Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share CONFLICTED
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
CONFLICTED
Based on Podcast App listening data
CONFLICTED episodes
- Sir Vince Cable: The Crisis of Liberal Democracy
In this Conflicted Conversation, Thomas talks to Sir Vince Cable, the former leader of the Liberal Democrats in the UK, about his new book Eclipsing the West: China, India and the forging of a new world.
Sir Vince discusses:
- Postcolonial state-building, development economics, and his formative experiences in Kenya
- Globalisation, financialisation, and the legacy of the 2008 financial crisis
- The rise of China and India as “superstates” in a new tripolar world
- Geo-economics, US–China rivalry, and the breakdown of the liberal international order
- Democracy versus authoritarianism and the crisis of liberal governance
- Ideology, nationalism, and the limits of rationality in geopolitics
- Multipolarity, global disorder, climate crisis, and the future of world order
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm
Find Conflicted on X: https://x.com/MHconflicted
And Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MHconflicted
And Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/conflictedpod
And YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sdlF1mY5t4
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 by Thomas Small & Ross Field and edited by Lizzy Andrews.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
56 min - Iraq: Anatomy of a Broken State
Aimen's in the thick of it this week so isn't able to appear on the show. Sitting in for him is Elizabeth Tsurkov, a Russian-Israeli researcher and analyst, and a doctoral student at Princeton University. During field research in Iraq in 2023, she was kidnapped by Kata'ib Hezbollah and held in captivity for over two years, suffering torture and solitary confinement.
In what we hope will be the first of many appearances on Conflicted, Elizabeth discusses:
- Saddam Hussein’s faith campaign and the rise of Shia religious politics in Iraq
- The Sadrist movement in Iraq and Muqtada al-Sadr
- The politicisation of sectarian identity in post-2003 Iraq
- Iraqi militias as criminal-political enterprises engaged in in theft, extortion, oil smuggling, and dollar smuggling
- The difference between Iraqi militias and Lebanese Hezbollah
- The impact of militia rule on ordinary civilian life
- Iraq’s extreme inequality despite its oil and gas wealth
- The 2003 Iraq War and the debate over American responsibility
- Iraqi elite agency and the failures of Iraq’s political class
- The 2010 Iraqi election crisis and Nouri al-Maliki’s return to power
- The Iraqi constitution and the failure of constitutional democracy
- Iraq’s dependence on oil revenues and the Strait of Hormuz
- The impact of the current Iran war on Iraq’s economy
- Iranian attacks on Iraqi oil exports and oil tankers
- The U.S. military presence in Iraq after ISIS
- American influence over Iraqi prime ministerial politics
- Nouri al-Maliki, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, and Ali al-Zaidi
- Fa’iq Zaidan and the power of Iraq’s judiciary
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/
Elizabeth's personal website: https://elizabeth-tsurkov.net/en/
Find Elizabeth on X: https://x.com/LizHurra
Find Elizabeth on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabeth-tsurkov-79491b15/
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.
Produced and edited by Thomas Small.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
1 hr 15 min - The CIA: What is It For?
In this Conflicted Conversation, Thomas speaks to journalist Tim Weiner about his new history of the CIA in the 21st century, The Mission, and about the enduring tension between intelligence gathering and covert action. Drawing on four decades of reporting, Weiner argues that the CIA’s greatest failures arise when it abandons its core purpose of understanding the world in favour of trying to change it.
Weiner explains:
- How he began covering the CIA during the Reagan era and what drew him into intelligence reporting
- Why the CIA is best understood as an instrument of presidential power, not an independent actor
- The agency’s post–Cold War collapse and its loss of mission before 9/11
- How the War on Terror transformed the CIA into a global counterterrorism and paramilitary force
- The origins, logic, and consequences of torture, black sites, and the failure of interrogation
- The intelligence failures behind the Iraq War and how ‘facts were fitted around the policy’
- The rise of drone warfare under Obama and the normalization of targeted killing
- Covert operations from Peru to Syria, including the limits and dangers of programs like TIMBER SYCAMORE
- The difference between espionage and covert action—and why only the former can prevent war and save lives
- Why the greatest danger today is a president who ignores intelligence while using the CIA’s coercive power
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm
Find Conflicted on X: https://x.com/MHconflicted
And Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MHconflicted
And Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/conflictedpod
And YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sdlF1mY5t4
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
1 hr 13 min - The Problem of President Trump
Thomas expresses his growing conviction that President Trump has utterly mishandled the Iran War, while Aimen describes: how the final, fatal phase of the Islamabad peace talks was a utter humiliation for Trump; what's going on inside the heads of GCC leaders regarding the White House's leadership; and the Islamic Republic's new delay tactics.
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.
Produced and edited by Thomas Small.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
1 hr 3 min - Jack Carr: My Journey Through America’s Long War
In this Conflicted Conversation, Thomas speaks to bestselling novelist and historian Jack Carr. A former Navy SEAL sniper, Carr talks about his phenomenal book Targeted: Beirut: The 1983 Marine Barracks Bombing and the Untold Origin Story of the War on Terror as well as his upcoming novel The Fourth Option.
