Imagine a people, an entire ethnos, with a population of over 77,000 officially disappearing in just 33 years, reduced on paper to a mere 85 individuals. This isn't a dystopian novel; it's the modern history of the Talysh people, an ancient Iranian ethnos whose homeland is split between Azerbaijan and Iran along the southwestern coast of the Caspian Sea. Their story is one of staggering resilience against a backdrop of state-sponsored manipulation and forced assimilation. How does a culture survive when its very existence is denied in official records?In this episode of The Levant Files Deep Dive, we unravel this extraordinary story of endurance. We trace the Talysh identity back to antiquity, exploring their potential links to the legendary Cadusii people mentioned in classical texts, a connection that lives on in their collective memory and language. We’ll uncover how their unique language, rich with ancient echoes, preserves this history in its very sounds and place names, acting as a living archive of their past.Then, we journey into the heart of their culture—the sacred ironwood forests, the spiritual beliefs that blend folk Islam with pre-Islamic figures like the Black Shepherd, and the intricate material culture of their world-renowned carpets. These are the anchors that have helped them weather the storm. But we also confront the darkest chapter: the systematic Soviet policies designed to erase them from the map through language suppression, brutal deportations, and the statistical sleight-of-hand that nearly wiped them from history.Finally, we’ll see how in the 21st century, the Talysh have forged a new sanctuary in the digital world, creating a vibrant online ethnosphere to reclaim their heritage and connect a scattered people. Join us as we explore how a nation can be erased from a census but not from history, and how an identity rooted in mountains and myths found a new way to endure in the modern age.

Photo: The flag of Talysh-Mughan Autonomous Republic (Talysh: Tolışə pərçəm) was adopted on August 7, 1993 as the state flag of the unrecognized Talysh-Mughan Autonomous Republic.[

Welcome to The Deep Dive, a podcast from The Levant Files.

When the world’s headlines turn to Sudan, the story is often reduced to a simple, brutal equation: two generals, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan of the official army and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, or ‘Hemeti’, of the paramilitary RSF, locked in a devastating struggle for power. But this framing, while convenient, misses almost everything that truly matters. The roots of today’s war are not shallow; they run deep through centuries of history, shaped by powerful empires, colonial manipulation, and a uniquely dangerous political economy.

In this episode, we connect the dots from an ancient past, when Sudanese pharaohs ruled Egypt, to the modern catastrophe. We explore how the British colonial strategy of ‘divide and rule’ cemented deep-seated tensions between the country’s center and its vast peripheries. We trace the post-independence cycle of military coups that entrenched the army’s power, and the desperate ‘coup-proofing’ strategy of former dictator Omar al-Bashir, who deliberately created rival security forces to protect his own rule.

Crucially, we uncover the story of how the loss of oil revenue with South Sudan's secession gave birth to a parallel warlord economy. This new system, built on the country's vast gold reserves, transformed Hemeti’s militias from a brutal counter-insurgency force into an independent military and economic empire. The current war is the inevitable collision of these two forces—the old state and the new shadow state—in a fight not just for political control, but for the very resources that sustain them. Join us as we unravel the complex history that made Sudan’s war almost inevitable.

Some academic works used for the needs of this podcast:

Berridge, Willow, Justin Lynch, Raga Makawi, and Alex de Waal. Sudan’s Unfinished Democracy: The Promise and Betrayal of a People’s Revolution. New York: Oxford University Press, 2022.

Cockett, Richard. Sudan: The Failure and Division of an African State. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2016.

Federal Research Division. Sudan: A Country Study. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 2015.

Holt, P. M., and M. W. Daly. A History of the Sudan: From the Coming of Islam to the Present Day. 6th ed. London: Routledge, 2011.

Johnson, Douglas H. The Root Causes of Sudan’s Civil Wars: Old Wars and New Wars. Expanded 3rd ed. Woodbridge, Suffolk: James Currey, 2016.

Jok, Jok Madut. Sudan: Race, Religion and Violence. Oxford: Oneworld Publications, 2007.

Photo: Gemini AI

In late 1944, Greece stood at a crossroads. The Nazi occupiers were gone, leaving behind a power vacuum dominated by the colossal Communist-led resistance, EAM-ELAS. With three-quarters of a million members and a powerful army, they seemed poised for victory. Yet, within a year, their movement was politically shattered and militarily defeated, setting the stage for a brutal civil war. How could such a dominant force be so completely vanquished?

