The Big Picture

The Big Picture

by Middle East Eye

Society & Culture

Season 2

What Ireland's history of resistance says about Palestine | Richard Boyd Barrett

Ireland’s fight for independence from British rule has defined how it sees itself in the world - as a liberated people compelled to fight against oppression everywhere. This sentiment formed its proud stance of ‘neutrality’, which saw it refuse to engage in World War II, and defines its strong and vocal support for the fight against Apartheid - first in South Africa, and today in Palestine. But under pressure from NATO to join the fight against Russia, is that ‘neutrality’ under threat? This week on The Big Picture podcast, we sit down with Irish lawmaker and anti-war activist Richard Boyd Barrett to talk about why Irish people feel compelled to support the Palestinian struggle, and how Ireland can lead the world away from warring empires. We'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode, and any guests you'd like us to have on our show. Reach us by email at mh@middleeasteye.org or find us on instagram @BigPictureMee.You can also watch all our episodes on our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMyaP73Ho1ySj3cO0OSOHZAOgD1WTDixG

How a human rights defender was convicted of terrorism | Muhammad Rabbani

How far would you go to protect a client?When Muhammad Rabbani, a human rights advocate, was stopped and interrogated on his way back to the UK after working with a high profile client, it was an experience he was familiar with. As a Muslim and an activist, he'd been stopped at the airport many times before.This time however, when he refused to give up the passwords to his personal devices, he was arrested, charged and convicted under the Terrorism Act.His fight to clear his name has been documented in the new film 'Phantom Parrot', which highlights the controversial 'Schedule 7' clause that allows police to detain and question citizens at the border without suspicion, and how it's used to gather and share intelligence with other bodies such as the FBI.This week on the Big Picture podcast, we sit down with Rabbani, who is the managing director of CAGE, to hear his story firsthand, and why he thinks it should shock and concern every British citizen.You can find out more about 'Phantom Parrot' and where to watch it here: https://phantomparrot.com/ We'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode, and any guests you'd like us to have on our show. Reach us by email at mh@middleeasteye.org or find us on instagram @BigPictureMee.You can also watch all our episodes on our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMyaP73Ho1ySj3cO0OSOHZAOgD1WTDixG

Jeremy Corbyn | The future of Labour and the Left in Britain

Has the Labour Party turned its back on the Left? Following the disastrous election loss to Boris Johnson in 2019, the party emerged from the ashes promising to shed itself of its past and the image of one man - Jeremy Corbyn. His successor Sir Keir Starmer has instead defined his leadership directly in opposition to Corbyn, leaning towards the centrist ideals of another former leader, Tony Blair. So what remains of the Labour that once promised revolutionary reforms to Britain’s welfare, climate and foreign policies? This week on the Big Picture podcast, we sit down with Jeremy Corbyn, who resigned in 2019 as Labour leader, was suspended from the party in 2020 and earlier this year banned from running again as a candidate.He says the party now resembles the undemocratic and dictatorial environment he first encountered in the 1960s. We'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode, and any guests you'd like us to have on our show. Reach us by email at mh@middleeasteye.org or find us on instagram @BigPictureMee.You can also watch all our episodes on our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMyaP73Ho1ySj3cO0OSOHZAOgD1WTDixG

What Uyghurs want the world to know about China | Rahima Mahmut

How do you challenge the might of the Chinese state?For decades, the Uyghur Muslims have fought to preserve their culture, their language and their religion in the face of China’s rising power and control.Since 2013, sweeping crackdowns have turned the once-autonomous region which calls itself ‘East Turkestan’ into a heavily militarised zone, where high tech surveillance systems were installed and thousands of ordinary people disappeared.What China calls ‘anti-terrorism’ measures have been revealed as something much more sinister - concentration camps where more than a million Uyghurs are ‘re-educated’ into giving up their beliefs and adopting nationalist ideals, or face severe consequences.Those who managed to escape Xinjiang are now trying to warn the world about what’s happening to their families who they can no longer reach.This week on The Big Picture podcast, we sit down with Rahima Mahmut, an Uyghur folk singer in exile and the UK director of the World Uyghur Congress. She says China has fooled the world into looking the other way, but she and others will not give up. We'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode, and any guests you'd like us to have on our show. Reach us by email at mh@middleeasteye.org or find us on instagram @BigPictureMee.You can also watch all our episodes on our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMyaP73Ho1ySj3cO0OSOHZAOgD1WTDixG

Why we should be worried about AI mass surveillance | Agnes Callamard

Can we trust the AI to watch over us? Artificial intelligence and machine learning technology have entered into a new era, advancing at a rate none of us can comprehend or keep up with. Tech companies, governments and police forces are racing to own and turn these advances into cutting edge security and mass surveillance systems, while legislators and human rights voices desperately try to build the guard rails that will keep it from getting out of control. What’s at stake is the real possibility of a world where every aspect of our lives, public or private, is surveilled, analysed and documented for the benefit of those at the helm of this new technology, and whose interests lie in keeping us under control. This week on the Big Picture podcast, we sit down with Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnes Callamard, who says we’re already seeing the consequences of unregulated AI, and must act to fix it before it’s too late. We'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode, and any guests you'd like us to have on our show. Reach us by email at mh@middleeasteye.org or find us on instagram @BigPictureMee.You can also watch all our episodes on our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMyaP73Ho1ySj3cO0OSOHZAOgD1WTDixG