Jack describes:
- His path from childhood fascination with war to becoming a U.S. Navy SEAL sniper
- SEAL training: Hell Week, mental fortitude, and what separates those who quit from those who don’t
- Boarding Iraqi oil tankers: enforcing sanctions at sea and policing the post–Gulf War international order
- His experience as a sniper in Iraq and Afghanistan
- The 1983 Beirut barracks bombing and its role in shaping modern terrorism and U.S. foreign policy
- The mistakes in US counter-terrorism policy: how limited responses can shape enemy strategy over time
- From warfighter to writer: how Carr’s military experience informs his novels and nonfiction on the War on Terror
Jack Carr's official website: https://www.officialjackcarr.com/
Find Jack on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jackcarrusa/
Find Jack on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jackcarrusa/
Find Jack on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JackCarrUSA
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm
Find Conflicted on X: https://x.com/MHconflicted
And Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MHconflicted
And Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/conflictedpod
And YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sdlF1mY5t4
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 by Thomas Small and edited by Alan Leer.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
1 hr 6 min - The Power Struggle Inside Iran
Aimen describes the counter-coup which has taken place inside the Islamic Republic against Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, the key to understanding the failure of the Islamabad peace talks.
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.
Produced and edited by Thomas Small.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
56 min - The True Origins of Modern Terrorism
In this Conflicted Conversation, Thomas speaks to journalist Jason Burke about his new book The Revolutionists: The Story of the Extremists Who Hijacked the 1970s.
Jason explains:
- Why the origins of modern terrorism lie earlier than the Afghan jihad of the 1980s
- The global revolutionary ferment of the 1960s and 70s
- Why early terrorist attacks were often designed to attract attention rather than cause mass casualties
- The role of Palestinian militant groups in pioneering modern tactics like hijacking
- Connections between European radicals, Japanese militants, and Middle Eastern groups
- How states adapted to terrorism through new counterterrorism measures
- The shift from theatrical violence to mass-casualty and suicide attacks
- The relationship between secular revolutionary movements and later Islamist militancy
- The Iranian Revolution as a turning point in the evolution of political violence
- Why many common narratives about the origins of jihadism are incomplete
Find Jason on X: https://x.com/burke_jason
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm
Find Conflicted on X: https://x.com/MHconflicted
And Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MHconflicted
And Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/conflictedpod
And YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sdlF1mY5t4
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 by Thomas Small and edited by Lizzy Andrews.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
1 hr 18 min - America Blockades Iran
After the peace talks in Islamabad fail as expected, the United States adopts Plan B: a complete blockade of all Iranian maritime trade. Aimen explains this latest move in the Iran War.
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.
Produced and edited by Thomas Small.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
55 min - Iran War: Will the Ceasefire Hold?
Aimen does his best to explain the sudden and somewhat unexpected ceasefire between the United States and Iran which was announced early on Tuesday.
Aimen and Thomas discuss:
- Pakistan's role: what game are they playing?
- Russia's delicate balancing act between Iran and the GCC
- How GCC leaders cope with President Trump's erratic shifts in messaging and policy
- Did Netanyahu know about the ceasefire in advance?
- The potential coup in Lebanon which Israel's intervention stopped
- Whether Lebanon is included in the ceasefire or not
- What U.S. military hardware is on its way to the region
- Why European politicians and diplomats still support containment when it comes to Iran while being gung-ho against Russia
- How energy dependence helps explain the posture of Pakistan, Egypt, and Turkey
- How the Islamabad talks between Vance and Ghalibaf are likely to go down
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.
Produced and edited by Thomas Small.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
1 hr 23 min - How Money Laundering Took Over the World
In this Conflicted Conversation, Thomas speaks to journalist Oliver Bollough about his illuminating new book Everybody Loves Our Dollars: How Money Laundering Won.
Oliver and Thomas discuss:
- Iranian oil money flowing into London property
- Russian oligarch wealth parked in Western banks
- Al Capone to Miami: evolution of money laundering
- Jeffrey Epstein and elite financial fixers network
- $100 bills fuelling global criminal cash economy
- White House insiders profiting from crypto and stablecoins
- Chinese gangs laundering cartel money worldwide
- Hawala and ancient trade-based money transfer systems
Find Oliver on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/olbullough/
Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm
Find Conflicted on X: https://x.com/MHconflicted
And Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MHconflicted
And Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/conflictedpod
And YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sdlF1mY5t4
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 by Thomas Small and edited by Lizzy Andrews.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
1 hr
About CONFLICTED
From the publisher's feed
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.
Best of CONFLICTED
Ranked by our users in the last 21 days
- Number 1: Saudi Arabia’s Yemen Disaster1 hr 4 min
- Number 5: The End of the Nation State?1 hr 34 min
More shows like CONFLICTED
Dan Snow's History Hit
4,761 Listeners
TRIGGERnometry
2,189 Listeners
WW2 Pod: We Have Ways of Making You Talk
1,438 Listeners
Conflicted: A History Podcast
540 Listeners
The Story
245 Listeners
In Moscow's Shadows
365 Listeners
The Rest Is History
15,743 Listeners
This Is Not A Drill with Gavin Esler
152 Listeners
The Rest Is Politics
3,041 Listeners
Battleground
347 Listeners
Empire: World History
2,460 Listeners
The Rest Is Politics: Leading
775 Listeners
The Rest Is Politics: US
2,281 Listeners
The Rest Is Classified
1,124 Listeners
The General & The Journalist
27 Listeners