Centre Stage

French political analyst Francois Burgat was charged with supporting terrorism over a social media post he shared, which included a statement by Hamas. He was later acquitted. Burgat joins Centre Stage to unpack the case, the politics behind it, and what he believes it reveals about free speech and support for Palestine in the West. This episode is produced in partnership with the Islam and Muslims Initiative, an international platform that connects Muslims and non-Muslims in the realms of religion, politics, business, media, academia, and civil society. Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

Rula Shadid, discusses the global perception of Palestine and Western complicity in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza. Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

Olivier Roy, a professor of Orientalism, talks about the roots of Orientalism and the enduring myth of how only the West represents progress. From colonial-era narratives to modern-day politics, Roy explores how the Global South is still perceived through a Eurocentric lens — and what that says about our civilisation, modernity and the West’s ongoing struggle with pluralism. Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

In this episode of Centre Stage, our guest is Dr Gabor Mate, a retired physician, author and Holocaust survivor who has written extensively on trauma and child development, as well as Israel and Palestine. Mate talks about the colonial foundations of Zionism, how living under it has traumatised Palestinians and the ways mainstream media distorts the realities on the ground in Gaza. Phil Lavelle is a TV news correspondent at Al Jazeera. Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on Instagram, X, Facebook and YouTube

In this episode of Centre Stage, our guest is scholar and activist Norman Finkelstein. He discusses his latest book on the role of identity politics in the repression of campus protests in support of Palestine. Finkelstein explores how contradictions in wokeism are being weaponised against the pro-Palestine movement and what that means for free speech today. Phil Lavelle is a TV news correspondent at Al Jazeera. Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on Instagram, X, Facebook and YouTube

Jeremy Corbyn, an Independent MP in the UK Parliament, has long fought for economic justice, peace and a British foreign policy that tries to atone for its imperial legacy. In this episode, he talks about the cost of standing with Palestine, and why Europe may need to unite against a US-led trade war. Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on Instagram, X, Facebook and YouTube

Harvard fights back against the administration’s cuts — will it succeed? Andrew Manuel Crespo, lead counsel for Harvard’s faculty, discusses the administration’s assault on US higher education Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on Instagram, X, Facebook, Threads and YouTube

International lawyer Ralph Wilde joins Centre Stage to talk about the 2024 landmark ruling by the International Court of Justice that deems Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories illegal — and why it must cease immediately. Wilde provides detailed analysis, which he presented to the court, and tells Al Jazeera principal presenter Cyril Vanier what Israel and the international community must do to comply with the ICJ ruling and the UN resolution that endorsed the court’s decision. Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on Instagram, X, Facebook, Threads and YouTube

Pulitzer Prize winning author Nathan Thrall joins Centre Stage to talk about how his experiences, working and living in Israel, Gaza, the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem, drove him to write, A Day in the Life of Abed Salama. Witnessing the discrimination and subjugation of Palestinians, Thrall speaks about Israel’s decades-long system of apartheid and why he still has hope for the future. Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on Instagram, X, Facebook, Threads and YouTube

In this episode of Centre Stage, our guest is Humza Yousaf, the former first minister of Scotland who made history as the first Muslim to lead a Western country. Yousaf talks about the challenges of being an ethnic-minority leader in an often hostile political climate, the rise of the far-right in Europe and how five countries holding a veto at the UN Security Council ought to be considered a relic of the past. Connect with us: @AJEPodcasts on Instagram, X, Facebook, Threads and YouTube