episode offers a sobering look at a peace deal that, while celebrated as a triumph, may be little more than a temporary ceasefire in a region still teetering on the brink.
Want more of Thomas and Aimen? Then you’ll need to subscribe to the Conflicted Community. And don’t forget, subscribers can also join our Conflicted Community chatroom, where you can interact with fellow dearest listeners, discuss episodes past and future, get exclusive messages from Thomas and Aimen, ask future Q&A questions and so much more.
All the information you need to sign up is on this link: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
Conflicted is proudly made by Message Heard, a full-stack podcast production agency which uses its extensive expertise to make its own shows such as Conflicted, shows for commissioners such as the BBC, Spotify and Al Jazeera, and powerfully effective podcasts for other companies too. If you’d like to find out how we can help get your organisation’s message heard, visit messageheard.com or drop an email to hello@messageheard.com!
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7/7: The Inside Story – A New Terror Paradigm • Episode 6 (00:48:09)
Conflicted: 7/7 The Inside Story is now live to all our dear listeners!
New episodes of this 6 part Conflicted special documentary series will release every Monday. But if you want to listen to them all right now and ad-free, you'll have to sign up to the Conflicted Community.
All the information you need to sign up is on this link: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
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When a horrific terrorist attack against children spawned some of the most violent riots in recent UK history, it revealed a sinister undercurrent of racial, religious, and multicultural tensions flowing just beneath the surface of British society.
Fuelled by voices from the Far-Right, the riots saw a mosque burned and a hotel housing asylum seekers set on fire. But the killer, Axel Rudukabana, was neither muslim or an immigrant. He was British - and known to the security services as a risk.
So what does this attack reveal about the future of terror attacks in the United Kingdom? And why was this attack met with violence rather than anguish? What’s changed in the fabric of our society? And what can we do about it?
In this final episode of 7/7: The Inside Story we explore the existential questions of British identity raised by this series, culminating in an exclusive interview with former Minister of Security, and long time Conflicted listener, Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat.
Conflicted - 7/7 The Inside Story is produced by Message Heard for Wondery.
Hosted by Thomas Small.
This series was written and produced by Harry Stott and Leo Danczak.
Production Coordinator is Kirsty McLean.
Sound design and engineering by Alan Leer, Ivan Eastley and Lizzy Andrews.
Music by Tom Biddle.
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CC: Alex Vatanka – How has the 12 Day War Changed Iran? (00:24:15)
This week on Conflicted, host Thomas Small is joined by Alex Vatanka, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute and a leading scholar of Iranian domestic and foreign policy. Together, they explore the profound impact of the recent 12-Day War between Iran, Israel, and the United States on the Islamic Republic. As an Iranian who has studied the regime for decades, Alex offers a vital look into the power struggles between revolutionary ideology and Iranian nationalism that are now at play in Tehran.
Thomas and Alex discuss the main events of the war, the strategic decisions made by all sides, and the unexpected conclusion that has left Iran in a precarious position. They delve into how the conflict's strategic and economic fallout - from widespread internet blackouts to the regime's military and technological limitations - has humiliated the ruling elite and exposed their vulnerability. The conversation also explores how the war has intensified internal debates, with pragmatic and moderate voices now pushing for political reform and a change in Iran's foreign policy. The episode offers a sobering, yet essential, look at a regime that must now confront its own failures and decide whether to change course or risk total collapse.
You can find Alex on X @AlexVatanka
To listen to the full episode, you’ll need to subscribe to the Conflicted Community. And don’t forget, subscribers can also join our Conflicted Community chatroom, where you can interact with fellow dearest listeners, discuss episodes past and future, get exclusive messages from Thomas and Aimen, ask future Q&A questions and so much more.
All the information you need to sign up is on this link: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
Conflicted is proudly made by Message Heard, a full-stack podcast production agency which uses its extensive expertise to make its own shows such as Conflicted, shows for commissioners such as the BBC, Spotify and Al Jazeera, and powerfully effective podcasts for other companies too. If you’d like to find out how we can help get your organisation’s message heard, visit messageheard.com or drop an email to hello@messageheard.com!
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7/7: The Inside Story – The Lone Wolf • Episode 5 (00:53:08)
Conflicted: 7/7 The Inside Story is now live to all our dear listeners!
