Iran, US, Israel & Lebanon: a Conversation with Kim Ghattas

As Trump's war on Iran enters its third week with the Strait of Hormuz blocked and the world economy facing a shock, Rob Macaire, British Ambassador to Iran 2018-2021 offers a diplomat's view of the how, why and what next to get out of the mess the President has created. In this wide ranging conversation, FRDH host Michael Goldfarb and Macaire look at the problems the US faces in achieving any of its ever-changing war aims and how diplomacy might rescue the situation -- but without Trump. Give us 46:22 to help you understand

Iran, the US and Israel have been in conflict for more than 40 years and too often the battles are fought in Lebanon. In this FRDH podcast journalist, author and Beirut native Kim Ghattas provides a snampshot of the current news and historical context of this war without end. We also talk about whether the current fighting will end things once and for all. Give us 28:55 to explain things

In this BBC radio documentary for the 50th anniversary of Martin Scorsese's film Taxi Driver, FRDH host Michael Goldfarb's look at New York as it was then , when Travis Bickle drove the night-shift, and as it is now.

In the maelstrom created by Trump's return to the presidency, events in Syria building to a crisis have gone unreported . Why? In this FRDH podcast, Carne Ross, former British diplomat who resigned over the Iraq War explains how Trump policies have yet again created a crisis -- this one involving the release of 100s, perhaps 1000s of ISIS jihadists from Syrian jails. He also talks about the threat to the remarkable experiment in local democracy the mainly Kurdish region of Syria has been conducting. Give Ross and FRDH host Michael Goldfarb 48:43 to explain to you.

2026 promises to be a year of peril and risk and the US attack on Venezuela is only just the beginning. Lingering conflicts in Ukraine, civil unrest in Iran and the US authoritarian turn combined with off the charts corruption of Trump regime makes the prospect of 2026 one to be treated with alarm. In this FRDH podcast, recorded as the news of the American operation in Venezuela to seize its president Nicolas Maduro broke. veteran geo-political risk analyst Michael Moran talks us through that event and other possible flash points that could convulse the world in 2026. Give us 55:55 to explain.

30 years after the Dayton Agreement ended the war in Bosnia are there lessons for ending the war in Ukraine? In this far-reaching and deeply personal podcast FRDH host Michael Goldfarb and documentary filmmaker Fiona Lloyd-Davies who has been reporting on and off from Bosnia since the start of the war in 1992, look back at the conflict, the diplomacy that stopped the killing, and discuss how the Ukraine war can reach a negotiated end. Give them 56 minutes to explore the increasingly forgotten history of the Bosnian War and its relevance for today.

Britain in 2025 is in the grip of a malaise that has no single focus. What is behind it? Things have been much worse economically and politically but the mood in the country is sour edging towards bitter. In this FRDH podcast Michael Goldfarb looks at the malaise and Britain's deep discontent with former BBC news presenter Robin Lustig. They discuss recent history, the effect the growing together of the MAGA movement and Britain's hard right in media and politics and can the BBC survive? Give them 50 minutes to explain what is -- and is not -- happening.

27 years after the Good Friday Agreement what is Northern Ireland like, how much conflict still exists? In this wide ranging conversation, Declan Lawn who grew up during the Troubles, became a BBC news reporter and now is the co-creator of the internationally popular series, Blue Lights, briefs Michael Goldfarb on where Northern Ireland is in its post-conflict phase. Lawn also explains how he works on Blue Lights, keeping the show authentic to its Belfast setting.

Across Western society, the hot topic of conversation is how young men -- boys, really -- seem lost, caught up in something called the manosphere where resentments are stoked against women and the existing political order. No wonder many of them vote for neo-fascists like Donald Trump. James Bloodworth, is a writer who practices immersive journalism. Bloodworth submerged himself in the manosphere beginning in 2018 and stayed in it for years. Now he has written a book called: Lost Boys: a Personal Journey Through the Manosphere. He talks to a very perplexed FRDH host Michael Goldfarb about the manosphere and those it ensnares and how easily it leads them to embrace a fascist world view.

Professor Brian Klaas , who has already written three books on the Trump epoch, wonders how America will make it to the midterms a year from now and what condition it will be in. Klaas, Professor of Global Politics at University College London and columnist for the Atlantic Magazine, and FRDH podcast host Michael Goldfarb discuss the current situation in America. Will the midterms be free and fair? Will the results be accepted by the MAGA Republican party? Will the midterms even be held? Give us 56:41 to talk it out.