Peer Talks

Syria | Podcast # 102

LOUD THINKING #PeerTalks with Prof. Eyal Zisser on "Syria" Prof. Eyal Zisser is the Vice-Rector of Tel Aviv University and the Yona and Dina Ettinger Chairholder in Contemporary History of the Middle East. He was the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities 2010-2015, the Director of the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies 2007-2010, and the Head of the Department of Middle Eastern and African History. Prof. Zisser wrote extensively on the history and the modern politics of Syria and Lebanon and the Arab-Israeli conflict. Among his books:  Assad’s Syria at a Crossroads (Tel Aviv, 1999); Asad’s Legacy – Syria in Transition (New York, 2000); Lebanon: the Challenge of Independence (London, 2000); Faces of Syria (Tel Aviv, 2003) Commanding Syria, Bashar al-Asad’s First years in Power (London, 2006); The Bleeding Cedar (Tel Aviv, 2009), Syria: Protest, Revolution, Civil War (Tel Aviv, 2014). Prof. Zisser received his Ph.D. from Tel Aviv University. He was a visiting professor at Cornell University and a visiting research fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. #Syria #CivilWar

The Present Challenges of Iraq | Podcast # 101

Loud Thinking #PeerTalks with Professor Amatzia Baram on " The Present Challenges of Iraq " Dr. Baram is Professor Emeritus at the Department of Middle East Studies, University of Haifa. In 1986 He was awarded the Ph.D. degree at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem for a dissertation on Ba’thi Iraq. Since then, Dr. Baram has been teaching at the Universities of Jerusalem, Haifa, and Georgetown.Dr. Baram served as a Senior Associate Member at St. Antony’s College, Oxford, resident senior fellow three times at the Woodrow Wilson Center, twice at the US Institute of Peace, once at the Brookings Institute, and the Rockefeller Foundation’s Center in Bellagio. In 2009 he lectured to US officers at Fort Leavenworth. At the University of Haifa, he served as Chairman of the Department of Middle East History, Director of the Jewish-Arab Center and the Institute for Middle East Studies, founder and Head of the Center for Iraq Studies, and co-founder and Head of the Ezri Center. Since 1986 Baram has been occasionally advising the US government during the Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush, and Obama administrations about Iraq and the Gulf. His book Saddam Husayn and Islam 1968-2003 (WWC and Johns Hopkins University Press, 2014) used extensively Saddam’s secret personal archive 1979-2003. #Iraq #Challenges

Peer Talks with Leena Hashir | Podcast # 100

#PeerTalks with Leena Hashir   (Urdu) Leena Hashir is a known columnist and blogger. For her, writing was a process of self-discovery. She emerged on the scene a few years ago with her own blogging site. With time, as her lighthearted and satirical pieces gained popularity, she joined the Samaa TV network and started contributing her blogs to their Urdu website. She also wrote for the Saach TV website during that time. At a later stage, she joined Humsub. Leena started with writing satires but gradually shifted her focus to highlight the tragic state of society. Her rendition has been heart-wrenching and touched the most sensitive chords. Her column on the killing of Aneeqa Khalid by her father just because she could not make her around bread highlighted the cruel face of our society. The column became enormously popular. A short film was made on that column that got a lot of critical accolades. Then came her column on “khawaja saraa ka marney key baad apni maa ko khat”. The column was published on Humsub and broke all records. On the very first day of its publication, 100,000 read it on the website alone. It's sharing on Facebook was like a jungle fire. It was shared so many times that Facebook thought of it as spam and blocked it only to open it later realizing their misunderstanding. Its text sharing on YouTube crossed one million views in three days. According to a safe estimate, nearly 3 million readers have read it on social media and it has been appreciated globally. It is by far the most popular column in the history of Pakistan print and electronic media.  A film is currently underway based on this very column. Leena Hashir is one of the most popular names on social media and her contribution to bringing to light the most sensitive issues has made quite an impact. She has succeeded in changing how people perceive and think about the marginalized sections of society. For her, that is what writing is all about. #LeenaHashir #Interview Watch the podcast on Youtube https://youtu.be/so2D4CN8CMM

Holocaust | Podcast # 99

Loud Thinking #PeerTalks with Shaheen Chishti on "Holocaust"  (Urdu) Shaheen Is an Indian British author, world peace advocate, and thought leader. Shaheen is a member of the London Literary Society and of the Muslim-Jewish Forum in London. He is also the founder of the Jewish Islamic International Peace Society. The genealogy of Syed Shaheen Chishti goes back to Hazrat Ali, cousin of Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH). Syed Shaheen Chishti is also a descendant of the revered Sufi Saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti, whose shrine also known as the Ajmer Sharif Dargah. Shaheen studied in Mayoor School, Ajmer before moving to London with his family at the age of 15. In London, he went to Holland Park School where he completed his secondary education. Thereafter he pursued a degree in Accountancy from London Guildhall University, to become a professionally qualified accountant. He presently lives in London. #Holocaust #Jews

Tehreek e Labbaik Pakistan | Podcast # 98

Jaiza  | Urdu #PeerTalks on Tehreek e Labbaik Pakistan Peer Syed Mudassir Nazar Shah and Nameera Raja discussing Tehreek e Labbaik Pakistan, its history, present situation, and the future. Follow us on YouTube: www.youtube.com/PeerTalks Follow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/PeerTalksOfficial Follow Peer Mudassir on Twitter and Instagram: @peermudassir Follow Nameera Raja on Twitter @NameeraRaja #TLP #TehreekLabbaik