New episodes of this 6 part Conflicted special documentary series will release every Monday. But if you want to listen to them all right now and ad-free, you'll have to sign up to the Conflicted Community.
All the information you need to sign up is on this link: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
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On March 22, 2017, the Westminster Bridge attack killed five people, marking the start of a year which would see five attacks kill dozens of people in the UK. They were all carried out with the most rudimentary means possible, and by singular actors working alone. This fifth episode of Conflicted: 7/7 The Inside Story tells the story of how we got there…
By the early 2010s, the relationship between the British state and Muslim communities was strained, with the rise of far right groups becoming an ever more pressing issue. And abroad too, things were becoming ever more precarious. In the wake of war in Syria, the terror group ISIS stepped into the vacuum – hundreds of Europeans went to join their cause.
So how would UK counter terrorism respond? Would the Prevent strategy be able to evolve alongside it to stop school children travelling to Syria? And how would this new phenomenon change the nature of terror in the West? We’ll hear from victims of terror, academics and more to find out.
Conflicted - 7/7 The Inside Story is produced by Message Heard for Wondery.
Hosted by Thomas Small.
This series was written and produced by Harry Stott and Leo Danczak.
Production Coordinator is Kirsty McLean.
Sound design and engineering by Alan Leer, Ivan Eastley and Lizzy Andrews.
Music by Tom Biddle.
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7/7: The Inside Story – How to Spot a Radical • Episode 4 (00:52:59)
Conflicted: 7/7 The Inside Story is now live to all our dear listeners!
New episodes of this 6 part Conflicted special documentary series will release every Monday. But if you want to listen to them all right now and ad-free, you'll have to sign up to the Conflicted Community.
All the information you need to sign up is on this link: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
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Just months after the 7/7 bombings, a new terror plot emerged in East London: British-born men were planning to bring down commercial airliners using liquid explosives. It marked another example of the lengths British born terrorists would go to, to attack their fellow citizens.
But what are the profiles of these British born jihadists?
This fourth episode of Conflicted: 7/7 The Inside Story delves into the complex issue of radicalization, exploring the factors like alienation and racial tensions that contributed to young British Muslims being drawn to extremist ideologies. Speaking with top academics, we’ll hear about the key preachers who fostered as culture of extremism in certain circles across the UK.
But again, we’ll return to what the UK government was doing to counter extremism – most notably around this time, the scaling up of their now infamous Prevent strategy. This policy would become one of the UK’s government’s most controversial counter terrorism initiatives ever.
Conflicted - 7/7 The Inside Story is produced by Message Heard for Wondery.
Hosted by Thomas Small.
This series was written and produced by Harry Stott and Leo Danczak.
Production Coordinator is Kirsty McLean.
Sound design and engineering by Alan Leer, Ivan Eastley and Lizzy Andrews.
Music by Tom Biddle.
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CC: Aaron Zelin – New Syrian Government, Same Old Conflicts? (00:24:29)
This week on Conflicted, host Thomas Small is joined by returning guest, Aaron Zelin - the Gloria and Ken Levy Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and founder of the acclaimed website Jihadology. Following up on their last conversation after the fall of the Assad regime, Aaron gives us an in-depth analysis of the current state of play in Syria as the new transitional government, led by Ahmad al-Shara, attempts to consolidate its power. Since the last time we spoke, Aaron has been on a trip to the new Syria, so he gives us a firsthand look at the complex realities on the ground.
Thomas and Aaron discuss the narratives surrounding the new government, from claims of sectarian massacres to narratives of a burgeoning economic revival. Aaron explains how the violence in places like the coast and the Druze-majority city of Swaida reveals a country still wracked by internal tensions, where revenge, tribal dynamics, and foreign meddling from actors like Iran and Israel continue to complicate the path to stability. They also touch on the delicate dance between the new government and Syria's minorities, including the Kurds, and the implications of the ongoing sanctions waivers and international investment flowing into the country.
You can find Aaron on X at @azelin and look for updates on his incredible website https://jihadology.net/
To listen to the full episode, you’ll need to subscribe to the Conflicted Community. And don’t forget, subscribers can also join our Conflicted Community chatroom, where you can interact with fellow dearest listeners, discuss episodes past and future, get exclusive messages from Thomas and Aimen, ask future Q&A questions and so much more.
