Reveal – "A New Year, a New War"

Date: March 21, 2026
Host: Nadia Hamdan (filling in for Al Letson)
Podcast by: The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX

Episode Overview

This episode explores the profound ripple effects of the U.S. and Israel’s recent war with Iran, coinciding with the Persian New Year, Nowruz. Through personal stories, expert analysis, and reporting from the Middle East and the U.S., Reveal examines how sudden escalation has transformed lives, divided communities, and become enmeshed with religious prophecy and American politics. The episode moves from Iranian families and protesters to the Christian Zionist movement in America and finally to everyday people in Lebanon and the Gulf caught in widening violence.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Nowruz in the Shadow of War – The Iranian Perspective

[02:21–19:33]

• Personal Reflections on Nowruz:

  • Arash Azizi, Iranian historian and writer, shares how Nowruz, usually a time of joy and rebirth, is marred by grief and anxiety this year due to war.
  • Nostalgic traditions: visiting family, receiving money, and optimism for the future now feel distant.

• Impact of War on Daily Life:

  • War erupted Feb 28, 2026, with U.S. and Israeli airstrikes across Iran, leading to mass casualties, including children, and the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei.
  • Iran retaliated, striking targets across the region, escalating a regional conflict.

• Azizi’s Mixed Feelings:

  • Despite opposition to Khamenei, Arash felt no joy at his death due to the tragic context: “On the same day, they killed 160 schoolgirls in Minob. … I was trying to make sure my family is alive. … This war, you know, will not go as planned.” ([15:57])

• Cycles of Hope and Repression:

  • Recalls the hopefulness of the ‘90s reform movement and the disappointment as hardliners reasserted control.
  • 2009’s Green Movement seen as the “last important historical chance … for a historic, peaceful transition to democracy,” but was brutally repressed ([11:38]).
  • Recent major unrest (2022 Mahsa Amini protests, 2025 economic crisis) also met with violence.

• Splits within Iranian Society:

  • Diaspora debates about foreign intervention and Iran’s future (monarchy, republic, foreign help).
  • “What Iran badly needs is national reconciliation. … We have a country to share.” ([17:28])

• Marking, Not Celebrating, Nowruz:

  • “There is little to celebrate this year because of all the people who've been killed … but I will definitely mark it. … Nowruz has always been a festival of resilience, of resistance, of Iranian national culture.” ([18:50])

Notable Quotes:

• “To be a political guy who doesn't have an organized political force is like being a footballer… but I don't really have a team to play with.” — Arash Azizi ([06:47])
• “It allows you to think that everything can just be renewed. But… I’m in no mood to sort of celebrate.” — Arash Azizi ([03:48])

2. The War as Prophecy – American Evangelical and Christian Zionist Responses

[21:46–41:27]

• At Cornerstone Megachurch, Texas:

  • Pastor John Hagee frames the war as “God’s Coming Operation Epic Fury” ([22:51]), tying current events directly to Biblical prophecy.
  • Dramatic sermons and videos liken the war to the fulfillment of ancient predictions, celebrated as the prelude to the Messiah’s return.

• Christian Zionism Explained:

  • Christian Zionists (especially independent charismatics) see support for Israel and war with Iran as religious duty, not mere geopolitics.
  • Belief that Israel's 1948 founding and its defense are preconditions for Jesus’s return.
  • The mythic “Prince of Persia” demon believed to spiritually control Iran ([28:41]).

• Uncomfortable Alliance:

  • Although some Jewish organizations are wary, Christian Zionists provide sizable financial and political support to Israel.
  • Yael Eckstein, CEO of International Fellowship of Christians and Jews: “92% of its donors are Christians … I’ll take all the support I can get.” ([31:32])

• Political Power:

  • Christian Zionist organizations have tens of millions of supporters, huge financial clout ($271M raised in 2023 alone by IFCJ).
  • High-level U.S. officials (Mike Huckabee, Paula White Cain) are openly aligned with Christian Zionism.

• Fractures in the American Right:

  • Not all Trump/MAGA supporters back the war; dissent comes from voices like Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens.
  • Points of tension: some reject the fusion of U.S. foreign policy with religious prophecy or see it as not reflecting “true Christianity.”

