by Scott | May 22, 2022 | Interviews
Download Episode. Scott talks with Patrick Cockburn about Russia’s war in Ukraine and the Western response. Cockburn argues that, regardless of any media spin, the Russians are running into more trouble than they expected to in Ukraine. He chalks that up to hubris on...
by Scott | Aug 1, 2021 | Interviews
Scott and Patrick Cockburn speculate about the future of Afghanistan as the United States ends its military involvement there. Cockburn reminds us that although the Taliban are making gains in parts of the country, they are far from universally popular, and the...
by Scott | Oct 3, 2020 | Interviews
Scott interviews the great Patrick Cockburn about his written testimony in Julian Assange’s extradition hearing. Cockburn argued, as have many other witnesses for the defense, that Assange’s activities with WikiLeaks amount to the very best kind of journalism: the...
by Scott | Jun 20, 2020 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn joins the show for an update on Julian Assange, who continues to languish in jail as he awaits the results of his possible extradition from Britain to the U.S. on charges under the Espionage Act. Scott and Cockburn revisit the important role Assange...
by Scott | May 13, 2020 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn discusses Iraq’s increasingly desperate economic outlook as oil prices remain at historic lows. Iraq’s economy, like many of those in the Middle East, is hugely reliant on oil, with millions directly on a government payroll that depends almost...
by Scott | Jan 5, 2020 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn discusses the recent killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani at an airport in Baghdad. Cockburn is surprised by the boldness of the move, and thinks Iran will respond, though not necessarily in a dramatic or immediate way. More likely, he says,...
by Scott | Oct 22, 2019 | Interviews
Scott talks to Patrick Cockburn about the situation with the Kurds in Syria. Scott calls Syria a win-win-win-win: The Kurds have negotiated a deal with Assad that will give them some autonomy and protection from Turkey, Turkey gets a roughly 30-mile border buffer with...
by Scott | Sep 28, 2019 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn discusses the recent attacks on a Saudi oil facility, an American drone, and two Japanese tankers, all of which have been pinned to various degrees on Iran. It’s unclear to what extent Iran actually was involved—it’s always possible that this is a...
by Scott | Jun 16, 2019 | Interviews
Scott talks to the great Patrick Cockburn about war and politics in Iraq, Syria, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt, and the general disaster that has resulted from America’s thinking it could completely remake the Middle East. Patrick Cockburn is the Middle East correspondent...
by Scott | Apr 26, 2019 | Interviews
Scott talks to Independent Middle East correspondent Patrick Cockburn about ISIS, who, despite claims of their defeat, are back waging a guerrilla campaign in Iraq. Discussed on the show: We Can Finish ISIS – but Only if the West Winds Down Its Proxy Wars...
by Scott | Sep 17, 2018 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn is interviewed on the Basra protests and discontent that’s detailed in his article “The Major Uprising in Basra and Southern Iraq that the world should be worrying about in the Middle East right now“. Cockburn talks about the motivation of the Sunnis...
by Scott | Jul 9, 2018 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn joins Scott to talk about daily life in Baghdad. He explains that although things have gotten better now that Isis has been pushed back somewhat, people still fear for their return—it wouldn’t be the first time this has happened. One of the central...
by Scott | Mar 29, 2018 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn, Middle East reporter for the Independent, returns to the show to discuss the fighting in Syria, focusing on the conflicts in Afrin and East Ghouta where much of the killing of civilians has taken place. Cockburn details the tangled maze of allegiance...
by Scott | Oct 27, 2017 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn joins Scott from Baghdad to discuss the liberation of Raqqa from ISIS and the battle in Kirkurk between the Iraqi army and Peshmerga. Cockburn describes how ISIS is still in business as a guerrilla force, but the caliphate has been destroyed. Cockburn...
by Scott | Sep 6, 2017 | Interviews
Author and journalist Patrick Cockburn returns to the show to discuss his reporting on the heavy casualties in Mosul and why they’ve been underreported in the media. Cockburn explains how ISIS’s guerrilla war tactics increase civilian casualties, why the...
by Scott | Mar 22, 2017 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn, Middle East correspondent for The Independent, discusses why the battle for Manbij could be the beginning of the end for ISIS, as Syrian Kurds backed by US air strikes and Syrian Army troops backed by Russian air strikes threaten to overwhelm Islamic...
by Scott | Jan 30, 2017 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn, author of ISIS: Battling the Menace, discusses why Donald Trump’s ‘Muslim Ban’ will lead to more terrorist attacks instead of preventing them; and why Al-Qaeda’s greatest success wasn’t bringing down the twin towers on 9/11, but provoking George W....
by Scott | Nov 16, 2016 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn, an award-winning writer with The Independent, discusses the imminent battles for Tal Afar and Mosul in Iraq – as senior Isis leaders leave for Syria, Turkey threatens to intervene on behalf of Sunni Turkmen, and Donald Trump is confronted with...
by Scott | Sep 4, 2016 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn, journalist and author of Chaos & Caliphate: Jihadis and the West in the Struggle for the Middle East, discusses the possibility of a peace agreement in Syria or further-escalating war as Turkey enters the fray in an effort to stop a Kurdish state...
by Scott | Jul 27, 2016 | Interviews
Patrick Cockburn, journalist and author of Chaos & Caliphate: Jihadis and the West in the Struggle for the Middle East, discusses Turkish President Recep Erdogan’s crackdown on schools and universities allegedly linked to the Gulen movement, lead by US-based...
