Ask Haviv Anything

Iran’s streets are in tumult. The latest protests are of a scale not seen before. New sections of Iranian society are in the streets — middle class merchants, the elderly and others. The protestors have more strident demands than in the past. And a regime that knows its legitimacy has been compromised by rampant corruption, systemic state failure, the collapse of the currency and economy and the 12-day war in June against Israel.Our guest today is Roya Hakakian, a writer, poet and human rights advocate who grew up in Tehran and fled with her family to the US at age 18 several years after the 1979 revolution. Her book Assassins of the Turquoise Palace traces the Islamic Republic’s decades-long war on dissent both inside Iran and across the globe. Her earlier book, Journey from the Land of No, relates her personal journey from a hopeful 12-year-old during the revolution to a refugee, writer and fierce advocate for democracy. A fellow at Yale University’s Davenport College and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, she has written for leading outlets including the New York Times, New York Review of Books and the Atlantic and has contributed to CBS’s 60 Minutes and ABC Documentary Specials.We discuss the evolution of the protest movement, whether this latest round of protests is different, whether Iran really is on the brink of collapse, what Israel should do (or rather, not do), and how Khomeini’s revolution was the seed for the so-called “red-green alliance” that now defines so much of the Western left.—This episode is sponsored by Max and Susan Reichenthal in honor of the work of Friends of the IDF (FIDF), which works to ensure that the soldiers of the IDF have the support they need during their service. Max and Susan asked to dedicate the episode in honor of the IDF soldiers who put their lives on the line to protect the people of Israel.—If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at [email protected]⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Welcome to our new short-form episodes interspersed with the regular interviews that dive into an often-asked question about Israel, Jews and the Middle East.Our current question: Why the global outrage at Israel's Somaliland recognition? If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at [email protected]⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Welcome to our new short-form episodes interspersed with the regular interviews that dive into an often-asked question about Israel, Jews and the Middle East.Our current question: Is military aid to Israel a good deal for America? If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at [email protected]⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising stands as one of the few shining moments of (temporarily) successful Jewish resistance in the bottomless evil and despair that was the Holocaust. Heroes of the uprising like Mordechai Anielewicz and Yitzhak “Antek” Zuckerman form part of the national civic religion of Israeli Jews, and of Jewish commemoration ceremonies worldwide.But the men of the uprising didn’t do it alone. Without Zivia Lubetkin, Tosia Altman and the other women couriers and fighters, the uprising may have failed to organize in the first place. Yet how many Jews know those names or their incredible story?Our guest today is author Elizabeth R. Hyman, whose recent bestselling book The Girl Bandits of the Warsaw Ghetto tells the astonishing history of some of the greatest heroes the Jewish people have ever produced, but whose exploits were all but ignored and even forgotten after the war.Through memoirs and diaries, Hyman tells their story, dragging the couriers of the ghettos into the light of history and Jewish remembrance and giving us a fuller picture of Jewish courage in the deepest darkness Jews have ever known.—This episode is sponsored by the Persian American Civic Action Network (PACAN), a non-profit organization which asked to dedicate the episode to Israel’s generation Z as they are the embodiment of Zionism in action and spirit, as well as the incredible renaissance led by their gen-Z counterparts in Iran standing tall against the radical Islamist tyranny that has invaded Iran and the Middle East since 1979.“In its endeavor to rebuild bridges of peace, brotherhood and good will, PACAN was the first Iranian-based organization in the diaspora to lead a mission to Israel to meet with Israeli leaders, media and NGOs in 2019. “As much as the Islamic regime tries to erase Iran’s history or propagate the diabolical prophecy to wipe out the Jewish State, we remember the inalienable Biblical alliance of the Jews and the Iranians, known to the western audience as the ‘Persians,’ who from the days of Cyrus the Great have facilitated the return of Jews to their homeland and the rebuilding of Zion.May we soon begin a new season of brotherhood, partnership, and good will between Iranians and Israelis.”—If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at [email protected]⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Welcome to our new short-form episodes interspersed with the regular interviews that dive into an often-asked question about Israel, Jews and the Middle East.Our current question: Why the heck does America support Israel?If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at [email protected]⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.