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.

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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. 

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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.

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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.

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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.

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A ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas has taken effect. Israeli forces have withdrawn to an agreed upon borderline and a hostage/prisoner exchange will commence within 72 hours. While we are overjoyed at the prospect of some respite for the suffering population of Gaza, we dedicate this episode to answering the prescient question of, What now? Sam and Edgar analyse the ceasefire agreement and the day after.

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From Nepal to Peru to Morocco, Gen Z'ers are rising up – and yes, they are connected. In September 2025, 8 women died in childbirth in an badly funded hospital in the southern coastal city of Agadir. This sparked outrage, especially since Morocco is currently investing millions if not billions in building stadiums and arenas for the upcoming football World Cup. The climate crisis and the genocide in Gaza also play into this popular eruption. Tahani Brahma is a Moroccan human rights activist and was kind enough to speak to us to explain what is going on.

Cover photo: Christine Leuhusen.

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The leaders of Israel and the US have concocted a 20 point peace deal for Gaza. The US president Donald Trump has said that Hamas has 72 hours to accept the proposal or he will let his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, do whatever he wants – a terrifying prospect. In today's episode, Sam and Edgar examine the deal and analyse its impact.

*We are aware of the fact that “Bibi Vader” makes no sense but it simply sounds much funnier than “Darth Bibi

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Several European countries have threatened to boycott Eurovision if Israel is permitted to participate, the Israeli economy is suffering from the genocidal war, Israeli military personnel estimates that 10% of Gaza's population are casualties of the war and the ground invasion of Gaza has officially begun. Sam and Edgar discuss these developments and their political implications.

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Israel targeted the Hamas leadership residing in US ally of Qatar in an airstrike which killed several low level members of Hamas but largely failed in its mission. What does this mean for the larger regional conflict and how will the US react? Sam and Edgar discuss these issues, as well as a piece of very funny Swedish news.

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What is the role of Palestinian artists during the genocide in Gaza? For Palestinian curator Ahmed al-Alaqra it is not about glorifying cultural symbolism like the watermelon. In fact, artistic institutions should shut their doors.

"Burn the thawbs, destroy the watermelon."

This episode was recorded in the summer of 2024 in Sirdab studios in Ramallah, on the occupied West Bank.

If you enjoy Kalam Podcast and want to support the show, there is an excellent way to do so - by signing up to our Patreon. For just $3/month you'll gain access to full length interviews with all our guests and lots of bonus material - including our series Kalam Shorts: 10-15 explainers of concepts like Zionism and Orientalism. Join at patreon.com/kalampodcast (https://www.patreon.com/kalampodcast)

For continuous updates on the podcast and content about Palestine and the Middle East, follow us on Instagram @kalampodcast (https://www.instagram.com/kalampodcast/)

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Theater has been central to the formation of Palestinian national consciousness for almost a century. One of the foremost Theater troupes active today is Betlehem’s al-Harah. Before summer of this year, the visited Sweden’s Tribunalen theater, touring their play Meramieh (Sage), a powerful staging of a number of personal testimonies of al-Nakba. 

Earlier this year Samuel Carlshamre had the honour of recording an episode with Nicola Zreineh and Marina Barham from al-Harah Theater, live on stage. The conversation ranged from the conditions of theater under occupation and genocide, the educational and artistic challenges confronting Palestinian art today, to Palestinian identity as a source of pride and inspiration, as well as a cage and a constraint. 

If you enjoy Kalam Podcast and want to support the show, there is an excellent way to do so - by signing up to our Patreon. For just $3/month you'll gain access to full length interviews with all our guests and lots of bonus material - including our series Kalam Shorts: 10-15 explainers of concepts like Zionism and Orientalism. Join at patreon.com/kalampodcast

For continuous updates on the podcast and content about Palestine and the Middle East, follow us on Instagram @kalampodcast

Please subscribe to Kalam Podcast in whatever podcast application you're listening to right now - and give us a rating. It helps other people find out about us.

