The U.S. and Iran are headed into a new round of negotiations to address the standoff over Iran’s nuclear program. Will it avert a military confrontation that seems closer than ever?Reports this week indicated that Israel was preparing military assets in anticipation of a direct strike against Iran. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has sent mixed signals about whether Iran would be allowed to maintain a uranium enrichment capacity for a civilian nuclear program—an issue Iran has said is a red line for any negotiation.To discuss the ongoing talks and the longer history between the U.S. and Iran, Drop Site’s Murtaza Hussain is joined by Dr. Vali Nasr, Professor of International Affairs and Middle East Studies at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and author of the new book “Iran's Grand Strategy: A Political History.”Listen above or on the Drop Site News channel on Apple, Spotify, RSS, or wherever you get your podcasts. Get full access to Drop Site News at www.dropsitenews.com/subscribe
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51:32
Israel Is Attempting to Execute a Final Solution in Gaza
Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is currently in the midst of another campaign of sabotage to prevent a “ceasefire” agreement that would bring an end to Israel’s genocidal war against the Palestinians of Gaza. All parties—from Hamas, to the regional mediators Qatar and Egypt, to the Trump administration—know that Netanyahu is entrenched in his position that Israel will not agree to any deal that does not allow Israel to continue a campaign it has characterized as a war of conquest against Gaza. Israeli officials have made no secret about their aim of erasing Gaza as a Palestinian territory and removing its 2.3 million residents. Hamas has said it will not release any more Israeli captives unless an agreement is reached that includes a full withdrawal of Israeli forces and a clear path to a long term ceasefire.In the latest Drop Site News livestream, Jeremy Scahill and Ryan Grim discuss how Israel is using the veneer of agreeing to allow aid into the besieged territory to enable it to pursue its final solution in Gaza, with the full support and backing of the U.S. government. They also talk about the deal the U.S. made with Hamas to free Israeli soldier and U.S. citizen Edan Alexander. Hamas told Drop Site that Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff personally promised the group it would compel Israel to lift its full spectrum blockade on Gaza two days after Alexander was released. Witkoff, Hamas said, also told Hamas that President Donald Trump would publicly call for a ceasefire and serious negotiations to end the war. Hamas accused the U.S. of “throwing the deal in the trash.” As Israel intensifies its attacks against Gaza and the humanitarian situation growing more grave by the day, the central question is whether Trump—for his own reasons—will force Netanyahu to end the war or whether Trump will continue to facilitate Israel’s campaign of annihilation. Get full access to Drop Site News at www.dropsitenews.com/subscribe
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Jeremy Scahill on His Recent Interviews With Hamas
Israeli ministers this week approved plans to capture the entire Gaza Strip and remain entrenched there indefinitely. This comes as ceasefire talks remain deadlocked after Israel abandoned the original three-phase framework—which stipulated a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the declaration of a permanent ceasefire—and issued a series of new demands, including the complete demilitarization of the Gaza Strip, a red line for Hamas.Drop Site’s Jeremy Scahill recently held a series of rare, in-depth interviews with senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan and other leading figures of Palestinian resistance groups about the state of the negotiations, disarmament, Egypt’s role as a mediator, Hamdan’s direct talks with Donald Trump’s envoy Adam Boehler, the group’s current view of what is often referred to as a “two state solution,” and much more.Drop Site’s Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Murtaza Hussain speak with Scahill about what Hamas and other groups told him. Hussain also discusses recent developments in Yemen and how the U.S. appears to be targeting coordinates posted by social media analysts online. Get full access to Drop Site News at www.dropsitenews.com/subscribe
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1:05:21
Hamas on the Record: An Exclusive Interview With Senior Hamas Official Osama Hamdan
Over the past 19 months of Israel’s genocidal war against the Palestinians of Gaza, Western media outlets have done very little in depth reporting on the perspective of Hamas and other Palestinian resistance factions. These movements are often portrayed as irrational terrorists who want to kill for the sake of killing. When they are interviewed by Western outlets, it is either to quote a sentence or two responding to allegations made by Israel or the U.S. or to relitigate the events of October 7. The failure by Western media outlets to seek to understand the perspective of Hamas and other Palestinian groups is not just journalistic malpractice, but a fundamental disservice to the public understanding of one of the bloodiest campaigns of annihilation against a people in modern history.Drop Site’s Jeremy Scahill recently conducted a series of interviews, both on and off the record, with several leaders of Hamas and other Palestinian factions. Late last week, Scahill sat down with Osama Hamdan, one of the most prominent voices representing Hamas over the past 19 months. Hamdan has held a variety of posts since he joined Hamas in 1992, a few years after the movement’s founding. He has served as Hamas’s representative in both Iran and Lebanon, as well as its chief of international relations. He was one of the top advisers to Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh who was assassinated by Israel last summer in Tehran. After October 7, Hamdan became a regular fixture on Arabic language media because of his regular press briefings in Lebanon.Osama Hamdan was one of two Hamas officials who led direct talks with Donald Trump’s special envoy on hostages Adam Boehler earlier this year. In a wide-ranging exclusive interview with Drop Site, Hamdan discusses the current state of the ceasefire talks and Hamas’s proposal for a long term truce. He explains why Hamas will not lay down its weapons or surrender, and addresses the role of Arab governments during the genocide, as well as how Hamas views the Trump administration vs the Biden administration. He also responds to the recent attacks launched against Hamas by Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas—last week he called Hamas “sons of dogs,” and demanded the group hand over its weapons and release all Israeli captives. Hamdan also analyzes Israel’s campaign to fully annex the West Bank and he offers Hamas’s current view of what is often referred to as a “two state solution.” Get full access to Drop Site News at www.dropsitenews.com/subscribe
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1:25:32
Attack in Kashmir: The Future of the India-Pakistan Conflict
Last week, an attack in the Indian-controlled Kashmir led to heightened tensions between Pakistan and India. Now, the two nuclear powers are on the brink of a major armed conflict.The deadly attack on April 22 in the disputed region of Kashmir, which killed 26 Indian citizens, was quickly attributed by the Indian government to its rivals in Pakistan. In response, both countries have engaged in a mass mobilization of troops on both sides of the border, as the two nuclear-armed countries trade threats. Now, some are worried that the heightened tensions could lead to a serious armed confrontation.India and Pakistan have shared a tumultuous history ever since their founding following the collapse of the old British Raj. Today, both nations are engaged in a fierce proxy war, not just in Kashmir, but also in the embattled Pakistani province of Balochistan. The risk of a major war, including nuclear escalation, is small but significant, as tempers continue to flare and demands for vengeance grow following the most recent attack.To discuss the present situation and recent history, Drop Site’s Murtaza Hussain is joined by Ahsan Butt, an Associate Professor at the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University and expert on nationalism and political conflict in South Asia.Listen above or on the Drop Site News channel on Apple, Spotify, RSS, or wherever you get your podcasts. Get full access to Drop Site News at www.dropsitenews.com/subscribe
Independent reporting on war and politics in the U.S. and across the world, delivered by Jeremy Scahill, Ryan Grim, and the Drop Site team. www.dropsitenews.com
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