Rania Khalek Dispatches

From Gaza to West Philly — Ahmed Moor wants John Fetterman’s job. The writer and Democratic Socialist just launched a 2028 primary challenge in Pennsylvania against Israel’s most reliable Senate Democrat, who’s consistently backed Trump’s war on Iran. He joins Rania Khalek to make the case for sanctions on Israel and a “dignity agenda” for Pennsylvanians.

“If you’re living in poverty, you are not really free,” Moor says of his platform built on universal healthcare, universal childcare and affordable housing – and taxing billionaires and the biggest corporations. His stance on Israel: South Africa-style sanctions until Palestinians have equal rights, and accountability for genocide in Gaza. He says AIPAC, the arms industry and other special interests have both parties in a chokehold, and offers a “strong hell no” when asked if he’d support Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries leading Congress; Moor supports Chris Van Hollen for Senate majority leader instead.

And Moor rejects the “unelectable” label in swing-state Pennsylvania, arguing the rule of law cuts across party lines. His question for Second Amendment defenders: what should Alex Pretti, a legally armed man killed by ICE in Minneapolis, have done? Plus: his take on Cuba, Venezuela, Ukraine and NATO.

Is the Democratic Party actually changing to embrace Palestine and left-wing causes, or is it doing what it always does: absorbing the movement that threatens it?

Rania Khalek is joined by journalist and writer Sana Saeed to talk about Zohran Mamdani, Abdul El-Sayed, and how the anti-genocide movement has been used to give a face lift to the Democratic Party. But does it signal a more profound change of policy? They get into:

00:00 - Introduction: Movement Energy & Party Revival

00:31 - Dispatches Intro & Guest Introduction (Sana Saeed)

04:12 - How the Democratic Party Absorbs Insurgent Movements

10:00 - Zohran Mamdani's Platform  Background, and Political Shift

17:48 - The Obama Legacy: Charisma, Drone Warfare, and Executive Power

32:23 - Holding Progressive Politicians Accountable to Movements

43:44 - Criticism Over Retaining NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch

55:34 - Abdul El-Sayed: Campaign Strategy and Messaging

57:51 - El-Sayed's Response to the "Uncommitted" Movement

01:06:08 - Capitalist Framing vs. "Corporate Socialism"

01:13:40 - Conclusion: Palestine, Electoral Politics, and Movement Energy

🔒 Members get the full conversation, including Sana and Rania on Zionism, who defines Jewish identity, and why Palestine-friendly politicians keep centering antisemitism. Join at breakthroughnews.org/subscribe

Read Sana’s essays:
The Charisma of Empire: https://sanasaeed.substack.com/p/the-charisma-of-empire-obama-mamdani
It’s Time to Bury Palestine: https://substack.com/home/post/p-209968068

Follow Sana: X @SanaSaeed | Instagram @sanaface 

Journalist Jasper Nathaniel just spent a month in the occupied West Bank, and he came back with a warning: while the world watches Gaza, Israel is finishing a decades-long project to dominate the West Bank and drive Palestinians off their land for good.

Rania Khalek talks with him about what settler expansion actually looks like on the ground: armed settlers storming villages on so-called “hikes,” stealing homes and launching attacks from the houses they’ve stolen, cutting off a village’s spring water and building a settlers-only swimming pool in the middle of a Palestinian town. They get into the Israeli state’s role, the wall being built to annex the fertile Jordan Valley, and the looting of ancient ruins in Sebastia.

They also dig into Congressman Ro Khanna’s trip to the West Bank, his detention by settlers and soldiers, and the incoherence of coming home to tell Palestinians they must resist nonviolently. They also discuss incoming Congressman Brad Lander, the collapse of “liberal Zionism” and Jasper’s own story as the grandson of Iraqi Jews who never needed Israel.

This is just part of this episode. The full interview is available to Breakthrough News Members only. Become a member at https://breakthroughnews.org/subscribe/ 

Jasper’s Substack piece: https://open.substack.com/pub/infinitejaz/p/a-hellish-month-in-the-occupied-west?r=eexe&utm_medium=ios

Jasper’s The Drift piece on Sebastia: https://thedriftmag.com/in-ruins/ 

The media wants you to think “Greater Israel” is a fringe fantasy belonging to Ben Gvir and the settler far right. It's not. It's a project for dominating the entire Middle East, and it goes far beyond land grabs.

Daniel Levy, former Israeli peace negotiator and president of the US/Middle East Project, joins Rania Khalek to explain what “Greater Israel” actually is: annexation in Palestine, military occupation zones in Lebanon and Syria, and beyond that, a region where every state is subservient, dependent, or collapsed. Levy breaks down why Israel has no recognized borders by design, how the Lebanon "framework agreement" serves the Israelis and was signed by a Lebanese government that got nothing in return, why Israeli leaders now openly declare that Turkey is next, and the contradiction at the heart of it all: Netanyahu calls Israel a superpower while insisting it was on the brink of annihilation. Is this project achievable or is it imperial overreach?

Plus, Levy reflects on his own evolution from an Orthodox Zionist upbringing in London, with a seat at the negotiating table, to becoming a sharp critic of Israel and Zionism.

Follow Daniel Levy's analysis on Substack: https://daniellevy2.substack.com

This is just part of the episode. To watch the full interview, become a Breakthrough News member at https://breakthroughnews.org/subscribe

It's been over a thousand days since Israel began its livestreamed genocide in Gaza, and global politics is still shifting as a result. Candidates who refuse AIPAC money are toppling Democratic incumbents across the US, support for Israel has become a political liability and the establishment's answer has been a full-blown red scare.

