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Michael Brill

@michaelpbrill.bsky.social
2.1K followers 2.2K following 949 posts

PhD candidate in Near Eastern Studies @princeton.edu | Faculty Specialist @umdpublicpolicy.bsky.social | Analyst for Red Sea Futures | Former Non-Resident Fellow at Institute for Future Conflict & @wilsoncenter.org

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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
"With the TNT adaptation having dramatized the memoir, Kinnaman also took liberties with his portrayal of Nixon." @thr.com www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/j...
hollywoodreporter.com
Joel Kinnaman on Facing Off Against Saddam Hussein in ‘The Hunt for Saddam’
Kinnaman plays CIA officer John Nixon interrogating Saddam Hussein (played by Waleed Zuaiter) to locate WMDs he never had in the eight-part TNT series 'High Value Target: The Hunt for Saddam.'
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Red Sea Brief #20: War Spreads On Both Sides of the Red Sea redseafutures.substack.com/p/red-sea-br...
redseafutures.substack.com
Red Sea Brief #20: War Spreads On Both Sides of the Red Sea
Covering September 14– October 4, 2026 · The Houthis Advance, Yemen’s Government Responds, Conflict Escalates in Ethiopia & More
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
"Ostermann was given just a few hours to pack up his belongings at the Wilson Center. He was most worried about the digital archive, the world's top repository of information on the Cold War." @nwademgaz.bsky.social www.arkansasonline.com/news/2026/oc...
arkansasonline.com
OPINION | REX NELSON: With steel, solar and Cold War center, Mississippi County’s stature grows | Arkansas Democrat Gazette
Nov. 6 will be a big day in Mississippi County. Once the state's cotton capital, Mississippi County has been in the news a lot in recent years. It's now the leading steel-producing county in the count...
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
"No one inside DOGE seems ever to have bothered to ask. Had they dug a bit, they could have found evidence that similar sorts of programs had been efficient." @wsj.com www.wsj.com/politics/mic...
wsj.com
Essay | Exclusive | Michael Lewis on the Lone Security Guard Who Resisted DOGE
In an exclusive excerpt from “Blockers,” the inside story of the high-stakes D.C. standoff where security chief Colin O’Brien fought off DOGE operatives.
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Zahra Institute @zahrainstitute.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Join us for Silvia Nicola's lecture, "𝐂𝐚𝐧 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐁𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐭 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧? 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐄𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝟑𝟓 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐆𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧–𝐈𝐫𝐚𝐪𝐢 𝐊𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬." 📅 Wednesday, October 7 🕛 12 PM Central / 1 PM Eastern 💻 Online via Zoom 🔗 Scan the QR code or register via Zoom link: zoom.us/meeting/regi...
Zahra Institute Zoom lecture flyer: "Can States Be Built Without Recognition?" with Silvia Nicola, Wednesday, October 7, 12 PM Central / 1 PM Eastern
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Texas National Security Review @tnsr.org · 30/09/2026
In our latest article, Samuel Helfont dismantles the myth of George H. W. Bush as a pure realist. He argues that while Bush's statecraft featured realist elements, his core policy was rooted in a disciplined liberal internationalism. @samuelhelfont.bsky.social tnsr.org/2026/09/libe...
Samuel Helfont | "Presidents are not international relations theorists, and Bush’s policies, like those of all presidents, displayed elements of realism, but at its core, Bush’s foreign policy was clearly liberal." from "Liberal Internationalism Forgotten: Myth & Memory in the Legacy of George H. W. Bush"
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
The Political Hijacking of Flight 1073 Summons Benghazi’s Ghost @ethanchorin.bsky.social ethanchorin.substack.com/p/the-politi...
ethanchorin.substack.com
The Political Hijacking of Flight 1073 Summons Benghazi’s Ghost
Four weeks before Israeli elections, a foiled attack is becoming a political symbol. Benghazi shows where that can lead.
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Samuel Helfont @samuelhelfont.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
My latest for TNSR on how George HW Bush’s foreign policy legacy has been used and abused by all sides.
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Hoover Institution @hooverinstitution.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Epic Fury did not merely close the Strait of Hormuz. It may push the region to transition from a flexible maritime Middle East to a new Middle East order defined by binding terrestrial infrastructure, writes Samuel Helfont.
hoover.org
Epic Fury And The Terrestrial Turn In Middle Eastern Strategy
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz during Operation Epic Fury exposed the fragility of the Middle East’s strategic geography. For decades, the region’s commercial order was maritime. This order was p...
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Ethiopia's Renewed War Tests Riyadh and Abu Dhabi @ethanchorin.bsky.social ethanchorin.substack.com/p/where-the-...
ethanchorin.substack.com
Ethiopia's Renewed War Tests Riyadh and Abu Dhabi
The Houthi advance has raised Eritrea's value to Saudi Arabia and the US. Stability in the Red Sea now depends heavily on whether the Kingdom and the UAE can manage their rivalry.
