The Big Picture with Mohamed Hassan
Episodes
Why I turned my camera from Hollywood to Palestine | Misan Harriman
25 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week on The Big Picture Podcast we’re joined by celebrated photographer and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Misan Harriman.Harriman has built a globa...
Francesca Albanese exposed a global "economy of genocide", then she was sanctioned
10 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Just two days after we sat down with Francesca Albanese, the Trump Administration placed her under sanctions.They accuse the UN Special Rapporteur of ...
Silicon Valley, Israel and the new AI arms race | Antony Loewenstein
04 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What does the war look like in the age of AI?This week on the Big Picture Podcast, we’re joined by author and investigative journalist Antony Loewen...
Norman Finkelstein on Israel, Zohran Mamdani and the coming class war
27 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In a fiery and deeply personal return to The Big Picture Podcast, professor Norman Finkelstein explains why Israel and its allies in the West have des...
The Israel-Iran war is more dangerous than we imagine | David Hearst
16 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week on The Big Picture Podcast, we sit down with Middle East Eye’s Editor in Chief David Hearst to talk about the rapidly unfolding war betwee...
How the Military Industrial Complex really works | William Hartung
09 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
NOTE: This conversation was recorded in November 2024, which is why you'll hear references to the elections and the Biden Administration.This wee...
Trump and Zionists want to scare us into silence. We won’t let them | Linda Sarsour
12 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Why haven’t there been mass protests against Trump like there were in 2017?Part of the reason is the climate of fear and uncertainty that now prolif...
Pope Francis and the Muslim World | Jordan Denari Duffner
26 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The catholic world is grieving the loss of Pope Francis, but so is much of the Muslim one.Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Argentina, Pope Francis spent ...
Why I had to flee America | Momodou Taal
03 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week on The Big Picture Podcast, we speak to Momodou Taal, a Cornell Unveristy scholar forced to flee from US immigration officers.The crackdown ...
American doctor in Gaza: ending the carnage is in Trump's hands | Dr Feroze Sidhwa
21 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A trauma surgeon stationed at one of Gaza’s largest hospitals says the carnage this week is beyond anything he has seen in Ukraine or anywhere.More ...
Netanyahu commits a 'bloodbath' in Gaza to save himself | Daniel Levy
18 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
At least 400 people have been killed after a surprise Israeli attack on Gaza in the early hours of Tuesday. Israel’s government vows to continue es...
Judaism is 6000 years old. It can outlive Zionism | Rabbia Alissa Wise
18 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Is Judaism itself an anti-Zionist religion?According to Rabbi and organiser Alissa Wise, it's precisely the teachings of her faith that informs h...
A Hamas official speaks on Gaza ceasefire & the next war with Israel | Basem Naim
24 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What has Hamas achieved after 15 months of war with Israel?With the assassination of two of its most senior leaders, and the devastating human toll in...
Netanyahu’s total victory narrative collapsed, and Israelis are in shock | Daniel Levy | The Big Picture
23 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Netanyahu’s social contract has collapsed, and Israelis are in a state of shock.That is how former Israeli negotiator Daniel Levy sees the outcome o...
The Muslim senator who took on Australia’s government | Fatima Payman | The Big Picture
14 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When Fatima Payman was first elected to Australia’s senate - she didn’t imagine she’d go to war with the Prime Minister two years later.Back in ...
Piers Morgan, CNN and the fight for Palestinian dignity | Mohammed el-Kurd
28 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What makes a perfect victim?For Palestinians fighting to keep their stories alive in the media, it often feels that they must audition for the sympath...
The Syrian dream rises from the ashes of Assad’s nightmare | Waad al-Kateab
13 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Two years after our conversation with Waad al-Kateab about the desperate plight of Syrian refugees, we return to have a very different conversation.Le...
