On the 23rd April 2025, Jordanian security forces raided the offices of the Muslim Brotherhood, the largest opposition movement of the kingdom, confiscating assets and property and outlawing all the group’s activities. This is not an isolated event. Rather, Jordan seems to be joining other countries in the MENA region by taking actions to sideline Islamist opposition parties in recent years.

Dr. Rory McCarthy, an Associate Professor in Comparative Politics of Islam in Durham University's School of Government and International Affairs, joins the show to unpack the domestic, international, and global factors that explain the timing of this action and what it means for democracy and the political stability of the wider region. To learn more about Rory and his research, visit his website at https://www.durham.ac.uk/staff/rory-p-mccarthy/

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Due to current events, we are starting our third season with a bonus episode. On Wednesday, the UK government announced that it, together with the US, had bombed Houthi targets in Yemen to protect freedom of navigation in the Red Sea.

In the bonus episode you are about to hear, I discuss with Dr. Tom Walsh, a former PhD Student and current Tutor at the School of Government and International Affairs at Durham University, why the Houthis have decided to attack international shipping lanes in the Red Sea, what the links between the Houthis and Iran are, and to what extent US military intervention will resolve the issue or could lead to a further escalation involving Iran. The episode was originally recorded at the end of January 2024.

To learn more about our guest, visit Tom's webiste at https://www.durham.ac.uk/staff/tom-j-walsh/

On February 27, 2025, Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), called for the group to disarm and disband, signaling a possible end to the four-decade-long conflict with the Turkish state. A few days later, the PKK declared an immediate ceasefire. This development followed months of preparations and overtures from the Turkish government of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, marking what could be a crucial turning point in Turkish politics and the broader region. Joining me unpack the conflict between the PKK and the Turkish state and discussing the various political factors explaining the emergence of this latest ceasefire is Dr. Francesco D’Alema, a Teaching Fellow in International Relations and Security at the School of Government and International Affairs here at Durham University.To learn more about Francesco's research visit his website: https://www.durham.ac.uk/staff/francesco-dalema/

Relevant literature:

- Associated Press (AP) 2025. What to know about the latest effort to end Turkey’s 40-year Kurdish conflict. Online at https://apnews.com/article/turkey-kurds-pkk-peace-ocalan-dem-prison-3d6e7e2c0cedcb87d4bd145667d79ae1 [Last accessed: 21st March 2025].

- Christofis, Nikos 2019. The State of the Kurds in Erdoğan's `new' Turkey. Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies 21(3), 251-259.

- D'Alema, Francesco 2024. Turkey's approach to the Arab spring revisited: political field and foreign policy in the AKP era. Turkish Studies 25(5), 806-834.

- Guardian 2025. PKK declares ceasefire with Turkey after more than 40 years of conflict. Online at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/01/pkk-declares-ceasefire-with-turkey-after-40-years-kurdish [Last accessed: 21st March 2025].

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President Trump’s unilateral attempt to end the war in Ukraine raised concerns among Western allies. Both his statements and actions have sparked widespread debates about diplomacy and power in the 21st century, and whether they signify an end to the rules-based international order established in the aftermath of World War II. Joining me online to unpack the concept of “international order”, what it involves, how it emerged, whether actions taken by President Trump have indeed unravelled it, or whether it has always been more fragile than its defenders admit, are my colleagues Prof. John Williams, a Professor of International Relations, and Dr. Dennis Schmidt, an Assistant Professor of International Relations here at Durham University's School of Government and International Affairs.

To learn more about our guests, please visit their websites:

Prof. John Williams: https://www.durham.ac.uk/staff/j-c-williams/

Dr. Dennis R. Schmidt: https://www.durham.ac.uk/staff/dennis-schmidt/

Related literature:

- Schmidt, Dennis R. 2023. International Law and World Order: Theoretical Perspectives. In: Oxford Research Encyclopedias. Online: https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190846626.013.696 [Last accessed: 13th March 2025].