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Kalam Podcast is back in business, today with a news update on the genocide in Gaza and all those who continue to deny its existence. Sam and Edgar also speak about Israel's intensification of its ground invasion of Gaza as well as increasingly bold military raids on West Bank cities like Ramallah. Sam tells us about Israeli politics and the so-called opposition to Netanyahu.

If you'd like to support this podcast you can, by joining our patreon at patreon.com/kalampodcast

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On the 26th of July, 2025 the great Ziad Rahbani left us. Survived by his mother, the Lebanese icon Fairuz, Ziad Rahbani was an icon in his own right. A legendary figure of the modern Arabic music as well as cynical, satirical leftist thought. Kalam Podcast dissects his music and politics and pays tribute to his unmatched legacy. Rest in peace and power Ziad! We love you.

A special thank you to Mariam Kirollos for her beautiful words and to Sune Haugbolle for his great research on Ziad's importance.

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Sam and Edgar give you the latest, horrific news on Israels genocidal war on Gaza now in it's 94th week. Also: last week's sectarian fighting in southern Syria and the US seemingly throwing the Kurds under the bus.

To support Kalam Podcast, head to patreon.com/kalampodcast and subscribe for all episodes ad-free and loads of bonus materials.

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In the aftermath of the war between Iran and Israel/USA the fight continues over what actually took place. As the actions of the IDF in Gaza grows more horrific by the day, Western media are outraged by the statements of a punk band a music festival. In today's episode Sam and Edgar discuss the irreality of the Middle East, and what might come next.

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Israel has hit several targets in Iran and Iran has retaliated with waves of ballistic missile barrages on Israeli targets. Hundreds of civilians have been killed, the overwhelming majority of them Iranian. In today's episode Sam and Edgar discuss the consequences of this dangerous escalation.

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Global public opinion has shifted dramatically in favour of the Palestinian cause in the last few weeks. The likes of Piers Morgan and Ehud Olmert would have called themselves anti-Semites just a few weeks ago. Edgar and Sam discuss these developments as well as the political ongoings in Syria.

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On this week's news summary, Samuel and Edgar discuss the world historic decision made at last weeks PKK congress, and what it will mean for the Middle East. Also: The relentless killing and starving of Gaza shows no sign of letting up, but the souring relationship between Netanyahu and Trump does not bode well for Israels hopes for regional domination. How will Israel survive a multi-polar world order?

Kalam Podcast depends on your support. If you like what were doing, please head over to patreon.com/kalampodcast and sign up to Klub Kalam for just 3 US$/month – for all episodes ad-free as well as lots of excellent bonus material. For continuous updates, follow us on Instagram @kalampodcast.

Image: PKK fighters playing volleyball in the Zagros Mountains.

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This episode is in Swedish, apologies to all our non-Swedish speakers.

Det här är avsnitt två i serien Kalam Suedi, Kalam Podcast på svenska, i samarbete med tidningen Flamman.

Hela avsnittet går att höra på https://www.flamman.se/podd/kalam-suedi/

Det här avsnittet handlar om Syrien – där en diktatur på över 50 år har fallit. Efter att den islamistiska milisen HTS störtat diktatorn Bashar al-Assad har religiösa och etniska minoriteter varit rädda för repressalier från den sunnimuslimska majoriteten.

I början på mars månad blev deras värsta farhågor sanning, när extremistiska milismän utförde en pogrom mot syriska alawiter, den etnisk-religiösa minoritet som Assadfamiljen tillhörde. Uppemot tusen civil massakrerades på bara några dagar. Lama Alshehaby, född och uppvuxen i Damaskus, berättar om den etnisk och religiösa mångfalden i Syrien – och de motsättningar som giriga och hänsynslösa politiker länge utnyttjat. Avsnittet spelades in den 11 mars i år.

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