This is the central question explored in today's debate, revealing two powerful and conflicting narratives. Was this a story of geopolitical betrayal? Evidence points to the secret "Percentages Agreement" where Churchill and Stalin placed Greece firmly in the Western sphere, effectively sacrificing the Greek communists on the altar of Great Power politics. This was brutally enforced by Britain, first through political manipulation and then with tanks and aircraft during the bloody "Dekemvriana" in Athens. From this perspective, the resistance was an outmatched pawn on a global chessboard.

Or was it a tragedy of internal failure? This argument holds the KKE leadership accountable for a series of catastrophic errors. Paralyzed by caution and adherence to Moscow's line, they delayed forming their own alternative government—unlike the successful Tito in Yugoslavia—and made fatal concessions by joining a unity government without securing real power. They agreed to a disarmament process that left their enemies armed while neutralizing their own forces. This strategic indecisiveness, it is argued, handed their powerful external and internal foes the very tools needed to orchestrate their destruction. Understanding this pivotal moment requires grappling with both the crushing weight of foreign intervention and the critical, squandered opportunities of the resistance itself.

Source: Nikolaos Stelya, Sintrofoi: Yunanistan’da Komünizm Rüyası: Yunanistan Komünist Partisi (KKE) Tarihi (1918-1949) (Comrades: The Dream of Communism in Greece: History of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) (1918-1949)) (Istanbul: Kalkedon Yayınları, 2025).

Welcome to the last episode of the first season of The Levant Files' Deep Dive Podcast Section, where we move beyond the headlines and into the heart of history. What if the story of a nation wasn't just a collection of dates and dry facts, but a living, breathing narrative shaped by constant struggle, unimaginable loss, and an unbreakable spirit?

Today, we embark on a journey into the tumultuous and profoundly moving history of modern Armenia. We're setting aside ancient chronicles to focus on the pivotal 20th and 21st centuries—a period that forged the nation's contemporary identity. This isn't a simple timeline; it's a story of survival against all odds. We will navigate from the tragic dawn of the Armenian Genocide, a foundational trauma that echoes to this day, through the complex decades of Soviet rule where national identity simmered just beneath the surface.

We'll witness the fleeting, hard-won moments of independence, the devastating conflicts over Nagorno-Karabakh, and the relentless geopolitical pressures of being at a crossroads of empires. It's a tale of how a people, repeatedly caught between larger powers, have fought to preserve their culture, their faith, and their right to self-determination.

Our mission is to unpack this intricate history, exploring the key moments, the external pressures, and the internal will that have defined Armenia's path. As we begin, consider this: How does a small nation, defined so heavily by its tragic past and its challenging geography, secure a stable future in the 21st century? Join us as we deep dive into the story of modern Armenia.

Welcome to a new episode of The Levant Files

Imagine a place that, just over a century ago, was little more than a geographical name on a map. Fast forward through a century of imperial collapse, world wars, revolution, and brutal conflict, and it emerges as a modern nation-state. What forces drive such a breakneck transformation? And what legacy does that turbulent journey leave for a country navigating the complexities of the 21st century?

This week, in our new podcast episode, we delve into the fascinating and often turbulent history of modern Azerbaijan. We'll trace its path from a collection of people under the Russian Empire—where local Muslims faced systemic discrimination—to the surprisingly rapid formation of a national identity in the early 1900s. We explore the brief, doomed dream of its first independence, crushed by the Soviet Red Army, and the 70 years that followed, where Moscow both institutionalized the "Azerbaijani" ethnic category while simultaneously attempting to erase inconvenient histories.

Join us as we unpack the chaos of the Soviet collapse, the explosion of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that came to define an era, and the political turmoil that paved the way for a second, hard-won independence. We'll examine how the legacies of Soviet-era corruption, immense oil wealth, and unresolved conflict continue to shape the nation today. Ultimately, this is a story that asks a profound question: What does it take to forge a stable, unified identity when the very definition of your people has been contested, constructed, and in constant flux for generations?

Selected Sources:

Bolukbasi, Suha. Azerbaijan: A Political History. United Kingdom: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2013.

Transcaucasia, Nationalism, and Social Change. USA: University of Michigan Press, 1996.

Zeynaloglu, Jahangir. A Concise History of Azerbaijan: From Azerbaijani Turkic Dynasties of the Middle Ages to the First Turkic Republic. N.p.: Independently Published, 2020.

A political earthquake has shaken Greece, resulting in a series of high-level resignations that include government ministers and top officials. At the heart of the crisis is a sprawling agricultural scandal involving millions in EU funds, startling allegations of a sophisticated criminal organization, and a direct clash between European prosecutors and the Greek state. This is not just a local issue; it's a story of systemic corruption that has triggered investigations from Brussels and resulted in fines costing the country hundreds of millions of euros.

