Afleveringen
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Monday, July 20, 2026, Chicago
The US military completed a ninth consecutive night of airstrikes on Iran, and Iran reciprocated with missile and drone strikes of its own over the weekend targeting not just the Gulf states but Jordan and Iraq. At least two US soldiers died in Jordan, and another soldier remains missing. Another US solider was killed in northern Iraq, apparently while attempting to defuse an Iranian explosive drone that was struck done.
For months, both the US and its allies and Iran have offered highly censored images of the war damage. But some footage and pictures have begun to emerge, and in today’s edition of badlands, I attempt to compile and describe some of that imagery.
Other topics include Donald Trump’s humiliation of himself and anything he touches, and the emerging importance of Jordan, as well as potential economic impact of the continuing war on everything from summer travel prices to Gulf economies in a pair of discussions with India’s NewsX World.
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Wednesday, July 15, 2026, Chicago
Israel’s wars in Gaza, the West Bank, Iran, and Lebanon have led to ambiguous military outcomes but undoubtedly increased the isolation of the country, both in terms of diplomacy and its worldwide image.
In part two of her interview with badlands, Noga Tarnopolsky discusses what I describe as the “malaise” that seems to be afflicting Israeli society. She describes fear and loathing whipped up by a gang of rightwing politicians to exploit the horror of October 7 to keep a tight reign over society and pursue their maximalist demands.
We also discuss Benjamin Netanyahu’s latest power grab, in which he defies a supreme court ruling in order increase his control over the country’s media ahead of elections now scheduled for October 27. Subscribe to Noga’s newsletter now!
Also today, I provide some brief updates on the escalation in the Persian Gulf and Donald Trump’s various flip flops in an interview with France 24.
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Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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Friday, July 17, 2026, Chicago
As the Iran war escalates, Donald Trump rehashes his nonsensical election conspiracy theories. The Democrats come out strongly opposed to the war, but their criticism that the US has no plan appears off-the-mark. Washington indeed seems to have a single-minded goal for the escalation: get the Strait of Hormuz reopened, and potentially create regional divisions inside Iran.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio shows his desperation, while Vice President JD Vance positions himself against the neocons, and reporting on a well-known Israeli influence operation and Jeffrey Epstein’s ties to Israeli intelligence finally reach the mainstream media.
Plus, interviews with me on India’s NewsX World and the Pakistan TV about the state of the conflict and US and Iranian political calculations.
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Thursday, July 16, 2026, Chicago
Libya has often been described as yet another US-led Middle East regime change operations that led to catastrophic results for its people and for the world. Nearly 15 years after the 2011 overthrow of dictator Muammer Gaddafi, the country is indeed a mess. It is divided by civil conflict and being exploited for its resources by rival families working in conjunction with their foreign backers.
In part one of a special edition of badlands, Libya expert Anas el-Gomati, founder of Libya’s Sadeq Institute, and I recount Libya’s recent history and discuss the sudden international interest in Libya, including meetings between warlord Khalifa Haftar’s and both US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan, as well as fresh interest in the country’s oil reserves.
“The oil is the best reason why everybody always comes back to Libya,” he says.
There is also talk of a unification deal, between the two fractured halves of the country. “It’s being noted and penned as a unification deal,” he says. “It’s really a merger between these two rival families.”
As the powerful grapple for power and resources, ordinary Libyans are suffering immensely, with declining living standards and eroding infrastructure, exemplified by the 2023 dam failures in eastern Libya that led to the deaths of at least 7,800 people.
Also in this episode, I discuss the confusion over Donald Trump’s Iran strategy as well as the impact of the war on the global economy and the prospects for peace in interviews with India’s NewsX World.
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Tuesday, July 14, 2026, Chicago
US President Donald Trump plans to re-impose the blockade on Iranian ships transiting the Persian Gulf. As for other ships, he claims that not only is the Strait of Hormuz is “OPEN” but soon to become a cash machine for America!
In the latest episode of badlands, Brett Erickson of Obsidian Risk Advisors joins the podcast again to help unravel the combination of delusion and confusion that appears to be driving the Trump administration’s Middle East policy.
“He's desperate and he's clearly under way more pressure,” he tells me “I don’t think anyone expected it to go this bad. And I mean, he's just tweeting or Truthing. He's just spewing out nonsense because he's not putting thought into it because he's angry.”
