The Beirut Banyan

Recorded Thursday, 5 December 2024. Three days before the Assad regime's fall.

An episode for Syria & Lebanon. Hosted by Ralph Baydoun (founder of Influeanswers) with George Wardini (director of PolyBlog) and Ronnie Chatah (host of The Beirut Banyan).

Ralph Baydoun leads the discussion and posits 'resistance'-focused counter narratives to neutrality and sub-state disarmament discourse. The conversation includes the potential for Israeli settlements in southern Lebanon, communities allegedly abandoned by the state, liberation as a so-called just means for continued armed struggle, the Lebanese army's limits in offensive and defensive measures, and how ideology and misinformation leads to false assumptions.

Make sure to check out and support Ralph Baydoun's Patreon channel: https://www.patreon.com/Perspectiveleb

Follow Ralph Baydoun on IG: [at]perspectiveleb and George Wardini on IG: [at]polyblog.lebanon

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

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www.beirutbanyan.com

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

2:48 Up to the Litani

8:17 Ultranationalism

13:03 Settlement literature

17:25 Vulnerability

22:18 Dreams & religion

28:40 Constant war in Lebanon

30:02 Indefensible borders

37:13 Abandoned by the state

42:27 Sectarianism & sacrifice

51:45 The Syrian regime

53:47 Foreign involvement

1:00:21 Expansion & retreat

1:03:51 Liberation in itself

1:07:14 In the name

1:11:59 Warlike reasons to fight

1:14:45 The Lebanese army

1:16:41 A winning argument

1:21:51 Resistance

Outtakes from an interview on my New Lines piece following Hassan Nasrallah's death titled "Dust Over Dahiyeh".

Link to article:

https://newlinesmag.com/spotlight/hassan-nasrallah-the-killing-of-a-killer/

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

0:05 Why did you title your recent piece in New Lines Magazine,

"The Killing of a Killer"?

0:59 Why is there no feeling of satisfaction?

2:16 Is this a particularly Lebanese experience?

2:37 How do you see Lebanon right now?

4:13 Is this a long war?

6:26 What do you think of Netanyahu's comments to Lebanese?

8:51 Is Netanyahu's rhetoric dangerous for Lebanese?

10:10 Can you criticize this war without risk?

11:44 Do you sense an atmosphere of intimidation?

14:06 Can you differentiate security problems from politics?

15:44 What are 'red flags' for criticism?

16:30 Is Hezbollah popular today in Lebanon?

18:22 Can Israel eradicate Hezbollah?

19:57 Is Lebanon's destiny doomed to failure?

POINT COUNTERPOINT - Episode 2

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

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

Episode 2 covers three topics: (1) Trump's election win and what that means for US policy towards Lebanon; (2) the example of 1982 and drawing parallels between Western support for Bachir Gemayel's presidency and Joseph Aoun's current status as a potential consensus candidate; and (3) examining preconditions for internal strife and why the likelihood for a return to civil war is low.

Michael Young's articles discussed during this episode include:

"Trump or Harris? It's pointless to ask who's better for the Middle East" - The National

https://www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comment/2024/11/06/donald-trump-kamala-harris-middle-east-foreign-policy-israel-gaza/

and "Is Hezbollah Moving In?" - Diwan

https://carnegieendowment.org/middle-east/diwan/2024/10/coming-to-a-neighborhood-near-you?lang=en

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:

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

1:53 Donald Trump's election win

20:16 The Example of 1982

43:04 The Potential for Civil Strife

1:04:34 Outro

From a panel that took place in late November 2013, with the presence of Switzerland and Austria’s then-ambassadors to Lebanon.

Including some of my father’s last words on the fundamental need for neutrality, 1701’s necessity, what neutralization actually means and how it worked (albeit briefly) in the 1950s & 60s.

We should have no role in regional war other than shielding ourselves from its rippling effects.

There are ideological voices today ranging from frustrated academics with fringe access to politics to propaganda-fuelled journalists blinded by hate that are insisting our fate should remain tied to Gaza while making their case for Hezbollah.

Ignore them.

On all that is happening in Beirut's southern suburbs, southern Lebanon and the region vis-a-vis Israel and Iran. Along with absent Lebanese diplomacy and the upcoming port blast anniversary.

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.

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@thebeirutbanyan

And check out our website:

www.beirutbanyan.com

Recorded Monday, 29 July.

Reflecting on escalation between Hezbollah and Israel and deliberately staying in Beirut throughout the conflict.

With predictions on post Majd Al Shams retaliation by Israel and a potential response by Hezbollah, along with thinking through worst case scenarios and red lines that have yet to be crossed.

Also includes a look part on August 4, 2020 and the upcoming port blast's fourth year anniversary.

With Georges Haddad & Giulia Cingolani - both employed in the humanitarian and development field.

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

2:47 The airport

7:29 False comfort

12:27 ‘Here’ is fine

18:30 The red line

25:54 Messages to the contrary

31:16 Worst-case scenario

33:34 Buildup to 2006

40:09 Port explosion

44:45 Palestine

52:52 Connect to Gaza

Reflecting on the ongoing Hezbollah-Israel war in southern Lebanon and its impact on daily life away from the battlefield.

Looking back on periods of relative calm vs manageable instability, the long-term political and societal impact of failed governance, false economies and tourism destinations like Batroun, and an acceptance of impunity and injustice on the port blast's upcoming anniversary.

With George Wardini - director of PolyBlog.

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

0:47 Relative normalcy

4:51 Relative anxiety

10:13 Targeted strikes

13:16 Familiar terrain

16:51 Failed state

19:42 Batroun

22:32 Static

26:37 Regime survival

31:47 The long term

34:58 Violence wins

37:13 Port blast & paralysis

39:36 Hezbollah undeterred

Three updated scenarios for what could play out in the near term for Lebanon.

Reflecting on the July 2006 War and UNSCR 1701 eighteen years later, during a time of escalation and regional war's expansion.

Looking back on humanitarian assistance in times of emergency and crisis, the Lebanese government's negotiating role in helping shape UNSCR 1701, a return to border conflict and battlefield over armistice and deterrence and the lack of state agency bringing us closer to Hezbollah's interests.

With Sarah Borgi - economist and independent consultant.

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

1:11 First day

6:22 Anthony Bourdain

10:14 Samidoun

15:04 Guilt

19:39 Lebanon’s role

22:27 Opposition government

25:30 Free from Syrian hegemony

29:05 Leftist wing of March 14

34:47 Israeli attack on Hezbollah

38:03 Main points of UNSCR 1701

48:22 Warzone

51:02 Closer to the problem

54:47 Stature

57:12 Restraint

1:00:25 Legitimizing the battlefield

1:04:04 Drawn out

1:07:07 Deterrence

1:09:19 Armistice

Episode 405: The War Photographer

A journey into memories of growing up along Beirut's demarcation line during the Lebanese civil war, a professional pursuit of conflict photography across the region and the difficult journey of mental health awareness and personal recovery.

With Patrick Baz - award-winning photojournalist and photographer, and author of Don't Take My Picture: Iraqis Don't Cry.

With special thanks to Beirut Center of Photography - taped live at Aaliya's Books.

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

4:35 Demarcation line

9:17 Inspiration

15:24 Carnage

19:32 Airport playground

24:19 Manual experience

31:46 Adrenaline

40:01 Palestinian photojournalism

44:12 Bosnia

53:12 Palestine Hotel

1:05:19 Libya

1:15:50 Social media

1:20:27 Motaz Azaiza

1:23:52 “Christians of Lebanon”

1:31:03 Q&A