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“I think I should kill you”.  So began one especially fraught encounter in Hugh Pope’s critically acclaimed memoir, Dining with Al Qaeda, now out in an updated edition. He joins Olga Oliker as co-host-turned-guest for this week’s episode to reflect on how his three decades of reporting in the broader Middle East remain relevant for Western readers grappling to understand it today.  Olga and Hugh then reflect on the year that was and how COVID-19 became a phenomenon that has both disrupted life as we knew it and accelerated broader geopolitical trends. While physical borders have been reinforced and personal horizons shrunk to the here and now, the unprecedented reality of lockdown in a digital era has also allowed for a reimagined sense of identity and community.  What big questions remain to be unpacked on War a Peace in 2021? Tune in to find out! For more information: Visit www.hughpope.com to find out more about Dining with Al Qaeda: Making Sense of the Middle East See our The Covid-19 Pandemic and Deadly Conflict page See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.