Mehdi Hasan has had a front seat to US and UK politics for decades. With the UK facing yet another change in prime minister a decade after Brexit, and the US looking ahead to its next vote with the midterm elections in November, we get his take on this moment and why independent journalism is needed more than ever.

In this episode:

• Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan), Editor-in-Chief, Zeteo

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Sonia Bhagat and Alexandra Locke, with Tamara Khandaker, Spencer Cline, Jana Dabliz, and our host, Malika Bilal.

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer.

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This week: 270 days into a ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 1038 Palestinians in Gaza. Iran launches retaliatory strikes on Bahrain and Kuwait. Israel and Lebanon agree on new framework. Iran needs hundreds of billions for reconstruction. Israel has killed at least 73,051 Palestinians in Gaza since October 7th, 2023.

In this episode:

• Resul Serdar, (@ResulSerdarAtas), Al Jazeera Correspondent
• Mohamed Vall, Al Jazeera Journalist
• Rob McBride, Al Jazeera Correspondent
• Nida Ibrahim, (@nida_journo), Al Jazeera correspondent
• Tareq Abu Azzoum, (@abuoazzum) Al Jazeera Senior Correspondent

Episode credits: This episode was produced and mixed by Marthe van der Wolf. Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our lead of audience development and engagement is Andrew Greiner and Munera AlDosari is our engagement producer. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. And Joanne de Frias is Al Jazeera’s Head of Audio.

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Every Saturday, we revisit a story from the archives. This originally aired on October 24, 2022. None of the dates, titles, or other references from that time have been changed.

The World Cup is about to head to the Middle East for the first time. Ever since it was announced back in 2010 that the tournament would be held in Qatar, the country has been getting ready to host the world’s biggest sporting event. In this episode, the first in The Take’s coverage of the World Cup, we look at some of the preparations for the tournament, their associated controversies, and a preview of what we might expect after kickoff.

In this episode:

• Tony Karon (@TonyKaron), AJ+ Editorial Lead
• Sohail Malik (@SohailAJE), Al Jazeera Reporter

Episode credits:

This episode was updated by Sarí el-Khalili. The original production team was Negin Owliaei, Chloe K. Li, Ruby Zaman, Alexandra Locke, Amy Walters, and our host, Malika Bilal.

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our engagement producers are Adam Abou-Gad and Vienna Maglio. Andrew Greiner is lead of audience engagement. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer.

Connect with us:

@AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube