Trump’s people are reshaping the US political system, gutting institutions, while selling scores with all enemies foreign and domestic. But is their push for mass deportations, and the abolition of DEI, the Department of Education, USAID and other soft power institutions really in the ruling class’s long term interests. Are we witnessing the collapse of an empire, or simply a reactionary reconfiguration of power? And how should those of us who oppose U.S. imperialism make sense of these contradi...
Mar 08, 2025•43 min•Transcript available on Metacast The field of psychoanalysis has long colluded with Zionism, justifying Israeli crimes while pathologizing Palestinian resistance. Lara Sheehi, an assistant professor of clinical psychology and author of “Psychoanalysis Under Occupation: Practicing Resistance in Palestine,” was targeted for being unapologetically anti-Zionist. She joins Rania Khalek on Dispatches to discuss Zionist repression, psychological warfare, and the fight for decolonization. 📢 Watch the full interview exclusively on Patr...
Mar 05, 2025•46 min•Transcript available on Metacast Trump’s return isn’t just chaos, it’s a calculated strategy. While liberals dismiss him, Trump understands raw economic power in a way centrists fail to grasp. What is his master plan, and how could it backfire? Meanwhile, Musk & other billionaires are the new ruling class. As capitalism dies, we enter technofeudalism, where corporate overlords control entire infrastructures of power. And in Europe, elites literally cried over the U.S. pivoting away. Does Europe have any real sovereignty lef...
Feb 24, 2025•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Syria is entering a new phase, and the regional balance of power is shifting. Gulf states, Turkey, and Israel are recalibrating their strategies, while the U.S., Russia, and China assess their next moves. Iran and Hezbollah, once deeply entrenched in Syria, are now facing new challenges. Meanwhile, Israel has expanded its presence in the occupied Golan Heights, and Trump is pressuring Egypt and Jordan to accept Palestinians expelled from Gaza. Giorgio Cafiero, CEO of Gulf State Analytics, joins ...
Feb 20, 2025•59 min•Transcript available on Metacast For decades, U.S. imperialism has operated not just through military force but through a vast system of economic coercion, media manipulation, and covert operations. The World Bank, IMF, and USAID present themselves as tools of development, but in reality, they enforce American dominance under the guise of aid. Now, with Trump and Musk cutting USAID, many see this as a shift, but in reality, it’s just a restructuring of the empire. What does this tell us about the evolving strategies of imperial...
Feb 14, 2025•53 min•Transcript available on Metacast Following the Gaza ceasefire, Israel is already preparing for its next round of ethnic cleansing with full Western backing. Pro-Palestine activists are facing escalating repression, Trump is pushing a new ethnic cleansing plan, and Israel’s increasing resemblance to fascist regimes is impossible to ignore. Rania Khalek speaks with Tony Greenstein, a Jewish anti-Zionist, Marxist, and anti-fascist activist, about the historical roots of Zionism, the weaponization of the Holocaust, and the imperial...
Feb 11, 2025•58 min•Transcript available on Metacast The Palestinian resistance has defied overwhelming military force in Gaza, adapting and surviving despite Israel’s strategy of genocide and starvation. What does this war teach us about asymmetric warfare, military resilience, and the future of anti-colonial resistance? Why has Israel failed to eliminate Palestinian fighters despite its apocalyptic destruction of Gaza? And how has the regional Axis of Resistance, from Yemen to Lebanon, reshaped the battlefield? To discuss all this and more, Rani...
Feb 01, 2025•50 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of Dispatches, Rania Khalek is joined by author, historian, and journalist Vijay Prashad to discuss how the West’s increasing reliance on violent repression, from Gaza to Cuba, signals not strength, but desperation. Prashad dissects the moral collapse of Western imperialism and the challenges facing the Global South as they navigate an era of “hyperimperial” aggression. 👉 Listen to the full episode by becoming a Breakthrough News member at https://www.patreon.com/BreakthroughNew...