Trump’s intrusive demons and Israel’s ‘enlightened cause’ | Norman Finkelstein
16 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Has Donald Trump peeled back the veil on the toxicity of America?What will his second term mean for Israel, Palestine and the pursuit of justice?This ...
Americans are socialised into capitalism, racism and then Zionism | Noura Erakat
13 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What is the link between Zionism, capitalism and the American empire?Fresh off the back of a deeply toxic, all consuming US election - one in which th...
The birth of Israel and the death of Zionism | Ilan Pappé
31 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Can Zionism survive the current war in Gaza?Israeli historian Ilan Pappé believes it can’t. In fact, he argues that the liberation of Palestine is ...
The untold history of the Israeli Defence Forces | The Big Picture
24 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Before the formation of the Israeli Defence Forces in 1948, there were three underground Zionist militias - The Haganah, the Irgun and the Lehi.They d...
Will Kamal Harris lose the election because of the Gaza vote | Abbas Alawieh
16 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Can Kamala Harris defeat Donald Trump without ending the war in Gaza?That could be up to a handful of key swing states, including Michigan, home to 15...
A (very) online history of Elon Musk | Marc Owen Jones
20 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Does Elon Musk have too much power over how we communicate online? Is he using that power to fuel dangerous far-right conspiracies?This week on The B...
Israel, Iran, Hezbollah and the tightrope of regional war | Trita Parsi
10 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What is the price tag for convincing Iran to back down?The US is desperately trying to keep a lid on the heightened tensions in the Middle East, follo...
Netanyahu's end game: Why Israel assassinated Hamas chief in Iran | Gideon Levy
31 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Two assassinations. Two capital cities. Less than 24 hours.One struck an apartment in downtown Beirut, killing a woman and two children - targeting a ...
Why real change for Palestine can't come from the fringes | Naz Shah
01 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Just days out from a historic general election expected to usher in a Labour government for the first time in 14 years - we speak to one of its most v...
Palestine, people power and changing the two party system | Leanne Mohamad
28 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Can a lone 24 year old Palestinian take on the Labour Party?That’s what Leanne Mohamad is determined to do, campaigning as an independent candidate ...
After 40 years with Labour, Corbyn is taking them on | Jeremy Corbyn
26 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jeremy Corbyn was the Labour MP for North Islington for 40 years - his entire political career.But not anymore.Now, he’s campaigning against his for...
What investigating the Iraq War taught me about Gaza | Les Roberts
24 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In 2004, Les Roberts smuggled himself into Iraq as his own government was in the midst of bombing and occupying the country.His mission was to find ou...
We can never trust these instruments of power | Norman Finkelstein
14 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We are living through a moment of social and political upheaval - one that has somehow aligned the Houthi rebels in Yemen, South Africa’s greatest l...
Fiona Lali took down Suella Braverman, now she's going after the government
04 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Fiona Lali wants to bring down the British government, as well as capitalism. The marxist organiser turned independent candidate in the upcoming UK g...
[BONUS] The ICC arrest warrants against Israel and Hamas explained | The Big Picture
20 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Will Benjamin Netanyahu face justice at the Hague?The International Criminal Court on Monday issued arrest warrants for both Israeli and Hamas leaders...
The untold legacy of Winston Churchill and the British Empire | Tariq Ali
16 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Winston Churchill is one of the most biographed figures in modern history, and held up as an orator and wartime strategist that turned the tide agains...
Why young Jewish Americans are turning on Israel | Simone Zimmerman
24 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
“I was definitely raised to be a Jewish leader of some kind.”With college campuses all over the US gripped by intense battles around free speech, ...
Why are Israel and Iran on the brink of war? | David Hearst
15 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Did Iran fall into Israel’s trap when it attacked on Saturday, or did it outmanoeuvre Netanyahu? Are we on the brink of regional war, or can the US ...
Antisemitism, White Supremacy and the death of liberal Europe | Ghassan Hage
11 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Is Europe ‘nostalgic for a racist past’ when it didn’t have to apologise for its colonialism? In this week’s episode of The Big Picture, we s...
