Guest: "Cyrus", MENA researcherRecorded: March 12, 2026 Cyrus joins us to discuss why Hezbollah entered the war against Israel now, Lebanon politics, Syria under the former leader of Al Qaeda's branch, Iraq's pro-Iran militia groups, and more. (Beirut, along with the rest of Lebanon, is being bombed by Israel, so the connection is a bit spotty at times - nothing the mighty War Nerd Legion can't manage.) Further listening with Cyrus:-EP #543 — Syria, Hezbollah & Palestine-Israel, feat. Cyrus-EP #509 — Jolani & The Making of Syrian Sunni Ethno-Supremacism-EP #487 — Israel-Hezbollah Ceasefire + Syria Collapse-EP #478 — Israel's War on Lebanon Total time: 1:44:22Direct link to this episode's mp3 here * Buy & review John Dolan's new book, They Should Have Been Hanged: War Nerd Essays on the U.S. Civil War Subscribe to Radio War Nerd at patreon.com/radiowarnerd Sound production by Telescope Audio