Two top Washington Middle East analysts join Arab Digest editor William Law to discuss President Trump's recent trip to the Gulf. Annelle Sheline and Jon Hoffman reflect on the deals made, Trump's meeting with the former jihadist and now president of Syria Ahmad al-Sharaa and the significance of the president deciding to bypass Israel and Prime Minister Netanyahu as he swept through Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE.

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Arab Digest editor William Law is joined by Middle East Eye's Dania Akkad and the focus of their conversation is GHF - the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation - which popped up fully formed and already seemingly underway with a plan that closely mirrors Israeli strategy to use humanitarian aid to force Palestinians out of most of the Gaza Strip and into a tiny sliver of land from whence it will be possible to expel them.

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Arab Digest editor William Law welcomes the Libya specialist Tarek Megerisi back to the podcast to discuss Libya and the dangerous stalemate it has settled into. Two families preside over an extraordinary level of corruption that further impoverishes the Libyan people. Their criminality is aided and abetted by foreign players who see in the political stalemate an opportunity to advance geopolitical objectives and plunder the country of its wealth.

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The podcast returns after a short break with Arab Digest editor William Law in conversation with the Yemen expert Helen Lackner. As the world focusses on Donald Trump's egregious trampling of the rule of law and his destruction of the prevailing world order little notice is given to US strikes on claimed Huthi targets that are occurring on a daily basis while humanitarian aid has all but dried up. The consequences of both actions are devastating for the Yemeni people.

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Arab Digest editor William Law's guest this week is the Levant expert Dr Lina Khatib. Their conversation focusses on new hope building in Lebanon after the crushing blow Israel delivered to Hezbollah and the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria. With a new president and a new prime minister in place hope is running high that the country will find the political will to move away from the sectarianism that has inflicted so much damage on the Lebanese people.

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Syria expert Malik al-Abdeh joins Arab Digest editor William Law to discuss the latest developments in Syria as the country's new leadership struggles with internal sectarian rivalries and pressures from outside players in the neighbourhood including Israel and Türkiye. They explore too the role of Putin and Trump and what will happen as Washington pursues an isolationist approach to foreign relations.

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Arab Digest editor William Law's guest this week is the New Lines Institute's Caroline Rose an expert on the illicit drug Captagon. With the fall of Bashar al-Assad his family's hold on the lucrative trade has suddenly evaporated but the drug hasn't disappeared from Syria and other actors and other countries are eying up opportunities as the Trump administration freezes US engagements in the global fight against illicit drugs.

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Arab Digest editor William Law welcomes George Kanaan to this week's podcast. His book Beyond Lebanon's Peaks: An Odyssey is a fascinating memoir of a businessman and banker who though he has travelled the world in a storied career has never left behind Suq el-Gharb and his Levantine roots. In a wide ranging conversation he reflects on the book and on the current situation in Lebanon and what he calls Trump's 'cruel idea' for Gaza.

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In this week's podcast Arab Digest editor William Law is joined by the North Africa expert Francis Ghilès to discuss the reasons why the Moroccan economy is in good health while its Maghreb neighbours Algeria and Tunisia are struggling. Part of the answer is its geography: Morocco sits as a linchpin between Europe and Africa. The rest though has to do with strong macroeconomic policies and a resilient, confident and outward looking approach from the kingdom's business sector.

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William Law, Arab Digest editor welcomes the Cato Institute's Jon Hoffman to the podcast to discuss his just released book Islam and Statecraft. Jon lays out how the Gulf ruling families have used Islam as a political tool to enhance foreign policy thrusts, ensure regime security and project power. With the West embracing the Gulf's so-called "moderate Islam" and Donald Trump in the White House Islamophobia, he argues, is set to rise.

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