All the information you need to sign up is on this link: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
Conflicted is proudly made by Message Heard, a full-stack podcast production agency which uses its extensive expertise to make its own shows such as Conflicted, shows for commissioners such as the BBC, Spotify and Al Jazeera, and powerfully effective podcasts for other companies too. If you’d like to find out how we can help get your organisation’s message heard, visit messageheard.com or drop an email to hello@messageheard.com!
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7/7: The Inside Story – The Hunt • Episode 3 (00:32:28)
Conflicted: 7/7 The Inside Story is now live to all our dear listeners!
New episodes of this 6 part Conflicted special documentary series will release every Monday. But if you want to listen to them all right now and ad-free, you'll have to sign up to the Conflicted Community.
All the information you need to sign up is on this link: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
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With the smoke still rising from the attacks of 7/7, the race is on to find out who was responsible.
As the authorities sift through the rubble, the emergence of a familiar name sends chills down the backs of UK counter-terror officials. Had they missed something obvious?
In this third episode of Conflicted 7/7: The Inside Story, you’ll hear from the people responsible for leading the investigations in the days following the deadliest attacks on British soil.
Who had done this? Where were they now? Most importantly, did they still pose a threat?
Terrifyingly, just two weeks later, a copycat attack causes panic across London for a second time.
Conflicted - 7/7 The Inside Story is produced by Message Heard for Wondery.
Hosted by Thomas Small.
This series was written and produced by Harry Stott and Leo Danczak.
Production Coordinator is Kirsty McLean.
Sound design and engineering by Alan Leer, Ivan Eastley and Lizzy Andrews.
Music by Tom Biddle.
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7/7: The Inside Story – The Voices of Londonistan • Episode 2 (00:51:00)
Conflicted: 7/7 The Inside Story is now live to all our dear listeners!
Episodes 1 & 2 are available from today, with the following episodes of this 6 part series on the terror attacks which changed the face of modern Britain coming every week...
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Four years before 7/7, there was 9/11. The attacks on New York's World Trade Center utterly changed the world and counter terrorism was conducted in the modern age. It left the question: could a similar attack happen in London/
In this second episode, host Thomas Small invites academics to trace the origins of British jihadism, showing how London earned its moniker, "Londonistan" through the 1990s, with dissidents from across the Arab world radicalising young people through events like the Rushdie affair and the return of fighters from Afghanistan.
But you’ll also hear from the UK’s top counter terrorism officials about how the UK counter terrorism establishment responded to this. What were the biggest attacks they foiled before the cataclysm of 7/7? And why did they not see an attack on the London Underground coming?
Conflicted - 7/7 The Inside Story is produced by Message Heard for Wondery.
Hosted by Thomas Small.
This series was written and produced by Harry Stott and Leo Danczak.
Production Coordinator is Kirsty McLean.
Sound design and engineering by Alan Leer, Ivan Eastley and Lizzy Andrews.
Music by Tom Biddle.
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7/7: The Inside Story – A Thursday in July • Episode 1 (00:37:49)
Conflicted: 7/7 The Inside Story is now live to all our dear listeners!
Episodes 1 & 2 are available from today, with the following episodes of this 6 part series on the terror attacks which changed the face of modern Britain coming every week...
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On a regular Thursday in July 2005, the peaceful morning air was shattered as four bombs ripped through the underground in central London. 52 people were killed, over 700 others were injured. London had never seen bombings of this magnitude before, never with this coordination.
In the first episode of this special series of Conflicted, we hear from survivors, emergency workers and a former Al Qaeda spy as we recount the heart-pounding and tumultuous events of that fateful Thursday in July.
It sets up a series where we will investigate the last two decades of terrorism and counter terrorism in the UK. How did it develop? What were the motivations behind? And why did terrorism, and the perceived threat of it, change the way in which the UK thinks about its own citizens?
Conflicted - 7/7 The Inside Story is produced by Message Heard for Wondery.
Hosted by Thomas Small.
This series was written and produced by Harry Stott and Leo Danczak.
Production Coordinator is Kirsty McLean.
Sound design and engineering by Alan Leer, Ivan Eastley and Lizzy Andrews.
Music by Tom Biddle.
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