The Beirut Banyan

George Wardini returns to The Beirut Banyan.

We look back to 1983 and discuss similarities in the relative calm Lebanon experienced following Israel's siege of Beirut and expulsion of Arafat from Lebanon.

We also examine post-2024 war developments and security risks related to attempts at disarmament, what the potential of a wider Arab-Israeli peace deal under the Trump administration could mean for Lebanon, the need for the government to make Lebanon's case against Iran's inclinations to hold onto Hezbollah as a proxy militia, and why caution over confrontation remains the preferred mode of governance.

George Wardini is the founder and director of PolyBlog.

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:

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Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

1:59 What changed

6:17 Caution vs Confrontation

11:37 Question of disarmament

14:50 Trump & Iran

22:15 “Peace”

28:59 Conflicting message

35:11 Measuring success

38:47 Lebanon’s case

42:27 Current govt support

47:21 Abnormal state

51:09 Network of interests

53:04 Personal evolution

البير كوستانيان: وحدها المحاسبة وإعادة الهيكلة تسترجع الودائع، لا بيع الأوهام

Nadim Shehadi returns to The Beirut Banyan.

In this episode we discuss the 2020 Eurobond default and the controversy surrounding that decision. We also look at fault lines formed between the banking sector and restructuring-advocacy groups and the wider story of the economic direction of the country.

Nadim Shehadi is an economist and regular contributor to Arab News.

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:

https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

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Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

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Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

0:47 The bigger story

2:58 Any banking sector

5:39 Individual action

12:45 Default

18:49 Fault line

24:08 The banks

33:11 A clear dichotomy

36:04 The Central Bank

43:23 The real question

Albert Kostanian returns to The Beirut Banyan.

In this short episode he candidly discusses a campaign to discredit his economic views and media reputation, debunks accusations of shadow funding and behind-the-scenes government orchestration regarding Kulluna Irada, dispels smear tactics increasingly used to sideline reform-minded advocates in government and civil society, and conveys a firmly held belief in solution-based policies - in particular the ongoing debate surrounding banking restructuring plans and fiscal policy.

Albert Kostanian is an economist and journalist, and hosts LBCI's Vision 2030.

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:

https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

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https://www.patreon.com/thebeirutbanyan

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

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@thebeirutbanyan

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Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

0:12 Why are you here?

1:59 Why is there an increased discrediting campaign happening now?

5:23 Conspiracy theories & Kulluna Irada

8:42 Orchestrated attacks & social media misinformation

10:42 Reform-minded credibility

On a wedding, a commemoration & a funeral.

And holding Nawaf Salam’s incoming government to a higher standard.

POINT COUNTERPOINT - Episode 3

An exchange on political affairs impacting Lebanon and the Middle East, with a unique vantage point from Beirut.

Co-hosted by Michael Young (senior editor at Carnegie’s Middle East Center and editor of Diwan) and Bashshar Haydar (professor of philosophy at AUB) - both Beirut-based analysts sharing their nuanced perspectives while honing in on disagreements.

Episode 3 covers three topics: (1) Nawaf Salam's cabinet formation process, a perception dilemma that has left his allies frustrated and Amal Movement's continued insistence on the Ministry of Finance; (2) the presidency so far, Joseph Aoun's mandate and the security reality dictated by the Israelis with international support that has allowed for the enforcement of 1701; and (3) the upcoming twenty year commemoration of Rafic Hariri's assassination, and how 'Sunni' and 'Shia' politics will play out with a diminished Iranian sphere of influence.

Michael Young's article discussed during this episode:

"Hezbollah Tries Making a Comeback":

https://carnegieendowment.org/middle-east/diwan/2025/01/hezbollah-tries-making-a-comeback?lang=en

Bashshar Haydar's articles referred to can be accessed via his new column in Nidaa al Watan:

https://www.nidaalwatan.com/author/1883-بشار-حيدر

Stay tuned for more episodes.

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:

https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

Or donating through our Patreon page:

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Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

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@thebeirutbanyan

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www.beirutbanyan.com

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

1:38 Cabinet formation process

15:48 Presidency, security & ceasefire

42:14 Twenty year Rafic Hariri commemoration

An episode on a new and unexpected duo: President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister-designate Nawaf Salam.

Covering the dramatically shifting security climate that brought about rapid political change, Joseph Aoun's leadership and the consensus that ushered in his presidency, Nawaf Salam's clean slate and the majority vote that guaranteed his prime minister-designation, and freeing local governance from the Doha Agreement's forced national unity paralysis.

With Sarah Yassine, architect and political activist.

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please 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

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter:

@thebeirutbanyan

And check out our website:

www.beirutbanyan.com

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

2:45 Joseph Aoun

6:58 Nawaf Salam

10:33 Current climate

17:03 Clean outsider

22:11 Constant pressure

28:25 Majority coalition

32:58 Unlocking the stranglehold

38:05 Dismantling the ‘Blocking Third’

40:58 Freeing the Ministry of Finance

43:01 Continued violence in the South

48:20 Independent voters & the South

57:15 A different Hezbollah

Words shared on the closing evening of Aaliya's Books.

With Nadia Tabbara, Brother Michael, Wael Taleb, Ronnie Chatah & William Dobson.

For Niamh Fleming-Farrel, William Dobson & the Aaliya's community.

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please 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

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter:

@thebeirutbanyan

And check out our website:

www.beirutbanyan.com

Timestamps

0:00 Intro

0:09 Nadia Tabbara

5:59 Brother Michael

12:45 Wael Taleb

17:57 Ronnie Chatah

28:31 William Dobson

An interview by the gifted Marie Jo Sader, a Paris and Beirut-based independent journalist and 2023 Lokman Slim Prize winner for her investigative work on the circumstances of Lokman Slim's assassination.

A discussion on the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, a retrospective on anti-Assad protests that shaped Lebanon in 2005 and wider implications for Lebanon, Syria and the region.

Follow Marie Jo Sader on X [at]mariejosader

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please 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

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter:

@thebeirutbanyan

And check out our website:

www.beirutbanyan.com

Timestamps

0:00 Intro

0:22 Decades apart

3:17 Post Syria occupation journey

5:01 Signature elimination

6:59 Political reasons & calculations

8:27 Coordination between Syria & Iran

9:47 The Lebanese 'state'

12:38 Emotions of the moment

15:10 Notions of justice

17:14 Mohamad Chatah today

An episode on the fall of the Assad regime and its implications on Syria and Lebanon.

Covering the rapid collapse of the Assad regime, identity formation in the wake of over half a century of minoritarian rule mired by tyranny, where Iran stands in the near future and a wider ambition for the region carried by hope.

With Bashshar Haydar, professor of philosophy at The American University of Beirut.

The Nidaa al Watan article mentioned is accessible here: https://www.nidaalwatan.com/article/297082-الهوية-الوطنية-لسوريا-ما-بعد-الأسد

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please 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

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter:

@thebeirutbanyan

And check out our website:

www.beirutbanyan.com

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

2:37 Carried by hopes

6:50 Many reasons for Assad’s end

11:31 The last stretch of the regime

20:29 Turkish ambition

24:58 Dictatorial security machine

28:07 Minority rule

31:05 Intervention

38:07 Arab nationalism & myth

41:51 We are people who suffered

48:40 Forced identity

55:00 Political Islam

1:06:51 Druze border villages & Golan Heights

1:08:27 Israeli military measures

1:12:34 The problem of peace & Israel

1:14:02 Back to Lebanon

1:21:55 The Iranian regime moving forward

1:26:23 Less pessimistic than usual