As Iran destroyed energy facilities and infrastructure in all six of its Persian Gulf neighbors and blocks their shipments of oil through the Strait of Hormuz, the Gulf states — Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman and the United Arab Emirates — are reevaluating their strategic alliances with the United States. We speak to Yasmine Farouk, the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula project director at the International Crisis Group, about where else the Arab Gulf is looking toward in Asia and Europe to diversify its defense relationships, and what exactly the war has put at risk in the region. “Let’s remember the ceasefire came at a moment when energy infrastructures, desalination, power plants, nuclear plants could have been in the […]

Will Iran join China, Russia and the United States as a fourth major power on the world stage? Iran’s resilience in the face of the U.S.-Israeli war is already shifting the global balance of power, says American political scientist Robert Pape. “What you are seeing with Iran is that its geography, in combination with a level of drone technology that we simply cannot destroy,” is demonstrating to other countries that they may not have to stay beholden to U.S. hegemony. “What makes us think we’re really going to stop Iran from becoming a nuclear power in the next six months or a year?” asks Pape. “Iran is far stronger than it was just 40 days ago. It is in control of 20% of the world’s oil. It is now an emerging fourth center […]

On April 8, less than one day after the Trump administration agreed to a two-week ceasefire deal with Iran, Israel struck Lebanon in its heaviest and deadliest attack on the country since the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran began. At least 250 deaths have been reported. Israeli and U.S. authorities are insisting that the ceasefire proposal did not include Lebanon, where Israel says it is targeting Hezbollah. Iran and Pakistan, which brokered the deal, say the agreed-upon pause in hostilities applied to both countries. Since Israel’s genocide of Gaza, “the silence of states and the continued flow of weapons has only emboldened Israel,” says Beirut-based Human Rights Watch researcher Ramzi Kaiss. “The response from the international […]

Israel Launches Devastating Attacks on Lebanon, Killing Over 250 and Imperiling Iran Ceasefire Deal, Trump Says U.S. Troops Will Remain in Mideast Until U.S. Reaches ”REAL AGREEMENT” with Iran, Israeli Drone Strike Kills Al Jazeera Correspondent Mohammed Wishah in Gaza City, “We Are Losing Our Humanity in War”: U.N. Told Over 1,000 Humanitarians Have Been Killed in 3 Years, Protesters Outside NYC Comptroller’s Office Demand Divestment of Pension Funds from Israeli Bonds, Trump Threatens to Pull Out of NATO After Meeting with Secretary General, Trump Administration Proposes Eliminating Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, Georgia Voters Elect Republican Clay Fuller to Replace Marjorie Taylor Greene, Federal Prosecutors […]

Amy Goodman, along with co-host Juan González and Pacifica Radio, launched Democracy Now! on WBAI 30 years ago as the only daily election show in public broadcasting. It grew from nine community radio stations to television, as well, the week of the 9/11 attacks in 2001. There’s a new documentary about Amy and Democracy Now! called Steal This Story, Please! We speak with the film’s Oscar-nominated directors Carl Deal and Tia Lessin. Their previous films include Citizen Koch and Trouble the Water. The film’s executive producers include Jane Fonda, Rosario Dawson and Tom Morello. The documentary has won over a dozen audience favorite and jury prizes at major film festivals around the country and will be screened in theaters […]