Jan 23, 2025•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast Rania Khalek was joined by historian Ussama Makdisi to discuss 15 months of genocide in Gaza. They explore academic complicity, Gaza’s “scholasticide” (the deliberate destruction of Gaza’s educational institutions), Israel’s expansion into Syria and the Golan Heights, the history of Arab Jews, and the future of resistance in the region. The full interview is available to Breakthrough News Members only. You can become a member at Patreon.com/BreakthroughNews . Ussama’s article discussed in the ep...
Jan 16, 2025•47 min•Transcript available on Metacast Rania Khalek hosts a special live episode of Dispatches w/ Ali Abunimah, executive director of the Electronic Intifada and author of “The Battle for Justice in Palestine.”
Jan 14, 2025•2 hr 32 min•Transcript available on Metacast The year 2024 has seen so much loss from Gaza to Lebanon, it can be easy to fall into despair. Despite its recent gains, Israel still cannot win, says Palestinian writer Susan Abulhawa. Abulhawa is a novelist, poet, activist and author of many books, including "Mornings in Jenin." This is just part of this episode. The full interview with Rania Khalek is available for Breakthrough News Members only. Become a member at https://www.Patreon.com/BreakthroughNews to access the full episode ...
Dec 23, 2024•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast Seismic shifts accross the middle east over the last year, from the genocide in Gaza, to the fall of the Assad regime in Syria to the killing of Hezbollah's Hassan Nasrallah, will reshape the region and force changes in the way resistance operates. Rania Khalek was joined by Bashir Saade, an Interdisciplinary Lecturer in Politics and Religion at the University of Stirling and author of the book “Hizbullah and the politics of remembrance.”...
Dec 20, 2024•51 min•Transcript available on Metacast To discuss developments in Syria and the region, Rania Khalek is joined by veteran war correspondent and analyst Elijah Magnier for a special live episode of Dispatches.
Dec 11, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Transcript available on Metacast In an unprecedented move, the ICC has issued arrest warrants for Israeli leaders Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant. To discuss this and more, Rania Khalek was joined by Ashish Prashar, political strategist and former advisor to the Middle East peace envoy. This is just part of this episode. The full interview is available for Breakthrough News Members only. Become a member at https://www.Patreon.com/BreakthroughNews to access the full episode and other exclusive content....
Nov 27, 2024•42 min•Transcript available on Metacast Rania Khalek hosts a special live episode of Dispatches with Lebanese journalist Ghadi Francis.
Nov 27, 2024•1 hr•Transcript available on Metacast Congressional Rep Jamaal Bowman joined Rania Khalek to discuss the bipartisan AIPAC-funded campaign to push him out of office, his evolution on Palestine, his views on the Biden administration and what comes next. This is just part of this episode. The full interview is available for Breakthrough News Members only. Become a member at https://www.Patreon.com/BreakthroughNews to access the full episode and other exclusive content....
Nov 19, 2024•38 min•Transcript available on Metacast BT’s Rania Khalek sat down with Housam Fares, a Lebanese American man who lost 15 members of his family in an Israeli airstrike on south Beirut in late September. His wife Ayat Ayoub explains how her family is displaced across the country. Their town in the south of Lebanon has been totally destroyed by Israeli airstrikes.
Nov 12, 2024•40 min•Transcript available on Metacast Since Israel’s creation the Zionist project has carried out acts of terrorism against its neighbors in increasingly depraved ways. To discuss Israeli terrorism and how its impacting Palestine and Lebanon today, Rania Khalek is joined by Professor As’ad Abukhalil for a special live episode of Dispatches.
Oct 24, 2024•1 hr 17 min•Transcript available on Metacast Rania Khalek hosts a special live episode of Dispatches with Lebanese journalist Ghadi Francis.
Oct 21, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Transcript available on Metacast Israel is trying to invade Lebanon while carpet bombing large swaths of the country. But so far, Hezbollah has demonstrated it is still a strong resistance force despite some recent setbacks. What comes next? To discuss this and more, Rania Khalek is joined by veteran war correspondent and analyst Elijah Magnier for a special live episode of Dispatches.
Oct 18, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Transcript available on Metacast As Israel unleashes a catastrophic war on Lebanon, many are perplexed by the country’s politics, divisions and potential for civil war. To discuss this and more, Rania Khalek was joined by Lebanese medical doctor and public health researcher Anis Germani. This is just part of this episode. The full interview is available for Breakthrough News Members only. Become a member at https://www.Patreon.com/BreakthroughNews to access the full episode and other exclusive content....
Oct 18, 2024•44 min•Transcript available on Metacast Israel, with the full backing of the U.S., claims to be massacring civilians in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon in self-defense. Does this have any legal merit? What about the rights of Palestine and Lebanon? To discuss this and more Rania Khalek was joined by longtime human rights lawyer Craig Mokhiber. This is just part of this episode. The full interview is available for Breakthrough News Members only. Become a member at https://www.Patreon.com/BreakthroughNews to access the full episode and ...
Oct 07, 2024•44 min•Transcript available on Metacast Rania Khalek of Breakthrough News sat down with Cuba’s Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs during the UN General Assembly. They talked about the US blockade on Cuba, the rise of the right across the Americas, the genocide in Gaza and the dangers it poses to the world, and more.
Oct 02, 2024•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Israel’s assassination of Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah and carpet bombing attacks on Lebanon have shocked the region and the world. What comes next? To discuss this and more, Rania Khalek is joined by veteran war correspondent and analyst Elijah Magnier for a special live episode of Dispatches.
Sep 30, 2024•59 min•Transcript available on Metacast What’s the history of Israel’s genocidal ambitions and the indoctrination that it requires in the Jewish community? Is Zionism really about protecting Jews or does it actually pose a danger to them? What’s the history of Gaza, Hamas and the timeline of Israel’s violence against them? To discuss this and more Rania Khalek was joined by Zachary Foster, a historian of Palestine. This is just part of this episode. The full interview is available for Breakthrough News Members only. Become a member at...
Sep 27, 2024•40 min•Transcript available on Metacast The Israelis created a public health crisis in Gaza that has led to the reemergence of polio. To discuss this and more, Rania Khalek was joined by Lebanese medical doctor and public health researcher Anis Germany. This is just part of this episode. The full interview is available for Breakthrough News Members only. Become a member at https://www.Patreon.com/BreakthroughNews to access the full episode and other exclusive content....
Sep 09, 2024•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast Alana Hadid — activist, designed and creative director of the newly-launched Watermelon Pictures — joins Rania Khalek to discuss the Democratic Party’s campaign strategy to suppress and ignore Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
Sep 03, 2024•40 min•Transcript available on Metacast Rania Khalek was joined by Egyptian activist Rahma Zein to discuss the genocide in Gaza. This is just part of this episode. The full interview is available for Breakthrough News Members only. Become a member at https://www.Patreon.com/BreakthroughNews to access the full episode and other exclusive content.
Aug 28, 2024•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Rania Khalek hosts a special live episode of Dispatches w/ Ali Abunimah, executive director of the Electronic Intifada and author of “The Battle for Justice in Palestine.”
Aug 21, 2024•1 hr 24 min•Transcript available on Metacast To discuss Israel’s intensifying atrocities in Gaza, including its weaponization of rape, Rania Khalek was joined by Miko Peled, the son of an Israeli general and the head of the newly established Palestine House of Freedom in Washington, D.C. Peled is the author of “The General's Son: Journey of an Israeli in Palestine.” This is just part of this episode. The full interview is available for Breakthrough News Members only. Become a member at https://www.Patreon.com/BreakthroughNews to acces...
Aug 16, 2024•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
