0:00 Intro

4:39 The Last Few Weeks

11:55 Crossroads

15:08 Dysfunction

29:10 Determination

33:24 Iran's Needs

42:38 False Equivalencies

1:01:26 Warzone

1:08:14 Salvageable System?

1:22:55 Departure

We're with Tala Ramadan for Episode 272 of The Beirut Banyan.

We discuss the immense challenges over the past few weeks and rampant dysfunction making daily life enormously difficult in Lebanon.

Our conversation includes a reflection of Iran's security needs in Lebanon, disagreement over what I consider false equivalencies and whether Lebanon would be better described as a war-zone.

We also talk about the governing system's viability with or without geopolitical conflict and the departure of too many friends and relatives from Lebanon.

Tala Ramadan is a Beirut-based journalist and reporter for L'Orient Today.

The education-related piece briefly mentioned in this episode is linked below:

https://today.lorientlejour.com/article/1272303/pursuing-education-in-lebanon-in-the-midst-of-a-financial-crisis-power-outages-and-internet-disruptions.html

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Music by Marc Codsi. Animation & illustration by Sana Chaaban.