Lethal Dissent: Behind the Scenes

Fariba Nawa and Özge Sebzeci wrap up the season with some great news about some of the characters we met in Lethal Dissent.

Guest Nafisa Haji interviews Evgenia Baltatarova, a journalist and activist from Siberia, who fled Russia for Kazakhstan soon after the start of the war in Ukraine, when authorities ensnared her in a crackdown on critics of the war. Baltatarova had to move countries once again when Russia sought to have her extradited from Kazakhstan, and talks about the toll exile takes on one's life.

Guest Nafisa Haji interviews Emile Dirks, Research Associate and China expert at Citizen Lab, about Beijing's tactics for silencing critics abroad, and the controversy over TikTok.

Guest host Nafisa Haji interviews independent journalist and analyst Borzou Daragahi about what it was like covering the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, and what the case says about the growing problem of impunity and transnational repression.

Iranian protesters thought they were about to topple the regime during the Woman, Life, Freedom movement, but once again the regime crushed the demonstrations despite some wins for women. Journalist Samira Mohyeddin talks about the weaknesses and strengths of the movement and why it’s not over. She also gets personal about navigating identity and journalism.

Host Nafisa Haji speaks with Nate Schenkkan, Senior Director of Research at Freedom House, about Transnational Repression. The term is familiar in policy circles and academics but what's the meaning behind these two words? Who's accountable for protecting dissidents targeted beyond their own borders by their own countries, and how is policy shaped in a global setting when sometimes countries are both protector and perpetrator?

Guest host Nafisa Haji interviews reporter Fariba Nawa about the adventures of reporting Lethal Dissent for two years, getting threats and the feedback the show received from listeners.

In the final episode, Mohammad Shabani's suicide note is analyzed by a handwriting expert and Fariba Nawa gets the results. She follows the ripple effects of the new information, and Mohammad's best friend tries to make sense of what it means.

Fariba Nawa is threatened. She steers her reporting to focus on impunity. The investigation into Iran's hunt for dissidents goes to the United Nations, inside a Turkish parliamentary hearing, and to the US State Department to find out if anyone will intervene.

The Sağlam family's kidnapping operation is caught in a police dragnet. The ensuing police investigation reveals an entire network of conspirators behind the Sağlams. When one conspirator is arrested and interrogated, he confesses. Fariba Nawa uses the confession to tell the story of Iran's behind-the-scenes involvement.