Tragedy Strikes Lebanon with Dr. Steven Cook

Hopkins Podcast on Foreign Affairs

This week, tragedy struck Lebanon.

Over two thousands tons of ammonium nitrate stored in a warehouse in Beirut’s port exploded with earth shattering force — ripping apart the center of Beirut – destroying hospitals, businesses, and the homes of an estimated 300,000 people. Hundreds lost their lives. The scale of destruction and toll on the Lebanese people is heartbreaking.

Prior to the explosions, the political, economic, and public health environment within Lebanon was already near collapse — the explosions have exacerbated these underlying crises in a truly unimaginable way. With protestors taking to the streets calling for radical change, and the Prime Minister announcing his resignation, the future of Lebanon is uncertain.

To help us understand the port explosions, coupled with the structural political, economic, and public health issues pushing Lebanon toward collapse, today on the podcast we are joined by Dr. Steven Cook.

Dr. Steven Cook is a senior fellow for Middle East and Africa studies, as well as Director of the International Affairs Fellowship for Tenured International Relations Scholars, at the Council on Foreign Relations. Alongside writing as a columnist for Foreign Affairs, Dr. Cook has authored several reports and articles for international relations journals, news publications, and opinion magazines. He has also authored several books, including False Dawn: Protest, Democracy, and Violence in the New Middle East; The Struggle for Egypt: From Nasser to Tahrir Square, which won the 2012 gold medal from the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. We hope you enjoy this episode of the Hopkins Podcast on Foreign Affairs

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Tragedy Strikes Lebanon with Dr. Steven Cook