About this episode
Become a member to ger access to exclusive monthly calls: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/membership Syria is now free. But what does the future hold for a revolution that we believed had all but been decimated? The most recent spectacular offensive has given the rebel groups control over the country's major cities. There now is an appetite for change and unity. I have been struck by the jubilation felt by most Syrians as the tyrant fell. Many who escaped his brutality are returning. The optimism has to be maintained, and the positivity it expresses should not be replaced with the pessimism shown by some partial commentators who are wishing for Syria to fail. But challenges remain. How do we navigate these? And what of the people who are now at the centre of the new government? I have the pleasure of having Bilal Abdul Kareem on the show to help us understand the complexities of the road ahead and analyse the current players. Bilal Abdul Kareem is a video journalist who has been covering the conflict in Syria since 2012. He has produced reports for CNN, Channel 4, BBC, and Sky News and runs his own news channel, On The Ground News. You can also support The Thinking Muslim through a one-time donation: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/Donate Listen to the audio version of the podcast: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7vXiAjVFnhNI3T9Gkw636a Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-thinking-muslim/id1471798762 Sign up to Muhammad Jalal's newsletter: https://jalalayn.substack.com Purchase our Thinking Muslim mug: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/merch Find us on: Squarespace: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/membership Twitter: https://twitter.com/thinking_muslim Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Thinking-Muslim-Podcast-105790781361490 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkingmuslimpodcast/ Telegram: https://t.me/thinkingmuslim BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/thinkingmuslim.bsky.social Host: https://twitter.com/jalalayn Website Archive: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com Timestamps: 0:00 – Introduction 2:30 – HTS ideology 5:55 – Justice – Islamic call 8:41 – Jolani – positive? 11:50 – Bilal too pessimistic? 14:34 – New Syria 16:31 – Toleration of Journalists 17:49 – Capability to govern 20:11 – Israel 23:30 – How far is Israel in Syria 26:00 – Assad central to resisting Israel? 28:06 - Where Islam fits? 33:28 – New government and the West 35:54 – Syrian Prisons 39:38 – SDF 43:35 – Iran and Hezbollah 46:25 – Iran’s role in Syria 49:18 – Anti-Imperialist left 52:18 – Syrian Mindset Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.