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
"Iraqi President Saddam Hussein is believed to be banking on a quick victory as Tehran is mired in internal political turmoil & the ongoing US Embassy hostage crisis..." @amwajmedia.bsky.social amwaj.media/en/article/o...
amwaj.media
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Red Sea Legal Letter #6: UK P&I Makes Charterers Buy Back Red Sea Cover redseafutures.substack.com/p/uk-p-and-i...
redseafutures.substack.com
Red Sea Legal Letter #6: UK P&I Makes Charterers Buy Back Red Sea Cover
Covering September 7 – 22, 2026. Current as of September 22, 2026
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
"More media does not necessarily mean more truth or greater press freedom. Iraq currently ranks 162nd out of 180 countries worldwide for press freedom, sandwiched between Sudan and Turkey." @us.theconversation.com theconversation.com/saddam-husse...
theconversation.com
Saddam Hussein used Oliver Reed and a James Bond director to tell Iraq’s story – but who tells it now?
Iraq’s media landscape has undergone profound change over the past two decades.
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Mohamed Elgohari @elgohari.com · 22/09/2026
Rubio, speaking to reporters at a foreign ministers’ meeting in Manila, hadn’t even been asked about the propaganda campaign. That a sitting U.S. secretary of state felt compelled to address a cartoon campaign produced by a small group of individuals... is itself revealing.
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Q&A With The Experts Behind Issue #19 redseafutures.substack.com/p/q-and-a-wi...
redseafutures.substack.com
Q&A With The Experts Behind Issue #19
On Houthi Advances, Egypt’s Reserves, Jordan’s Aqaba Bet, and Turkey’s Red Sea Role
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Zahra Institute @zahrainstitute.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
🏔️ 𝐙𝐎𝐎𝐌 𝐋𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄: 𝐋𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐊𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐊𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 Gerald MacLean unpacks centuries of Western imagination shaping how the world sees the Kurds. 📅 Wed, Sep 23 | 12pm CT/1pm ET 💻 Zoom Scan the QR on the flyer or click below to register 👇 www.zahrainstitute.org
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
"According to Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, al-Sheikh is the highest-ranking former Assad regime official to be tried & convicted in person outside Syria." english.enabbaladi.net/archives/202...
english.enabbaladi.net
US Sentences Former Syrian Official to 60 Years - Enab Baladi
The US Department of Justice announced that a former Syrian official who served as a prison director and governor under […]
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
"Now, newly released correspondence shows that she sent a flattering and ingratiating letter to his palace, three years earlier, on April 10, 1987." @thetimes.com www.thetimes.com/uk/scotland/...
thetimes.com
Margaret Thatcher praised Saddam Hussein in birthday letter
In an attempt to convince him to free British citizens, the former prime minister sent wishes on a day ‘of rejoicing for you and the Iraqi people’
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
The Houthis Take Mayun, and Lose the Kahboub Heights redseafutures.substack.com/p/the-houthi...
redseafutures.substack.com
The Houthis Take Mayun, and Lose the Kahboub Heights
Red Sea Brief Special Issue 19(+), Updated through September 19
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
The Anti-Patriotic Vet @rosscaputi.bsky.social rosscaputi.substack.com/p/the-anti-p...
rosscaputi.substack.com
The Anti-Patriotic Vet
Introducing myself and this account
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
The Houthis’ ‘Island In The Strait’ Is Yemen’s Lesser Loss @ethanchorin.bsky.social ethanchorin.substack.com/p/the-houthi...
ethanchorin.substack.com
The Houthis’ ‘Island In The Strait’ Is Yemen’s Lesser Loss
Widespread media coverage presents the Houthi takeover of Mayyun as tantamount to full control of the strait; the significant gains and losses are on the shore.
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
"After an eight-year journey to the screen, the adaptation — created by Daniel Stiepleman & Jonathan Wakeham — has emerged as the eight-part TNT series High Value Target: The Hunt for Saddam." @thr.com www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-featur...
hollywoodreporter.com
What ‘High Value Target: The Hunt for Saddam’ Gets Right — and Where It Takes Liberties
THR goes inside the first three episodes of the TNT series inspired by former CIA Analyst John Nixon’s 2016 memoir ‘Debriefing the President: The Interrogation of Saddam Hussein,' unpacking how his st...
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Samuel Helfont @samuelhelfont.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Review of Baathist Iraq through Archives. Thanks Joel!
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Joe Stieb @joestieb.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
michaelbrenes.substack.com/p/is-the-war... This is a really thoughtful response to my (and some other folks') argument that the War on Terror is over from Mike Brenes. Deals with some of the problems with defining historical periods, especially for loosely defined things like the War on Terror.
michaelbrenes.substack.com
Is the War on Terror History?
