Rule and divide: opposition grows in Syria

规则与分割:叙利亚对立加剧

Economist Podcasts

2025-08-22

23 分钟
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Less than nine months after Syria’s dictator Bashar al-Assad was toppled, the honeymoon is over. How is the new regime responding to rising dissent? Introducing Britain’s revolutionary retirees: why pensioners increasingly dominate political protest. And celebrating the life of on-screen villain, Terence Stamp. Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+ For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  • The Economist.

  • Hello and welcome to The Intelligence from The Economist.

  • I'm your host, Rosie Bloor.

  • Every weekday, we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world.

  • Think of a protest march and I bet you envision crowds of angry youths carrying placards chanting their demands for change.

  • Well, you'd be right about the shouts and billboards.

  • But in Britain, increasingly, it's not the young who demonstrate, it's pensioners.

  • And you might remember him as General Zod in Superman, Bernadette in Priscilla,

  • Queen of the Desert, or maybe the Supreme Chancellor, Finis Valorum in Star Wars.

  • Many characters, and he was brilliant in them all.

  • Our obituaries editor celebrates the life of Terence Stamp.

  • But first...

  • In July, repeated armed clashes in the southern Syrian city of Sawada killed hundreds of people.

  • Government-backed Sunni militias went on the rampage in a province where the majority of the population are Druze.

  • Local men responded by massing in the streets, chanting, arms in tow.

  • And that violence wasn't an isolated case.

  • In March, in coastal areas,

  • members of the Alawite minority were targeted by unidentified Sunni militias.

  • More than 1,400 people were massacred.

  • In the early months after the fall of former dictator Bashar al-Assad, Syria was euphoric.