Tensions are red-lining and the violence continues to escalate with no end in sight for the Hong Kong demonstrations.   In this episode of The Crisis Next Door, host Jason Brooks talks with protest leader Joshua Wong, Secretary General of Demosisto, a pro-democracy organization advocating for self-determination in Hong Kong.

  Flare ups between Israel and Palestinian factions in Gaza are nothing new, but the latest slugfest ratcheted tensions to an even higher level.

  Joining The Crisis Next Door host Jason Brooks to talk about the fighting is Anna Ahronheim, Military and Defense Correspondent for the Jerusalem Post.

The Islamic State has lost another leader, but is the decapitation strategy employed against jihadist groups working? 

The Crisis Next Door host Jason Brooks talks about it with Seth Jones, Harold Brown Chair, Director of the Transnational Threats Project; and Senior Adviser with the International Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Seth also authored “A Covert Action: Reagan, the CIA, & Cold War Struggle in Poland” which is available on Amazon.

   Massive protests that started over checkbook issues in Lebanon and Iraq have morphed into demands for new governments in Beirut and Baghdad. 

     The Crisis Next Door host Jason Brooks breaks down the protests with Randa Slim, Senior Fellow & Director of Conflict Resolution & Track II Dialogues Program at the Middle East Institute.

  Violent protests are gripping Chile, one of South America's most affluent countries. What started as a demonstration against a metro fare hike has spread to a wide range of grievances against the government in Santiago.

   The Crisis Next Door host Jason Brooks talks about the protests with John Bartlett, a journalist based in Santiago, writing for the U-K's Guardian newspaper, the BBC, Washington Post and others, and he's the co-host of Miradas, a podcast focusing on the politics, current events and culture of Latin America.

Protests have rocked Hong Kong for months with both sides digging in deeper. What can bridge the gap? 

The Crisis Next Door Host Jason Brooks talks about that with Sophia Yan, China Correspondent for the British newspaper Telegraph. She's based in Beijing, after a five-year posting in Hong Kong.  

Turkey launched operation Peace Spring into northern Syria against Kurdish fighters, following President Trump's pullback of U.S. forces in the region.  Do the Kurds stand a chance against the Turks, and what does this mean for other U.S. allies?

The Crisis Next Door host Jason Brooks talks about that with Steven Cook, Eni Enrico Mattei senior fellow for Middle East and Africa studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.
 

From Charleston to Christchurch, white supremacists have made their deadly intentions known to the world.  And much like Islamic jihadists, white supremacist groups are increasingly connecting with each other across the globe.

The Crisis Next Door host Jason Brooks talks about the worrisome trend with Colin Clarke, a Senior Research Fellow at The Soufan Center, and author of After the Caliphate:The Islamic State and the Future Terrorist Diaspora.

The U.S. and Saudi Arabia blame Iran for the missile and drone attacks on two massive oil processing facilities in the Kingdom.  Is war inevitable?

The Crisis Next Door host Jason Brooks talks about that prospect with Retired Ambassador Gerald Feierstein, Director of Gulf Affairs and Government Relations at the Middle East Institute, and Ambassador to Yemen from 2010 to 2013. 

 

Just when it seemed like the U.S. may get peace talks going with the Taliban, those prospects were quickly dashed.  How long will the U.S. Forever War last in Afghanistan?   

The Crisis Next Door host Jason Brooks talks about those prospects with Michael Rubin, a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, and also teaches classes on terrorism for the FBI and on security, politics, religion and history for US and NATO military units.