We're joined by Mohamad Bazzi for Episode 120 of The Beirut Banyan, and we discuss domestic attempts for political reform in Iraq and Lebanon and the geopolitical constraints facing protestors throughout the region.

Mohamad Bazzi is an associate professor of journalism at New York University, where he teaches international reporting. From 2009 to 2013, he served as an adjunct senior fellow for Middle East studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Mohamad was the Middle East bureau chief at Newsday from 2003 to 2008. His essays and commentaries on the Middle East have appeared in The New York Times, London Review of Books, Foreign Affairs, The Atlantic, The Nation, The Guardian, Boston Review, Reuters, and other publications.

The articles referenced at the end of the episode can be accessed by clicking below:

'Donald Trump has blundered into a crisis of his own making with Iran' for The Guardian:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jan/03/us-airstrikes-iran-donald-trump-foreign-policy-iranian-middle-east

'The Long-Term Consequences of Trump’s Middle East Blundering' for The Nation:

https://www.thenation.com/article/world/trump-iran-iraq-isis/

'The New Lebanon is the Old Lebanon' for The New York Times:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/29/opinion/lebanon-crisis.html

If you're enjoying these episodes, help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:

https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

Or donating through our Patreon page:

https://www.patreon.com/thebeirutbanyan

And subscribe to our podcast from your preferred platform.

Follow us on Instagram: thebeirutbanyan

Twitter: beirut_banyan

Facebook: The Beirut Banyan

Website: www.beirutbanyan.com

Music by Marc Codsi. Graphics by Sara Tarhini.