The forgotten history of Arab Jews | Avi Shlaim

For thousands of years, Jewish communities lived and thrived in the Arab world, and were integral to shaping its history, culture and economy. But when Israel was established, more than 260,000 Arab-Jews fled their homes, and their history has largely been forgotten. So what happened in the 1950s that forced the vast majority of them to leave? This week on The Big Picture podcast, we sit down with Israeli historian and Oxford fellow Avi Shlaim, who himself was born in Iraq and left as a child. Professor Shlaim documented his own family’s migration from Iraq, describing a prosperous and happy society that didn’t buy into the promise of Zionism. In fact, he says he’s uncovered proof that external forces conspired to scare Arab-Jews into leaving. We'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode, and any guests you'd like us to have on our show. Reach us by email at mh@middleeasteye.org or find us on instagram @BigPictureMee.You can also watch all our episodes on our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMyaP73Ho1ySj3cO0OSOHZAOgD1WTDixG

How Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shifted global politics | David Hearst

Putin, NATO and the threat of nuclear war - has the world entered a new reality? More than a year and a half ago, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shocked the world, destabilising energy markets, food security and diplomacy. But attempts by the US to rally the world behind Ukraine have failed, with many former allies choosing instead to sit on the sidelines and bide their time - signalling a fissure after decades of unchallenged Western hegemony. This week on The Big Picture podcast, we sit down with MEE’s Editor in Chief David Hearst, who reflects on his time reporting in post-Soviet Russia to analyse the current global landscape, and the ways in which the Ukraine war has pushed it to the point of no return. We'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode, and any guests you'd like us to have on our show. Reach us by email at mh@middleeasteye.org or find us on instagram @BigPictureMee.You can also watch all our episodes on our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMyaP73Ho1ySj3cO0OSOHZAOgD1WTDixG

Narco-Diplomacy: How Bashar al-Assad used Captagon to survive the Syrian War | Lina Khatib

What happens when a dictator uses drug trafficking as a tool of diplomacy? The psychoactive drug known as Captagon has exploded across the Middle East and Europe, leading many countries to clasify it as an ‘epidemic’. The highly-addictive pill used to be made in Turkey and Latin America, but that slowly changed after the Syrian Civil War. Today, 80% of the global supplies come from Syria, and many have accused Bashar al-Assad of using the drug to generate billions in revenue for the government, bypassing sanctions, and to put pressure on his neighbours to resume diplomatic ties. That gambit seems to have paid off in May when, after more than 10 years, Syria was welcomed back into the Arab League. In this week’s episode of The Big Picture, we sit down with Dr Lina Khatib, head of the Middle East Institute at SOAS University. Dr Khatib says despite years of sanctions and political pressure, Assad has emerged feeling victorious. We'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode, and any guests you'd like us to have on our show. Reach us by email at mh@middleeasteye.org or find us on instagram @BigPictureMee.You can also watch all our episodes on our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMyaP73Ho1ySj3cO0OSOHZAOgD1WTDixG

The UK wants to ban Israel boycotts, but MPs vow to fight it | Crispin Blunt MP

Could the BDS movement soon become illegal in the UK? Under a new bill, the Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill, boycotting foreign countries will become illegal for public bodies, which would include councils, unions and student organisations. The law specifically protects Israel from being targetted, and bars public bodies from even voicing support for pro-Palestinian BDS initiatives even if they don’t take part. The bill, spearheaded by Secretary of State for Levelling Up Michale Gove, passed its first two readings in parliament, but a large number of Conservative MPs vow to break away from their party and fight it. In this episode of The Big Picture Podcast, we sit down with Conservative MP Cripsin Blunt, who also serves as the director of the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians. He says the bill will set a dangerous precedent for free speech and will create a dangerous environment for activists as well as Jewish communities. We'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode, and any guests you'd like us to have on our show. Reach us by email at mh@middleeasteye.org or find us on instagram @BigPictureMee.You can also watch all our episodes on our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMyaP73Ho1ySj3cO0OSOHZAOgD1WTDixG

Israel, the media and the future of Palestinian resistence | Husam Zomlot

Are we witnessing the beginning of a new Palestinian uprising?The Israeli raid on Jenin this week marked a sudden escalation of violence in an increasingly tense West Bank, with calls for armed insurrections in several Palestinian cities.12 people, including three children, died in Jenin, adding to the toll of more than 100 Palestinians that have been killed since 2022.Israel’s far-right government vows the raids will continue, as the Palestinian Authority faces growing anger for failing to intervene, and a young generation ready to take up arms.In the first episode of our second season of The Big Picture Podcast, we sit down with Palestinian ambassador to the UK Husam Zomlot, who says international media is helping Israel continue to evade accountability, and that Palestinians are frustrated and hopeless. We'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode, and any guests you'd like us to have on our show. Reach us by email at mh@middleeasteye.org or find us on instagram @BigPictureMee.You can also watch all our episodes on our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMyaP73Ho1ySj3cO0OSOHZAOgD1WTDixG

6 of 7