Thrilled to see that my upcoming book is now on Google Books. It's not out yet but will be available in September. I look forward to sharing more. books.google.dk/books/about/...

Sneaking a giant screen into the flagshagger march is one of the funniest things @ledbydonkeys.org have ever done. "STAY HYDRATED" 😂🤣😂

Irish TV to air Father Ted instead of Eurovision final in protest against Israel’s inclusion

I've long thought that one of the most insidious, enervating, unavoidable, continually stress-inducing aspects of the occupation—which is almost impossible to convey to outsiders not experiencing it at first hand—is sound. That x100 in Gaza. Ahmed Sbaih writes: massreview.org/2026/05/08/t...

The @financialtimes.com @ahmedomran.bsky.social highlights the importance of #Saudi’s west coast. I’m quoted that less flashy #Vision2030 investments like transport/infrastructure were probably not originally about hedging #Hormuz risks but could become more of a focus. www.ft.com/content/5a92...

'Ecocide, urbicide, and domicide': Bint Jbeil describes the extent of Israel's destruction The municipality of this southern Lebanese town has called on the state to make an appeal to "the competent international bodies." today.lorientlejour.com/article/1504...

Gulf states regularly pay $ deposits into 3rd country central banks to bolster the recipients’ reserves. Such "monetary statecraft" provides leverage to the donor: Gulf states can ask for the cash to be returned. www.ft.com/content/9907...

"Of the more than 700 Palestinians killed by Israeli fire over the six months of the ceasefire, 269 were shot near the yellow line, according to UN data. Of these, more than 100 were children." www.theguardian.com/world/2026/a...

There is a webinar on "Spatialising Security, Securitising Space: Ways into the Politics of the Middle East and North Africa" in two days (16/04/2026) at 17:00 CEST. "The special editors Javier Bordón and Simon Mabon, discussant Tamirace Fakhoury (Fletcher School), and ...

I think I've figured what "double-sided ceasefire" means, it means both sides have a different version of the ceasefire.

A group of new accounts on the prediction market Polymarket made highly specific, well-timed bets on whether the U.S. and Iran would reach a ceasefire on April 7, resulting in hundreds of thousands of dollars in profits for these new customers.

Before heading to bed, my 16 year old asked me “just a quick question - was there almost nuclear war today?” We cannot normalize this.

Everyone I know in Iran is waiting to see if the US will bomb them further into the stone age. Read this achingly beautiful letter from Zahra in Tehran to get a sense of what that feels like:"Where can they begin when every beginning might be an end?" open.substack.com/pub/naghmehs...

There must be a lot of people who don't use violent rhetoric or share conspiracy theories, but also cannot remember how they got to a Waffle House. Some will end up at IHOP, but America is divided.

None of his supporters will care about this, but they should. Newly unearthed Nigel Farage videos reveal support for rioter, neo-Nazi event and far-right slogans www.theguardian.com/uk-news/ng-i...

In Lebanon, Israel seems to be following the same logic it deployed in Gaza: emptying out entire areas through what amounts to ethnic cleansing. @joelleabirached.bsky.social writes from Beirut as bombs rain down once again:

⚠️New #openaccessarticle online! 🇪🇺 Spatialising Security, Securitising Space: Ways into the Politics of the #MiddleEast and #NorthAfrica 🔍 Discover more: shorturl.at/ucjfY ✒️ Javier Bordón & @profmabon.bsky.social (@lancasteruni.bsky.social)

Nothing says “we are liberating you from a bad regime to give you a better life” like bombing desalination plants and oil refineries

Bahrain says an Iranian strike damaged a desalination plant overnight, following the US/Israeli attack on Iran’s desalination plant on Qeshm Island. If water infrastructure is now considered a target it’s going to be disastrous for the people living there. 1/2

Professor of International Relations Simon Mabon is interviewed for a Conversation podcast about how “The Gulf's delicate balancing act between the US and Iran is now in flames” theconversation.com/the-gulfs-de...

“Iran has, for the first time, shattered the illusions of Gulf citizens about their immunity from regional politics… and brought them firmly, and likely permanently, back into geographical reality.“ @abuaardvark.bsky.social on Iran’s Gulf retaliation and the hollowness of US security guarantees:

Systematic Iranian attacks on radar facilities to degrade missile defense systems

Simon Mabon talks to The Conversation Weekly podcast about how the evolution of the relationship between Iran and its Gulf neighbours.

📢 New #SpecialIssue Online! 👉 Spatialising Security, Securitising Space: Ways into the Politics of the Middle East and North Africa 🔗 Read it here: www.tandfonline.com/toc/rspe20/6...

