Israel Cleared for Eurovision: Kalam Digest 40

A trial is underway to establish justice for the victims of the deadly pogroms agains Syrian minorities earlier this year; the genocide in Gaza is ongoing while Israel and the US draw up plans for Gaza's future without the input of a single Palestinian; the Pope visits Lebanon in a significant symbolic gesture. Kalam Digest brings you the latest news from the Middle East. To listen to the full episode subscribe to our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/kalampodcast Follow us on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/kalampodcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In part three of this special series on Anwar Sadat we cover his: •⁠ Failed attempts to «liberalise» the Egyptian economy. •⁠ Suprise success in the October 1973 war. •⁠ Decision to follow this up by making peace with Israel. •⁠ His sudden end at the hands of forces he himself had helped create.To listen to the full episode subscribe to our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/kalampodcastFollow us on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/kalampodcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Part 2 of this Patreon-exclusive series we track Sadat’s coming of age:•⁠ ⁠Sadat as a Gamal Abdel Nasser loyalist and chief communicator of his regime.•⁠ ⁠⁠Sadat as the quiet observer of Nasser’s failures, shaping his later thinking.•⁠ ⁠⁠Sadat being groomed for the presidency, those around him thinking they could control him. They were wrong.To listen to the full episode subscribe to our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/kalampodcast Follow us on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/kalampodcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the late 1990's, the Palestinian rap group DAM released their breakout single Meen Erhabi? (Who is the terrorist?) interrogating Israel and the Western World's accusations of terrorism against the Palestinian people, "While we are living in our own country". All members of the group are Palestinian citizens of Israel and hold Israeli passports, giving them a unique insight into Israeli society. Today, 26 years later, the issues are the same but the members of the rap group are older. Tamer al Nafar, Mahmood Jrere and Maysa Daw sit down with Edgar of Kalam Podcast ahead of their gig at the Maxim Theatre in Stockholm. They speak about the differences between Palestinian and Egyptian rap, what having an Israeli passports means in the Arab world and if they are sick of rapping Meen Erhabi. To support us, go to patreon.com/kalampodcastFollow us on Instagram @kalampodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anwar Sadat was born in the Egyptian Sultanate, came of age during the Egyptian Monarchy, and became president of the Egyptian Republic. He was killed by Egyptian islamists. But who was he? In this Kalam Shorts series, exclusively available for our Patreon subscribers, we delve deep into the man who is known as the last Pharoah of Egypt, and the circumstances that created him. To support us, go to patreon.com/kalampodcastFollow us on Instagram @kalampodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Edgar and Sam are in Egypt! Join us for a podcast session at a bar in downtown Cairo, serenaded by the sweet sounds of Umm Kulthum in the background. Subscribe to the Kalam Podcast patreon page to listen to the full episode. To support us, go to patreon.com/kalampodcastFollow us on Instagram @kalampodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Almost 10 months have passed since the unexpected collapse of the Assad regime last December. Since then Syria has passed through several sectarian flareups, relentless terrorising from Israel, as well as attempted to take its place in a “New Middle East”, under the leadership of Ahmed al-Sharaa. A couple of months ago, Edgar spoke to Leila al-Shami, activist and author of “Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War”, on these topics and more. Despite the time that has passed since the recording, we still find al-Shami’s comments and analyses highly relevant, and hope that you will too. To support us, go to patreon.com/kalampodcastFollow us on Instagram @kalampodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Trump calls it a peace plan. For Palestinians in Gaza, it's a fatal farce. More than 100 Palestinians have been killed in the last two days as Israel conducted air strikes, ostensibly as a retaliation against Hamas' alleged violations of the ceasefire. But the reality is different. Muhammad Shehada is a Palestinian analyst, a visiting fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations and a dear friend of the pod. We speak about Netanyahu's long leash and the complex nature of reality in Gaza. To support us, go to patreon.com/kalampodcastFollow us on Instagram @kalampodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There is an alleged ceasefire in Gaza, despite the fact that Israel has continued to bomb the strip. Sam and Edgar analyse the Israeli, US and Palestinian positions in this situation.Image: Palestinians using bulldozers to dig out the bodies of Israeli captives presumed killed in air strikes.To support us, go to patreon.com/kalampodcastFollow us on Instagram @kalampodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode is in Swedish, featuring the journalist and writer Göran Rosenberg. I dagens avsnitt, som spelades in den 25 september 2025 inför en publik på Bokmässan, berättar författaren och journalisten Göran Rosenberg om sin syn på dagens utvecklingen i Israel och Palestina. Hans bok Det förlorade landet utkommer på engelska – "Israel, a Personal History" den 7 oktober 2025. Rosenberg är inte optimistisk inför framtiden och hävdar att det inte finns något alternativ till att israeler och palestinier arbetar tillsammans för en gemensam framtid. To support us, go to patreon.com/kalampodcastFollow us on Instagram @kalampodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.