Order From Ashes

Episodios

• Diplomacy's Decline 04.06.2026 53m

  Peace negotiations aren’t what they used to be. Michael Wahid Hanna on the diminishing power of talks to end wars.
• Hezbollah’s Comeback 26.05.2026 1h 14m

  Hezbollah was supposedly finished after the assassination of its leader. Sima Ghaddar reveals what we know about Hezbollah’s comeback.
• Iraq’s Weakest Government Yet 19.05.2026 58m

  At a time of war and economic emergency, Iraq’s powerful militias have chosen an unknown businessman to lead the country. Sajad Jiyad charts Iraq’s perilous agenda and the obstacles for its weak new government.
• America Lost. What Are the Rules Now? 12.05.2026 50m

  On this episode of Order from Ashes, Peter Salisbury draws some of the contours of the asymmetric world emerging from a long period of American overreach — a world in which finance, trade, and warfare cannot be dictated by any one superpower.
• Erasing Bint Jbail: What War Looks Like Now 05.05.2026 42m

  Mohamad Bazzi charts Israel’s destruction of his ancestral village of Bint Jbail—and explains why the world can and should stop the ethnic cleansing of southern Lebanon.
• Gulf Power Without an American Shield 28.04.2026 1h 8m

  The Arab monarchies of the Gulf are still rich and powerful, but their position has radically changed. The American security umbrella turned out not to provide much protection. On this episode of the Order from Ashes podcast, Rohan Advani maps the options for the region during a period of swift global transformation.
• A US War Economy That Destroys Value 21.04.2026 53m

  America’s modern war economy causes profound damage. In the short term, war spending undermines democracy and stifles everyday life for regular people. The long-term harm might be even worse, locking the U.S. economy onto a course that’s bad for workers, economic growth, and quality of life.
• A Truce That’s Still War in Lebanon and Hormuz 13.04.2026 1h 8m

  The United States is losing the war it started with Iran, and its policy is increasingly untethered from reality. We start with a report on the war still raging in Lebanon during the supposed ceasefire, and move to an appraisal of America’s shifting interests and confused decision-making process.
• Trump Opens Pandora’s Box in Iraq 23.03.2026 52m

  Trump’s Middle East war has spread to Iraq, which for years kept itself out of the new wave of regional conflict. Century International fellow Sajad Jiyad explains Iraq’s dangerous balancing act between Iran, the United States, and Iraqi militias.
• Forever War for Lebanon and Israel? 16.03.2026 1h 16m

  Century International fellows on the ground in Beirut and Tel Aviv in the third week of regional war analyze the strains on Lebanon, the aims of Israel, and the reasons why we might see many future cycles of violence like this one.
• An Expensive Folly: Costs of the Iran War 09.03.2026 46m

  The author of The Trillion-Dollar War Machine says the Iran war not only destroys lives — it burns money. The Pentagon in its first week estimates the daily costs at $1 billion for its unprovoked and elective war on Iran. What’s the likely cost of this new war?
• Hezbollah Enters the Iran War Catastrophe 03.03.2026 43m

  On the fourth day of the war against Iran, Century International fellow Sam Heller shares the grim perspective from Beirut on the spiraling dangers spawned by America’s choice to attack.
• Iran Prepares for War With America 26.02.2026 1h

  The US is negotiating with Iran over its nuclear program, and both sides are preparing for war. On this episode of the Order from Ashes podcast, Naysan Rafati grounds the conversation in the realities on the ground, including Iran’s incentives and capabilities, and the substantial dangers of escalation.
• Who Killed the International Liberal Order This Time? 16.02.2026 53m

  Admirers and critics have many times pronounced the death of the international liberal order. Is it true this time? Nick Danforth on what’s lost and what might come.
• Smugglers to Supply Chains to Regional Warriors 09.02.2026 57m

  Fresh from a trip to the Gulf, Peter Salisbury discusses the growing reach of two regional powers: Saudi Arabia, flush with oil and cash, and Yemen’s Houthis, newly confident in the power of their drones and missiles.
• On War Powers, Congress Is MIA 02.02.2026 56m

  Legal expert Brian Finucane explains how Congress could reassert its Constitutional power to decide when America goes to war.
• Who Will Rebuild Syria? 26.01.2026 56m

  Syria’s reconstruction could consolidate a new era of authoritarianism and fail to rebuild the country. With Century International fellow Freddy DeKnatel.
• America's Authoritarian Turn 19.01.2026 1h

  American democracy is in danger. The Century Foundation’s new democracy meter explains the risks—and how Americans can reverse authoritarianism and restore democratic practices. With Nate Schenkkan and Angela Hanks.
• Iraq's Lessons for Venezuela 12.01.2026 59m

  Order from Ashes returns after a long hiatus. Zaid Al-Ali and Thanassis Cambanis remember the real lessons of the US invasion and occupation of Iraq—and that history’s stark warning for American interventionist fantasies in Venezuela.
• Sistani’s Historic Legacy 12.12.2023 38m

  During decades of turmoil, war, and regime change in Iraq, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani has played a critical, often overlooked role—steering Iraq away from sectarian conflict, promoting civic democracy over direct theocracy, and quietly seeking to calm regional tensions.   On this episode of Order from Ashes, Century International fellow Sajad Jiyad explains how Sistani has appealed to a majority of the world’s millions of Shia Muslims with his indirect model of clerical authority, a stark contrast to the competing model of direct clerical rule advanced by his compatriots in Iran.    Jiyad has published a new political biography,  God’s Man in Iraq: The Life and Leadership of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, which offers the first comprehensive account of Sistani’s legacy and draws on original sources and hundreds of interviews during decades of fieldwork inside Iraq. Jiyad    Observers of Iraq and of Shia power will find God’s Man in Iraq an incomparable appraisal of Sistani’s legacy—and an invaluable guide to the perilous transition that will follow his tenure.   You can learn more and order copies on the book’s homepage.  God’s Man in Iraq is also available in Arabic.   Read:  Commentary: "The Man Who Saved Iraq," by Sajad Jiyad (in English and Arabic) Book page: God’s Man in Iraq: The Life and Leadership of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, by Sajad Jiyad Arabic book page: رجل الله في العراق   Participants: Sajad Jiyad, fellow, Century International Thanassis Cambanis, director, Century International