Rania Khalek speaks with Palestinian novelist, poet, and activist Susan Abulhawa, author of “Mornings in Jenin,” to discuss how Palestine has become the litmus test of American politics, how AIPAC was dragged out of the shadows, and why she believes the cultural boycott and solidarity movement must stop centering Israeli feelings. She addresses Netanyahu's cynical claims about protecting Christians in Lebanon, Iran's demonstration that the empire can be defeated, and how accusations of antisemitism are weaponized to shield a state committing genocide.

This is only part of the episode. The full interview is available to Breakthrough News members only. Become a member at breakthroughnews.org/subscribe.

Ali Abunimah joins Rania Khalek on Dispatches to discuss the dramatic collapse of global support for Israel, the growing backlash against Western support for genocide in Gaza, and why governments are increasingly resorting to repression as public opinion shifts in favor of Palestine.

In this episode they discuss:

• New polling showing Israel’s popularity collapsing across the world
• Why propaganda and celebrity endorsements aren’t working anymore
• The crackdown on Palestine solidarity activists in the U.S. and Europe
• The October 7 rape narrative versus documented Israeli sexual violence against Palestinians
• Lebanon, Iran, and why submission to Israel doesn’t bring peace
• Whether Israel controls the U.S. or serves U.S. imperial interests
• The rise of anti-Israel voices on the American right
• Why Ali believes Israel is facing a long-term legitimacy crisis
• The Gwyneth Paltrow debacle

This is just part of this episode. The full interview is available to Breakthrough News Members only. Become a member at breakthroughnews.org/subscribe

As Israel’s genocide in Gaza continues and Lebanon faces ongoing aggression and political pressure to capitulate, many people are grappling with fear, exhaustion, and despair.

But what if hopelessness itself is part of the strategy?

Psychoanalyst and author Lara Sheehi joins Dispatches with Rania Khalek to discuss the psychological dimensions of fascism, empire, colonial violence, and resistance — from Israeli psychological warfare and sexual humiliation as a tool of domination, to the weaponization of sectarianism in Lebanon, the role of media propaganda, and why revolutionary optimism is itself a political act.

Sheehi also discusses her new book, From the Clinic to the Streets: Psychoanalysis for Revolutionary Futures, and explains why the work of Frantz Fanon is more urgent than ever.

Topics include:

• Psychic militancy and psychological warfare
• How fascism reshapes society psychologically
• Israeli violence, humiliation & domination
• Lebanon, sectarianism & capitulation politics
• Why empire depends on despair
• The limits of liberalism
• The politics of the wellness industry
• Media propaganda and psychological control
• Revolutionary optimism and resistance

🎥 The full episode is available to Breakthrough News members.

Become a member at: https://www.patreon.com/BreakthroughNews 

Follow Lara’s podcast Psychic Militancy on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PsychicMilitancy

And on IG: @psychicmilitancypod https://www.instagram.com/psychicmilitancypod/# 

Follow Lara on IG: @psychoanalystactivist https://www.instagram.com/psychoanalystactivist/ 

The U.S. and Israel launched a massive war on Iran expecting quick capitulation. Instead, Iran absorbed the assault, retaliated across the region, and exposed major limits to American and Israeli power.

Now the Trump administration appears to be searching for an off-ramp while Israel continues pushing for escalation, including in Lebanon.

Meanwhile, the Strait of Hormuz crisis, sanctions, economic warfare, and the risk of a wider regional conflict continue to threaten the entire Middle East.

To break down the latest developments, the shaky ceasefire negotiations, Trump’s contradictory messaging, and whether this war is entering a dangerous new phase, Rania Khalek is joined by Trita Parsi, Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute.

The Trump administration has announced a new military operation in the Strait of Hormuz, while Iran is warning that any unauthorized U.S. presence will be treated as hostile.

At the same time, Washington is rejecting key parts of Iran’s proposal to end the war, including sanctions relief and limits on the blockade.

So what is this “ceasefire,” really?

Is Iran actually weakened, as Trump claims — or has the war strengthened internal support for resistance?

And is the next round already underway?

In this episode of Dispatches, Rania Khalek is joined from Tehran by Iranian-American academic Navid Zarrinnal, to discuss:

• Whether the war is actually over — or just paused
• The escalating standoff in the Strait of Hormuz
• Iran’s real military capacity vs. U.S. claims
• Public opinion inside Iran after the attacks
• The economic pressure of sanctions and war
• Iran’s 14-point proposal — and why Washington is rejecting it
• Why nuclear enrichment is a red line
• The role of Lebanon in any regional settlement
• Gulf state positioning behind the scenes
• China, Russia, and Pakistan’s role
• How Iran may be winning the information war online — especially in English
• What the left’s position should be — and why opposing U.S. aggression means defending Iranian sovereignty

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Follow Navid on Instagram @navidwahraman: https://www.instagram.com/navidwahraman/ 

As war spreads across Lebanon and Iran, the U.S. and Israel claim they are making progress.

But on the ground, the picture looks far more complicated.

After a supposed pause in fighting and failed negotiations, Israel escalated dramatically, launching massive strikes on Beirut while continuing its ground invasion in southern Lebanon. 

At the same time, Iran has held firm in negotiations, raising questions about whether Washington’s strategy is working.

So who’s actually winning?

In this episode of Dispatches, Rania Khalek speaks with journalist Jon Elmer of The Electronic Intifada to break down the military realities:

-Israel’s war in south Lebanon and the battle for Bint Jbeil
-Hezbollah’s resurgence and military capabilities
-The U.S.-Israel strategy against Iran
-What the failed negotiations reveal
-Whether this war is escalating toward a second phase