Why Sadiq Khan still believes in Labour under Keir Starmer
04 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of The Big Picture, we sit down with Sadiq Khan for a wide ranging conversation about Labour’s election hopes, his political regrets...
Finding my voice and leaving Gaza | Plestia Alaqad
29 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How do you humanise people facing unimaginable odds?That was the task Plestia Alaqad gave herself when she first put on her press vest on October 7. F...
How Israel tests its weapons in Gaza then sells them to the world | Antony Loewenstein
21 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of The Big Picture Podcast, we sit down with investigative journalist Antony Loewenstein to talk about how for decades, Israel used it...
Changing the narrative around Palestine | Randa Abdel Fattah
14 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What does coverage of Gaza tell us about how the West sees the rest of the world?A recent report into mainstream news coverage found Islamophobic and ...
Why the West is wrong about Islam | Peter Oborne
24 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Why are Western societies so fearful of Islam and Muslims?One can answer this question by examining history, particularly that of European colonial po...
The Labour Party has a racism problem | Ali Milani
18 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How deep does racism run within the Labour Party?Since the start of the Gaza war, there's been a growing anger within British Muslim communities ...
How to build a mass movement around Palestine | Chris Nineham
11 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week on the Big Picture, we speak with British political activist, author and deputy chair of the Stop The War Coalition, Chris Nineham.Nineham w...
The 'righteous anger' of Palestinians | Omar Suleiman
04 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It is impossible not to feel overwhelmed by the ongoing war in Gaza - the death toll, the horrific footage, the world’s inability to bring it to an ...
A British lawmaker fights for her Christian family in Gaza | Layla Moran
20 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What does it take to shift the UK’s position on Palestine?One lawmaker, Layla Moran, has a deeply personal drive to fight for change. Her relatives ...
The legal team pursuing justice in the Gaza War | Tayab Ali
14 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Can Western leaders be held to account for their role in the Gaza war?This week on The Big Picture Podcast, we sit down with one lawyer determined to ...
[BONUS] Biden needs the Arab vote to beat Trump | The Big Picture Explained
10 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Joe Biden has pursued a ‘no red lines’ policy in his support for Israel’s war in Gaza, despite it being deeply unpopular among his own voters.Th...
Why a weapons expert is taking on the US government | Josh Paul
07 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Josh Paul created a big stir when he resigned from the US State Department in protest of the sale of weapons to Israel. In a highly publicised letter...
Israel's fears, its delusions and its future | Daniel Levy
16 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Is there a path back from the brink for Israel and Palestine?Under the blinding influence of fury and revenge after the October 7 attack, Israel has w...
[BONUS] Why American politicians are 'lying' about Gaza | The Big Picture Explained
15 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Are there Hamas tunnels under hospitals? Did Israel give up Gaza in 2005? Did the Palestinians reject their own state?This week on The Big Picture, we...
The fall of Western order, the rise of the Global South | Wadah Khanfar
02 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Are Western leaders sleepwalking into a disaster in the Middle East?As regional tensions surge amid Israel’s devastating war in Gaza, its allies in ...
[BONUS] ‘40 beheaded babies’ : How media amplified an unconfirmed story | The Big Picture Explained
13 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On Wednesday, the world woke up to newspapers plastered with a horrific headline about ‘40 Israeli babies decapitated by Hamas’. But was the stor...
The history of Hamas, Fatah and Palestinian liberation movements | Azzam Tamimi
10 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The history of Palestinian liberation movements is paved with setbacks, betrayals and bitter rivalries.What began as an attempt to unify the resistanc...
Imran Khan, the army and Pakistan's broken politics | Zulfi Bukhari
05 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What is the fate of Imran Khan?After more than a year of political turmoil following his ousting, the embattled former Pakistani leader is in prison, ...