Also, on today’s show, I discuss the whether diplomacy can still salvage the memorandum of understanding, as well as the increasing risk of Yemen being drawn onto the conflict in an interview with NewsX World.
Separately, I spoke about the latest news in the Persian Gulf in an interview with NPR’s mid-afternoon show Here & Now.
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Monday, July 13, 2026, Chicago
The US and Iran hammered away at each other over the weekend, with Tehran effectively imposing a closure on the Strait of Hormuz and Washington all but tossing the memorandum of understanding it signed last month into the trash heap.
While this may appear to be the new normal in the Persian Gulf, it is not sustainable for Americans, Iranians, or the rest of the world. On today’s edition of badlands, I discuss the lack of public input or popular protest in a war that is nonetheless the world.
Also, Noga Tarnopolsky joins badlands from Israel to discuss US Democratic Party stalwart Rahm Emanuel’s recent visit to Tel Aviv . Please tune in tomorrow when Noga and I discuss Benjamin Netanyahu’s power grab and Israel’s sense of isolation. in second part of her interview with badlands. Subscribe to Noga’s newly launched newsletter, Bibi and Beyond.
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Friday, July 10, 2026, Istanbul
Israel continues to occupy a huge swath of Lebanon, attacking Lebanese civilians in horrific atrocities taking place regularly.
In the latest edition of the badlands podcast, Lebanon-based journalist Habib Battah, founder of the Beirut Report, joins in for a discussion about how the country has been further fragmented along both sectarian and class lines as Israel continues its military operations against Hezbollah.
The war is furthering the country’s collapse, with everything from traffic lights to security forces failing to function. The government is unable to accede to US and Israeli demands that it get Hezbollah under control.
“This is a country that has been disintegrated, fragmented by decades and decades and decades of wars and so it’s in no it’s in no position really to take any massive control of the situation in this country,” he said.
Habib also details his groundbreaking reporting on the massive new US embassy being built up, one that sounds like a vast fortress meant to effectively run Lebanon rather than represent US interests in the country.
You can follow Habib on his Instagram or on X.
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Thursday, July 9, 2026, Paris
Overnight attacks between the US and Iran continued for a second day, with reports that Donald Trump pushed the envelope by hitting two railroad bridges in Iran’s north. That move could trigger Iranian retaliation against similar civilian infrastructure in the Arabian Peninsula states.
The war pits the US against Iran, but the Persian Gulf has been the main battleground, as Trump struggles to restore the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz to its prewar status.
In the latest edition of badlands, the well-informed Dr Andreas Krieg, lecturer at King’s College in London, joins us for a lively discussion about the how the conflict has transformed the Gulf States, and forced them to reassess their security needs.
Gulf states are refusing so far to buckle to Iranian demands that they acknowledge Tehran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz, their economic lifeline, while Iran is asserting itself even if it damages it’s own economic interests.
“A lot of what’s happening right now is about ego and it’s about principle–it’s not even about money,” he said.
He also offers his insider insights about the signing of the memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran, and how the Gulf states are shifting their view of Israel’s potential role in the region.
Also, on the latest edition of badlands, I discuss the latest developments in Iran and comment on the NATO summit in Turkey in an interview with India’s NewsX World.
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Wednesday, July 8, 2026, Paris
The US and Iran traded major military strikes overnight in the most serious threat to the framework ceasefire deal signed last month so far.
The attacks continued into the morning with attacks by both countries into the late morning. Donald Trump said at the NATO summit in Turkey that he’s sick of negotiating with the Iranians and considers the memorandum of understanding effectively dead.
The attacks may simmer down. But the bigger threat to any peace is the US decision to rescind its waiver of sanctions on Iranian oil, effectively giving Tehran zero incentives to stay in the deal and keep the Strait of Hormuz even somewhat open.
In the latest edition of badlands, I delve into the continued erosion of the memorandum of understanding.
Also, in a discussion with Pakistan’s Express 24/7 News I discuss the latest on the funeral services for the late Iranian ruler Ali Khamenei, the future prospects for a peace deal, and the significance of the NATO summit in Turkey.
