“From Lockerbei To Istanbul – Kashoggi’s Murder in Historical and Regional Perspective.” Hear Ibrahim Kazerooni and Rob Prince on KGNU Boulder (88.5 FM, 1390 Am, Streaming at www.kgnu.org) on Hemispheres, Middle East Dialogues hosted by Jim Nelson. Tues, October 23, 2018 @ 6-7 pm Mountain States Time

While the media focuses on the brutal murder of one man, admittedly a heinous act, the UN Warns 10 Million More Yemenis Expected to Starve to Death by End of Year. According to the UN, the number of Yemenis in danger of starving to death would rise from the current figure of 8.4 million to 18.4 million by this December. That’s three times the estimated death toll of Jews killed during the Holocaust.

The murder and dismemberment of Saudi journalist and political insider Jamal Kashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul Turkey has triggered a storm of protest, unprecedented in many ways. He certainly is not the first journalist who has been killed in the line of duty nor the only Saudi  a victim of his country’s repressive practices. Nor, despite the effort to paint him as such, was he a great democrat nor particularly that much of a dissident if one is objective about it. Instead he was the consummate insider with a long history of being close to certain members of the Saudi royal family. One commentator simply put it “he bet on the wrong princes.”

Why was Kashoggi murdered in such a barbaric what did he know? Who benefits from his death? How is the whole affair shaping the geopolitics of the Middle East as the Syrian government, with Russian and Iranian support are preparing to cleanse Syria’s Idlib Province of mercenary forces? Will it change U.S.-Saudi Relations? Why is the Israeli media from the more conservative Jerusalem Post to the more liberal Haaretz – in tandem with Christian Fundamentalist ultra-conservative Pat Robinson publicly arguing against holding Saudi Arabia accountable (while saying little or nothing about the Saudi war against Yemen?

Tune in at KGNU’s Hemispheres “Middle East Dialogues” 1390 AM, 88.5 FM in Denver, live streamed at http://www.kgnu.org