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Migration remains one of the most contentious political issues, shaping debates on borders, identity, and economies, including in the UK. Earlier in February this year, the Labour government announced that those arriving irregularly to the UK, even if they are legitimate refugees, will be barred from ever becoming British citizens. Joining the show to discuss the politics behind this announcement, what it aims to achieve, whether it will work, and what alternative approaches Labour could have pursued is Dr. Omar Hammoud-Gallego, an Assistant Professor of Public Policy in the School of Government and International Affairs here at Durham University, where he teaches in the new MSc Public Policy starting this coming academic year.

To learn more about Omar and his research on migration, visit his website: https://www.omarhgallego.com/

Related Literature:

- Gathmann, C., & Garbers, J. 2023. Citizenship and integration. Labour Economics, 82, 102343. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.labeco.2023.102343

- Hammoud Gallego, O. 2025. Labour’s latest immigration policy is counterproductive. LSE Blog, online at https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandpolicy/labours-latest-immigration-policy-is-counterproductive/ [Last accessed: 7th March 2025].

- Krause W, Cohen D, Abou-Chadi T. Does accommodation work? Mainstream party strategies and the success of radical right parties. Political Science Research and Methods. 2023;11(1):172-179. doi:10.1017/psrm.2022.8

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40 years ago on Monday, 3rd March 1985, the 1984-1985 UK’s miners’ strike ended. The coal miners' strike aimed to prevent the closure of pits that the conservative government deemed “uneconomic”. Many observers regard the miners’ strike as “the most bitter industrial dispute in British history” and with 26 million person-days of work lost, it was the largest by impact since the 1926 General Strike. Joining me, to look back at this major industrial dispute and why it still matters today is Dr. Lewis Mates, an Associate Professor in Political Theory in the School of Government and International Affairs at Durham University.

To learn more about Lewis' research visit his website at https://www.durham.ac.uk/staff/lewis-mates/

Resources mentioned in this episode:

- Sherwood (2022) BBC One Series, for more information on the show see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherwood_(2022_TV_series). To view the series see https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/p0c724lz/sherwood (only available in the UK).

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Germany is heading to the polls this coming Sunday (23rd February 2025) after the traffic light coalition between the Social Democrats (red), the Liberal Party (yellow), and the Greens (green) collapsed in November last year. In this episode, Dr. Moritz Osnabrügge outlines the main topics of the election campaign, how the campaign compared to 2021, what the latest polls predict, and what potential government coalitions may emerge.

To learn more about Dr. Moritz Osnabrügge's research, visit his website at https://www.durham.ac.uk/staff/moritz-osnabruegge/

Polling and election modeling:

- Reuters (2025): The Latest Polls Ahead of the German Snap Election. Online at: https://www.reuters.com/graphics/GERMANY-ELECTION/POLLS/akveedlravr/ [Last accessed 20th February 2025].

- Zweitstimme.org (2025). Die Wissenschaftliche Vorhersage der Bundestagswahl. Online at: https://zweitstimme.org/ [Last accessed: 20th February 2025].

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This week we are looking at the politics behind one of the Executive Orders from President Trump. The Executive Order “Addressing Egregious Actions of the Republic of South Africa”, was issued on the 7th of February 2025. As justification for this order, President Trump cited South Africa’s Expropriation Act 13, which allows for land to be expropriated with nil compensation in limited circumstances and has been criticized as racially discriminatory by some white Afrikaners, decedents of the European settlers that have ruled South Africa during apartheid and still own a disproportionate share of land and wealth. Dr. Simon Taylor, a Teaching Fellow in International Relations & Security at Durham’s School of Government and International Affairs and an Extraordinary Researcher at North-West University in South Africa, is joining me to discuss the politics behind this Executive Order. Before joining academia, he served as a Senior Foreign Service Officer for the South African Department of International Relations and Co-operation.

To learn more about Simon's research visit his website: https://www.durham.ac.uk/staff/simon-d-taylor/

Literature related to the episode:

- Executive Order "Addressing Egregious Actions of the Republic of South Africa" 7th February 2025. Online at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/02/addressing-egregious-actions-of-the-republic-of-south-africa/ [Last accessed: 14th February 2024].

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