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Tuesday, July 7, 2026, Paris
Is the oil shock finished? Not really. Energy analyst Robin Mills joins the latest edition of badlands for an interview on whether the tentative opening of the Strait of Hormuz will lead to a normalization of energy prices.
Mills says energy is still below pre-war levels, in part because Gulf states are tentative about ramping up production.
In today’s edition, I also discuss the latest kerfuffle over FIFA, the worldwide soccer organization that seemed to bend to Donald Trump’s will over a red card issued to an American player. (The US team still lost badly to Belgium).
Plus, in an interview with the radio program The World, I discuss the future of Iran following the assassination of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the consolidation of power by a new crop of regime stalwarts.
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Monday, July 6, 2026, Paris
Millions of people are taking part in ceremonies marking the Feb. 28 death of Iran’s former supreme leader Ali Khamenei, a confounding historical figure who ruled Iran for 37 years.
I wrote extensively about Khamenei in an article some years ago. But he remains something of an enigma. In this edition of badlands, I talk a bit about Khamenei and his legacy. In the end, he was granted a heroic death that will likely made him more warmly remembered—despite his many mistakes and the wrong turns he took throughout his reign.
I also speak about the funeral procession in interviews with India’s NewsX World.
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(Photo: AI-generated image posted online to intimidate Trita Parsi).)
Tuesday, June 23, 2026, Istanbul
Trita Parsi has been among the most measured and well-informed experts on Iran and the Middle East in the public eye. Yet for years, he’s been targeted by nefarious and well-funded forces seeking to paint him as an asset of the Islamic Republic, where he would be arrested on national security charges.
In today’s powerful and jam-packed edition of the badlands podcast, Trita, author of the excellent book Treacherous Alliance, joins me for an extraordinary and revealing interview. He discusses the attempt by Israeli operative Bari Weiss to spark a deportation drive against him, his confrontations with members of the Iranian-American community, and his continued access to the halls of power despite attempts to silence him.
Also on today’s episode, I discuss the latest, including:
* Positive signs coming from Washington and Tehran
* Lindsay Graham’s attempts to gin up another round of war
* The continued clashes in Lebanon, and how they could undermine the whole deal
I also answer questions about the state of Donald Trump’s mental health, the ongoing discussions between the US and Iran, the impact of the oil sanctions waivers, and the growing tension in the US over support for Israel in an interview with India’s NewsX World host Asuma Kataoka.
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Thursday, July 2, 2026, Istanbul
In an interview with Ben Shapiro’s Daily Wire network, Vice President JD Vance strongly suggested that the US was playing Iran, replenishing world energy stockpiles ahead of a possible future kinetic action.
Needless to say, such talk will not help ongoing negotiations, only feeding into Iranian suspicions that the memorandum of understanding the US signed was a ruse to build up leverage for a future attack against the country.
In the latest edition of the badlands, discuss I discuss Vance’s comments.
Plus, in an appearance on France 24’s The Debate, I discuss the significance of the funeral for former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, the role of the Revolutionary Guard, and the impact of sanctions.
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Wednesday, July 1, 2026, Istanbul
Israel recently began taking steps to recognize the Armenian Genocide, the horrific massacre of Armenian people at the hands of Ottoman Turks some 110 years ago.
The move is meant in large part to provoke Israel rival Turkey.
Problem is, even the Armenians are telling Israel to bugger off.
On the latest edition of the badlands podcast, I explain how Israel’s ill-timed move to piss off Turkey interferes with Armenia’s historic breakthrough in relations with its Turkic neighbors to the east and west.
Plus, in a conversation with India’s NewsX World, I discuss what the recent rulings by the US mean for the Trump administration.
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Monday, June 29, 2026, Istanbul
Iran was booted from the World Cup, failing to advance to the knockout round after a controversial referee call and a heartbreaking game for Iranian football fans.
Meanwhile in Strait of Hormuz, Iran and the US traded strikes after Iran attacked ships that were using a path Tehran considers forbidden.
Ambiguity and misunderstandings led to confusion in both cases.
In the free section of today’s edition of badlands, I explain in interviews why the latest round of strikes between the US and Iran won’t spell the end of the ceasefire or the collapse of the negotiations based on the memorandum of understanding between the two countries.
Then, football journalist and friend of badlands Nima Tavallaey Roodsari offers his unwavering take on the referees’ call, and then in the section for paying subscribers, his picks for the final four in the World Cup.