“The linkages flow in both directions. Wars unleash gargantuan amounts of planet-warming emissions…Those extra emissions drive deadlier heat…and other impacts that..[make] armed conflict more likely… Yet war has the perverse effect of pushing the climate story down the news agenda.”

‘Iran’s aim now seems to be not to secure immediate victory but to raise the cost of the war to prohibitive levels. It sees the conflict as existential. If regime change is the declared objective, then compromise is not an option.’ @eskandarsadeghi.bsky.social: www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2026/ma...

On Navigating the Vortex | Ethnopolitics Edition, I talk about the special issue I co-edited with Simon Mabon, and how it frames debates on power sharing and contentious politics in divided societies

Bad idea for everyone except those seeking regional anarchy and forever war. www.nytimes.com/2026/03/04/u...

Last night I recorded an episode of Radio 4’s Moral Maze on whether it is moral to attack Iran. Short answer: it’s not. www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

US Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, gave a truly unhinged interview on Tucker that zealously genuflected to the Israeli right (see left). Huckabee’s interview was so insane that it united the whole rest of the region—including the UAE—to make a joint statement against his remarks (see right).

Exciting workshop by @maricalc.bsky.social & @profmabon.bsky.social for @europeanisa.bsky.social 's EWIS in Izmir this year: "Empire without Hegemony: The unmasking of US dominium over the Middle East and beyond" eisa-net.org/wp-content/u...

This was a good watch, with @victorkattan.bsky.social and @profmabon.bsky.social not being shy about blasting the stupid idea of having Blair run Gaza. Who ever thought of that one should read some history books. It's hardly a secret why that's a terrible idea. www.aljazeera.com/video/inside...

Please excuse the self promotion but Waterstones have selected my new book Schism for a 25% preorder discount. It doesn't run for long (& I know it's not out until May) but apparently pre-orders are important. If you could spread the word I'd hugely appreciate it www.waterstones.com/book/schism/...

The two years of fighting since October 7 have transformed the Middle East: MIddle East expert Simon Mabon @profmabon.bsky.social looks into the aftermath of the Hamas attacks and Israel's war on Gaza theconversation.com/the-two-year...

The impact of the October 7 attacks and Israel’s response will reverberate for decades to come.

🇸🇾 🎉Thank you to all who joined us in Parliament for our roundtable on Syria’s transition nine months on. Our expert panel reflected on interim governance, legal reform & the prospects for meaningful accountability. 📝 A takeaway report will be out soon: fpc.org.uk/join/

As U.S. aid flows to Israel, settler violence in the West Bank is surging – with little state restraint. Experts say it’s part of a larger strategy to forcibly reshape the region. buff.ly/CpMDami By @aperliger.bsky.social, UMass Lowell

The mathematics of starvation: how Israel caused a famine in Gaza. Israel controls the flow of food into Gaza. It has calculated how many calories Palestinians need to stay alive. Its data shows only a fraction has been allowed in. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

John Simpson “The Joint Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights warns that countries are becoming bolder in attacking dissidents in the UK. Russia, China & Iran are the worst, but Bahrain, Egypt, Eritrea, India, Pakistan, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, & the UAE have all attacked people here.”

Trump’s Justice Department is currently asking the Supreme Court for permission to build a deportation machine that can disappear anyone, citizen and immigrant alike, to a foreign prison forever, permanently extinguishing their constitutional rights with zero due process. slate.com/news-and-pol...

"There are other more incendiary options. One would be for the UK and others to properly adhere to their obligations under international law." @profmabon.bsky.social on the Gaza genocide. theconversation.com/gaza-is-star...

Israel’s allies should look at what was done to isolate South Africa during the apartheid years.

Trump and Miller are intent on building an unaccountable domestic secret police force that would be the world's third-biggest security force by funding levels, after the US and China's *militaries*. That kind of funding dwarfs its stated purpose, which tells you what its real purpose will be.

Insane that the British Foreign Secretary can meet with the former leader of Al Qaeda in Syria while, at home, on the same day, his government arrested 20 people on 'terrorism offenses' for supporting a non-violent pro-Palestine protest group.

Indiana Jones will be played by a rotating cast of three adjuncts who answer to two different associate deans

A judge ruled Anthropic training AI on books without permission was legal, but pirating the books was not. This is ultimately a very damaging decision but there are many other cases working their way through the legal system that have worse facts www.404media.co/judge-rules-...

This is such an important day for New Yorkers. Rooting for Mamdani! www.aljazeera.com/opinions/202...