The 9/11 era after 25 years
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
"The US Department of Homeland Security has announced the detention of a Michigan man it claims was an intelligence officer in Saddam Hussein's regime." www.thenationalnews.com/news/us/2026...
thenationalnews.com
US arrests alleged Saddam-era officer in Michigan | The National
Raad Alanbagi detained after Homeland Security investigation that uncovered ties to former Iraqi dictator
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Tyler B. Parker @tylerbparker.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
My forthcoming book with @syracuseup.bsky.social, "Deference and Defiance: Status Seeking in Gulf-United States Politics," explores how status competition has shaped the GCC's states' propensities to support - and often oppose - US foreign policy plans in the wider Middle East since the 1990s.
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Houthis On A Rock In The Strait - How Much Does That Really Buy? redseafutures.substack.com/p/houthis-on...
redseafutures.substack.com
Houthis On A Rock In The Strait - How Much Does That Really Buy?
The Red Sea Brief, Issue #19, September 1-13, 2026
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Gregory Koblentz @gregkoblentz.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Sudan’s military is accused of using chlorine bombs: here’s how they work and what the law says @us.theconversation.com theconversation.com/sudans-milit...
theconversation.com
Sudan’s military is accused of using chlorine bombs: here’s how they work and what the law says
The use of chemical weapons has been outlawed for nearly a century.
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Gregory Koblentz @gregkoblentz.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Important milestone: OPCW has verified destruction of first chemical weapons in Syria since 2014.
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
"Afghanistan may have returned to life under a diluted form of Taliban rule, but the Middle East is still paying the price for the regional imbalances created when the US military uprooted Iraq’s Baathist government." english.aawsat.com/features/531...
english.aawsat.com
Sept. 11’s Legacy Endures a Quarter-Century Later
Rarely does a day deserve to be called “the day that shook the world.” September 11, 2001, claimed that distinction the moment it happened. At first, many could scarcely believe what they were seeing ...
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
"In my experience, the more an issue becomes sensitive as it gets higher and higher among the top policymakers — the so-called elite of our government — the politics take over." -John Nixon @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2026/09/12/a...
nytimes.com
‘High Value Target’: Hunting for Saddam Hussein, and the Truth (Gift Article)
A series starring Joel Kinnaman tells the story of John Nixon, the first C.I.A. officer to interrogate the former Iraqi dictator after his capture.
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Zahra Institute @zahrainstitute.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
🎉 𝗔𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 𝗙𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀! 🎉 6 scholars. 6 lectures. Free Zoom talks on Kurdish history, politics & culture, select Wednesdays at 12PM CT/1PM ET. Speakers: Gerald MacLean, Silvia Nicola, Serdar Sengul, Dilek Celebi, Marwan Sheikho, Hasret Cetinkaya Register: www.zahrainstitute.org
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
"That Nixon is played with such quiet, unassuming confidence by Joel Kinnaman makes the machinations behind the Iraq War more stinging." @wsj.com www.wsj.com/arts-culture...
wsj.com
‘High Value Target: The Hunt for Saddam’ Review: Confronting a Despot
An eight-part thriller on TNT follows the search for—and a CIA analyst’s subsequent interrogation of—the notorious Iraqi leader.
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
"Al Majalla chose Bashar al‑Assad’s nuclear programme as this week's cover story following reports issued by the International Atomic Energy Agency in early September, which revealed that the project was much more extensive than previously believed." en.majalla.com/node/332964/...
en.majalla.com
Inside Assad’s nuclear secrets
Al Majalla reveals the structure of Syria's nuclear programme 19 years after Israel bombed the Al-Kibar reactor, detailing the involvement of other states and the assassinations that followed
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
"Both Saddam and Israel’s chief of military intelligence underestimated Tehran’s willingness to endure severe losses." www.gisreportsonline.com/r/hormuz-cri...
gisreportsonline.com
The Hormuz crisis was hiding in plain sight – GIS Reports
Open sources warned that killing Khamenei would trigger the closure of the strait and empower the IRGC. The 2026 U.S.-Israeli strikes ignored those warnings.
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Terror Victims Sue Iran And Syria The Day After Syria’s Delisting redseafutures.substack.com/p/terror-vic...
redseafutures.substack.com
Terror Victims Sue Iran And Syria The Day After Syria’s Delisting
Legal Letter Issue #4, August 24-September 6
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The New York Times @nytimes.com · 03/09/2026
The rebels who overthrew President Bashar al-Assad in Syria and took power have sought to balance justice against peace, fearing that trying to hold everyone involved in war crimes to account would provoke more civil strife.
nyti.ms
Syrians Want Justice for Assad-Era Killings and Torture
Hundreds of thousands were killed and tortured. But prosecuting everyone involved in atrocities could be impractical and risk renewed civil strife.