In today’s jam-packed podcast, I also discuss:
* The economic dimensions of the conflict for the world, Iran, and the US.
* The internal political dynamics in each of the countries and how do they clash
* Trump’s comments on the 2020 killing of Qassem Suleimani
* How does the Gulf countries see any peace deal
* Why Iran cannot be excluded from Gulf security matters
* Whether the World Cup can impact diplomacy
Today’s edition was in part a collaboration between badlands and India’s NewsX World and Algeria’s Al24 News.
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The US managed to get Lebanon and Israel to sign on to a peace deal that key constituencies reject. The country’s parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri along with Hezbollah have rejected terms that seem to force the Lebanese Army and state to disarm Hezbollah without any guarantee that Israel will vacate Lebanese territory in now occupies.
In the latest edition of the badlands podcast, Sciences Po scholar Karim Bitar offers a nuanced take on the deal, as well as Lebanons’s current crisis.
“There is a risk of fragmentation,” he tells me. “This is why I think it would have been preferable to wait to get some leverage, Arab support, Gulf support, European support, and negotiate a more appropriate deal because this one is unlikely to lead to Hezbollah disarmament and unlikely to lead to Israeli withdrawal.”
Plus, Karim and I talk about US President Donald Trump’s “crazy” plan to have Syrian forces under the command of former Al Qaeda figure Ahmad al-Sharaa move into Lebanon and disarm Hezbollah.
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Friday, June 26, 2026, Istanbul
On Thursday, Iran attacked a ship in the Strait of Hormuz, violating a provision of the memorandum of understanding it signed with Iran.
Meanwhile, Israel continued its attacks on Lebanon, killing more civilians, also in violation of the memorandum which requires the US to leash Benjamin Netanyahu.
So many things could go wrong in the ongoing talks with Iran, and so many players have an interest in making sure it’s derailed.
In today’s edition of the badlands podcast, I speak with the Crisis Group’s Ali Vaez about the spoilers, the many actors that could undermine the the agreement between the US and Iran and prompt a return to war.
They include hardliners in or close to government in Tehran, Washington, and Israel, as well as the monarchist activists
Ali Vaez is one of the sharpest and most well-informed observers of the Iran crisis, serving as an interlocutor as well as an analyst.
Please excuse the poor audio quality of the podcast today, which is sometimes tough to hear because of technical difficulties. The video version is captioned.
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Thursday, June 25, 2026, Istanbul
Even as Marco Rubio attempts to keep America’s Gulf clients in line, some of them are already finding their own way. In today’s podcast I discuss the ongoing diplomatic intrigues involving the US, Gulf countries, and an emerging power bloc consisting of regional powers determined to avoid being dragged into another war.
This bloc—I argue—seems at the very least ambivalent about the US role in the region and is hostile to Israel’s expansionist agenda.
I also discuss the Gulf and its role in the conflict in an interview with France 24.
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Wednesday, June 24, 2026, Istanbul
Donald Trump keeps making claims about Iran’s agreement to compromise on its nuclear program that Iran keeps swatting down. To make matters worse, even war hawks and neocons in Washington keep noting that he has actually achieved little in negotiations.
Making matters even worse is the possibility that Iran has abandoned any pretense of adhering to its nuclear obligations and already launched its own Manhattan Project to fast-track a nuclear weapon.
In today’s podcast, I break down the nuclear issue and assess both the politics and the science behind the headlines.
I also speak to India’s NewsX World about the nuclear issue.
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Monday, June 22, 2026, Istanbul
Iran and the US talks get underway in Switzerland, but almost immediately fall apart. The Iranian delegation stood up JD Vance just as he was waiting for his photo op!
In today’s podcast I discuss why I believe the talks will continue in fits and starts over the coming weeks despite the initial hiccups.
Plus, comedian Tim Dillon hilariously describes Iran as a poorly behaving teenaged girl who gets the upper hand over her boomer mom.
I also join Express 24/7’s Fahd Hassan in a discussion about the role the Lebanon conflict will play in the talks, and whether the diplomats involved can overcome the differing positions.
And, in an interview with India’s NewxX World, I discuss the fragmentation of the Gulf States as a result of the war, and whether the US can overcome Israel’s spoiler role.
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