Notable Quotes:

• “We stand with Israel because Israel is not a political issue, it's a Bible issue.” — Pastor John Hagee ([24:02])
• “The borders of Israel ... are a fraction of what God intends for them to have. … When the king of glory comes back, they're going to get every blessed square inch of it.” — Pastor John Hagee ([40:01])
• On Jewish–Christian Zionist alliance: “Their support is really, really useful.” — Religion scholar Matthew Taylor ([30:17])

3. War Ripples Across the Middle East – Voices from Lebanon and Gulf

[41:27–52:35]

• The War Expands:

  • Iranian attacks stretch across the Gulf—UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar—where American military bases are targeted.
  • Everyday life disrupted: frequent alerts, children’s frightened screams after missile interceptions in Qatar (Layla Hassan, journalism professor).

• Beirut, Lebanon (Reporting by Justin Salhani):

  • City transformed, with over a million displaced following Israeli strikes and evacuation orders for Hezbollah-linked neighborhoods.
  • Daily life blends eerie normalcy with trauma: families set up makeshift shelters, children swarm documentary crews, still processing threat.
  • Powerful exchange between a displaced boy and an older man:
    “Do you like the camera?... Take that idea out of your head [about guns] and focus on the camera instead, because look where this war has gotten us.” ([46:26])

• Fear and Uncertainty:

  • Residents, including Justin, pack “go bags” as violence inches closer (“drone strike about a 10 minute walk away” [47:48]).
  • Feeling trapped in cycles of history—fear that civil conflict like the 1975-90 war may return.
  • Israeli flyers over Beirut stoke division, warn of “a new reality in Lebanon”—many simply feel powerless.

Notable Quotes:

• “We live in dystopia. We're powerless or we feel powerless.” — Justin Salhani ([44:46])
• “It talks about how the great success of Gaza is now arriving to the new reality of Lebanon. Yeah, it's madness. It's insanity.” — Justin Salhani ([52:11])
• “We don't know what's coming next.” — Justin Salhani ([52:35])

Memorable Moments & Quotes (with Timestamps)

• “[06:47] To be a political guy who doesn't have an organized political force is like being a footballer… but I don't really have a team to play with.”—Arash Azizi
• “[15:57] Because it was not clear to me that it would lead to good results … on the same day, they killed 160 schoolgirls in Minob. … I was trying to make sure my family is alive.”
• “[24:02] We stand with Israel because Israel is not a political issue, it's a Bible issue.”—Pastor John Hagee
• “[40:01] … that little piece of real estate they have at the end of the Mediterranean is a fraction of what God intends for them to have. … they're going to get every blessed square inch of it.”—Pastor John Hagee
• “[44:46] We live in dystopia. We're powerless or we feel powerless.”—Justin Salhani
• “[46:26] … Take that idea out of your head [about guns] and focus on the camera instead, because look where this war has gotten us.”—Displaced man in Beirut
• “[52:11] It talks about how the great success of Gaza is now arriving to the new reality of Lebanon. Yeah, it's madness. It's insanity.”—Justin Salhani

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:21–19:33] – Iranian New Year in Wartime: Arash Azizi’s story, historical background, cycles of protest and repression
• [21:46–41:27] – Evangelical Christian Zionism: U.S. church reaction, prophecy, financial/political influence, friction in American right
• [41:27–52:35] – Middle East Expansion: Firsthand accounts from Qatar and Lebanon, Lebanese displacement, fear of renewed civil war

Tone and Language

The episode maintains a human, contemplative, and investigative tone throughout. The voices ranged from Arash’s candid, sometimes mournful reflections, to the fervent, almost cinematic language of evangelical leaders, to the anxious, documentarian style of Justin reporting from Beirut. Every segment is rooted in personal stakes and the feeling of living through stark, unsettling history.

Summary Takeaway

This episode of Reveal delivers a deeply reported, human-driven narrative of war’s far-reaching effects: from disrupting the most sacred holidays for Iranians, to inflaming apocalyptic beliefs among powerful American faith communities, to layering new trauma upon already devastated populations in Lebanon and the Gulf. It confronts listeners with uncomfortable questions about hope, division, foreign policy, and the cycles—both historical and spiritual—that seem to dictate the fate of millions. The show closes with the sobering acknowledgement that, amid war’s chaos, ordinary people struggle most to find answers—or even a sense of what tomorrow will bring.