The scandal, spearheaded by the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO), alleges a massive scheme to defraud funds intended to support genuine farmers. Investigators describe a "pyramid of corruption" where state officials, politicians, and individuals allegedly worked together to siphon off subsidies illegally. The methods were as brazen as they were bizarre, from creating "ghost flocks" of non-existent sheep and goats to claiming massive subsidies for phantom beehives, with applications in some sectors exceeding the entire available budget by nearly nine times.

Centered mainly on the island of Crete, the operation allegedly involved fabricating documents, claiming public land as private pasture, and pressuring officials to approve fraudulent payments. Whistleblowers who tried to stop the flow of money were reportedly fired, while wiretapped conversations suggest brazen attempts to interfere with the investigation itself. Now, as the Greek government plans the drastic step of shutting down the entire payment agency, legitimate farmers find their crucial payments frozen, becoming the ultimate victims of the fallout.

In this deep dive, we will unpack the complex web of this scandal. We'll sift through the explosive 3,000-page prosecutor's file, examine the political fallout, and explore the mechanisms of the fraud to understand how deep this alleged corruption runs, the legal hurdles preventing prosecution, and who ultimately pays the price.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Welcome to the 8th brand new episode of The Levant Files' Deep Dive Podcast Service! Prepare for an in-depth exploration as we delve into the complex, turbulent, and often misunderstood modern history of Libya. From the sands of the Sahara to the shores of the Mediterranean, we'll navigate a century of transformation guided by the insightful works of leading scholars Dirk Vandewalle and Bukola A. Oyeniyi.

Our journey begins with the very foundations: how Libya's challenging geography and vast desert expanses forged distinct regional identities—Tripolitania, Cyrenaica, and Fezzan—laying the groundwork for centuries of complex interactions.

We'll explore:

The Ottoman Era & Emerging Powers: Witness the waning Ottoman influence, the rise of local dynasties like the Karamanlis, and the pivotal emergence of the Sanussi order, a spiritual and political force that would profoundly shape Cyrenaica.

Italian Colonization & Brutal Realities: Delve into the harsh era of Italian colonial rule, the fascist ambition to create a "Fourth Shore," the brutal suppression of resistance, and the demographic re-engineering attempts that left deep scars.

Independence & the Monarchy: Follow Libya's path to a fragile, UN-brokered independence under King Idris I and the initial struggles of a new nation trying to unify its disparate parts.

The Oil Bonanza & Its Double-Edged Sword: Discover how the discovery of oil dramatically reshaped Libya's destiny, bringing immense wealth but also laying the seeds for patronage, dependency, and the erosion of traditional structures.

Gaddafi's Revolution & the Jamahiriya: Unpack the 1969 coup that brought Muammar Gaddafi to power. We'll examine his radical "Third Universal Theory," the Green Book, and the attempt to create a "state of the masses" (Jamahiriya)—contrasting the revolutionary rhetoric with the reality of centralized, often opaque, control.

Navigating Global Tides & Internal Tensions: Trace Libya's tumultuous international relations, from Arab nationalism and anti-Western stances to sanctions, the Lockerbie bombing, and eventual, cautious attempts at rapprochement. Internally, we'll see how oil wealth often bypassed genuine institution-building, fueling a system reliant on patronage and personal loyalty.

Reform Attempts and Resistance: Uncover the late-era attempts at economic and political reform, often driven by figures such as Saif al-Islam Gaddafi and Shukri Ghanem, and the powerful old guard resistance that ultimately stymied deep-seated change.

The 2011 Uprising & Descent into Chaos: Finally, we'll confront the seismic events of the 2011 Arab Spring, the rapid escalation from protests to civil war, NATO intervention, the fall and death of Gaddafi, and the subsequent fragmentation of the country, as militias and rival factions vying for power in the vacuum left behind.

This episode of The Levant Files untangles the intricate threads of Libyan history—from imperial ambition and colonial exploitation to the intoxicating power of oil wealth and the enduring challenge of building a unified, stable state. Join us as we explore how these historical forces have shaped the Libya of today, a nation still grappling with its fractured past.

Tune in now to "Libya's Fractured Past: Oil, Power, and the Path to Chaos" – the latest deep dive from The Levant Files!

The Academic Sources:

Oyeniyi, Bukola A. The History of Libya. Bloomsbury Academic, 2019.

Vandewalle, Dirk. A History of Modern Libya. Cambridge University Press, 2012.

Wright, John. Libya: A Modern History. Taylor & Francis, 2022.