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Just Security @justsecurity.org · 03/09/2026
@ambdanfried.bsky.social, who served on the G.W. Bush administration’s National Security Council, reflects on what the United States got right and wrong in its approach to counterterrorism in the 25 years since the 9/11 attacks.
justsecurity.org
A Quarter Century After 9/11: Lessons Learned and Lost
A former member of the G.W. Bush administration’s NSC reflects on what the U.S. got right and wrong in its response to the 9/11 attacks.
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Q&A With The Experts Behind Issue #18 redseafutures.substack.com/p/q-and-a-wi...
redseafutures.substack.com
Q&A With The Experts Behind Issue #18
A companion to Red Sea Brief #18, August 15–28
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
Insurance Companies Cancel War Cover, As The U.S. Revives “Prize Courts” redseafutures.substack.com/p/insurance-...
redseafutures.substack.com
Insurance Companies Cancel War Cover, As The U.S. Revives “Prize Courts”
The Red Sea Brief, Issue #18, August 15-28
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
"When you think of Detroit heroes, names like Elmo or Saddam Hussein probably aren’t the first to come to mind. Yet, surprisingly, both have received the City of Detroit’s highest honor: the Key to the City." enjoyer.com/saddam-husse...
enjoyer.com
Why Saddam Hussein Got the Key to the City of Detroit
Before he became an infamous dictator, the Iraqi president supported Chaldean Christian communities in the U.S.
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
"The memoirs do not render a judgment; rather, they add an insider perspective, completing a full countdown: an accusation within the command, a warning message, a final lunch, & then the February 14 explosion." english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5...
english.aawsat.com
Khaddam: Despite My Warning, Hariri Stayed in Lebanon for Electoral Reasons, He Was Killed 6 Days Later
Former Syrian Vice President Abdul Halim Khaddam reveals new details in his memoirs about a February 2005 meeting with late Lebanese former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri at his Beirut residence six d...
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Hoover Institution @hooverinstitution.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
A new book from Hoover Press tells the story of three expatriate Communist families in Moscow that find their bonds and beliefs tested as they are scattered by WWII and confront the ideologies of the twentieth century.
hoover.org
The Troika: A Story of Three Families, Friendship, and the Cold War
Three expatriate Communist families in Moscow find their bonds and beliefs tested as they are scattered by World War II and confront the consequential ideologies of the twentieth century.
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
Honored to be included in such an esteemed group!
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Matthew J Kuiper @matthewjkuiper.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Speaking of Starter Packs, here’s a list of good folks to follow bsky.app/profile/matt...
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
"The publication of these specific, verbatim threats from Khaddam's diaries adds a crucial layer of historical testimony to the findings of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, the international court established to investigate Hariri's death." streamlinefeed.co.ke/news/khaddam...
streamlinefeed.co.ke
Khaddam Memoirs Expose Bashar al-Assad's Threat to Rafik Hariri
Newly published memoirs by former Syrian VP Abdul Halim Khaddam detail the aggressive 2004 meeting where Bashar al-Assad threatened Rafik Hariri.
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
"Khaddam says he subsequently asked Hafez al-Assad to relieve him of responsibility for the Lebanon portfolio because his opposition to Lahoud was well known. The file then passed to Bashar al-Assad." www.arabnews.pk/node/2655408...
arabnews.pk
Khaddam recounts final Damascus meeting… Bashar to Hariri: ‘Whoever defies me, I will break his bones’
Former Syrian Vice President Abdul Halim Khaddam reveals new details in his memoirs about a meeting between former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in Damascus...
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
"The memoirs, edited and introduced by Ibrahim Hamidi, are due to be published in early September by Raff Publishing, a subsidiary of the Saudi Research and Media Group (SRMG)." english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5...
english.aawsat.com
Khaddam: Syria’s $12 Billion Reserve Was Registered Under Hafez Al-Assad's Name
Former Syrian Vice President Abdul Halim Khaddam’s recent memoirs revealed sensitive information about wealth and power in the country, notably that the Syrian state reserve, which according to the la...
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Michael Brill @michaelpbrill.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
"The joint committee was established as a mechanism for high-level coordination between the two countries & first met in 2000, with the two sides agreeing that it should convene annually. It met again in Tripoli in 2001 before its work was suspended." www.thearabweekly.com/libya-iraq-r...
thearabweekly.com
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Foreign Policy @foreignpolicy.com · 25/08/2026
Analysts often discuss “forever wars” but talk far less about forever enemies, Adam Weinstein writes. foreignpolicy.com/2026/08/24/i...
foreignpolicy.com
Washington Is Creating Forever Enemies
The United States must learn to forget the pain of humiliation.
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