Michael Hoffman of the University of Notre Dame joins Marc Lynch on this week's podcast to discuss his new book, Faith in Numbers: Religion, Sectarianism, and Democracy. In the book, Hoffman discusses how religious identities and sectarian interests play a major part in determining regime preferences. (Starts at 0:44). Devorah Manekin of Hebrew University discusses her latest article, "Effective for Whom? Ethnic Identity and Nonviolent Resistance" (co-authored by Tamar Mitts), published in Cambridge University Press. (Starts at 29:25). Gregory Gause of Texas A&M University discusses U.S. relations with the Gulf states and broader Gulf politics. (Starts at 44:17).

Music for this season's podcast was created by Bashir Saade (playing Ney) and Farah Kaddour (on Buzuq). You can find more of Bashir's work on his YouTube Channel.