What Ireland's history of resistance says about Palestine | Richard Boyd Barrett
07 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Ireland’s fight for independence from British rule has defined how it sees itself in the world - as a liberated people compelled to fight against op...
How a human rights defender was convicted of terrorism | Muhammad Rabbani
31 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How far would you go to protect a client?When Muhammad Rabbani, a human rights advocate, was stopped and interrogated on his way back to the UK after ...
Jeremy Corbyn | The future of Labour and the Left in Britain
24 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Has the Labour Party turned its back on the Left?Following the disastrous election loss to Boris Johnson in 2019, the party emerged from the ashes pro...
What Uyghurs want the world to know about China | Rahima Mahmut
17 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How do you challenge the might of the Chinese state?For decades, the Uyghur Muslims have fought to preserve their culture, their language and their re...
Why we should be worried about AI mass surveillance | Agnes Callamard
10 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Can we trust the AI to watch over us?Artificial intelligence and machine learning technology have entered into a new era, advancing at a rate none of ...
The forgotten history of Arab Jews | Avi Shlaim
03 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For thousands of years, Jewish communities lived and thrived in the Arab world, and were integral to shaping its history, culture and economy.But when...
How Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shifted global politics | David Hearst
28 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Putin, NATO and the threat of nuclear war - has the world entered a new reality?More than a year and a half ago, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shocke...
Narco-Diplomacy: How Bashar al-Assad used Captagon to survive the Syrian War | Lina Khatib
21 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when a dictator uses drug trafficking as a tool of diplomacy?The psychoactive drug known as Captagon has exploded across the Middle East ...
The UK wants to ban Israel boycotts, but MPs vow to fight it | Crispin Blunt MP
14 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Could the BDS movement soon become illegal in the UK?Under a new bill, the Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill, boycotting fore...
Israel, the media and the future of Palestinian resistence | Husam Zomlot
07 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Are we witnessing the beginning of a new Palestinian uprising?The Israeli raid on Jenin this week marked a sudden escalation of violence in an increas...
How Israel uses architecture to exert control | Eyal Weizman
26 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On the frontlines of technological leaps are often people in power - governments, police, intelligence agencies and militaries - trying to use new res...
The history of Kurdish liberation movements | Zeynep Kaya
12 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Kurdish political groups and militias have been fighting for independence for more than a century, pitting them against the governments of four countr...
Western Muslims and the Culture War | Dr Yasir Qadhi
29 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Do Muslims have a place in the so-called ‘cultre war’?In many Western countries, a battle has waged between progressives and conservatives jostlin...
Christchurch Mosque Attacks: Keeping my brother’s story alive | Aya al-Umari
14 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Four years after the Christchurch terror attacks, Aya al-Umari is fighting to change her brother’s story from ‘victim’ to ‘hero’.Hussein al-...
How UK counterterror laws ‘criminalise’ British Muslims | Layla Aitlhadj
09 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
After nearly four years of delay, the independent review into the UK’s counter-terror programme ‘Prevent’ has been published. The highly controv...
Talking to young men about Andrew Tate | Zahara Chowdhury
01 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Andrew Tate’s sudden and meteoric rise as a men’s rights influencer has captivated the attention of young men all over the world and shocked many ...
Trauma, memory and hope: The story of Syrian refugees | Waad al-Kateab
30 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Syrian activist, revolutionary and filmmaker Waad al-Kateab gave birth to her daughter Sama under siege in Aleppo, sheltering in a makeshift hospital ...
Ben Gvir, Smotrich and the end of the peace process | Daniel Levy
25 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
After four years of political turmoil, Israel's far-right Zionist agitators have emerged victorious, seeking to expel Palestinians, implement Jew...
Women's liberation, minority rights and revolution in Iran | Dr Kat Eghdamian
21 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In our first in a series of long-form interviews with great minds, we speak with human rights advocate Dr Kat Eghdamian on why the fight for women&apo...