Idrees Ahmad
@idreesahmad.bsky.social
Director of Journalism, University of Essex; Associate Editor, New Lines Magazine; Contributing Editor, LA Review of Books; Bylines: New York Review of Books, Times Literary Supplement, Foreign Policy, The Observer, Washington Post.
Pinned
Idrees Ahmad
@idreesahmad.bsky.social
· Nov 29
I’ve created a starter pack of some good people to follow here go.bsky.app/Jwumb9g
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
More reporting from the Israeli press seems to further confirm that the US has effectively taken over day to day decision making from the Israelis on Gaza— exacerbating fears in both the government and opposition that a precedent has been set for the internationalization of the Palestinian question.
US sidelining Israel on decision-making at Gaza ceasefire HQ, official says
Israeli liaison unit said relegated to contractor role in Gaza aid; US includes entire Trump 20-point peace plan in UN resolution establishing international Gaza force
www.timesofisrael.com
November 8, 2025 at 3:37 PM
More reporting from the Israeli press seems to further confirm that the US has effectively taken over day to day decision making from the Israelis on Gaza— exacerbating fears in both the government and opposition that a precedent has been set for the internationalization of the Palestinian question.
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
Argentina cut a deal with China that undercuts American soybean farmers already crushed by Trump’s tariffs.
Now Trump wants send $20 billion of YOUR tax dollars to bail out his political ally in Argentina.
America First? More like Trump first.
Now Trump wants send $20 billion of YOUR tax dollars to bail out his political ally in Argentina.
America First? More like Trump first.
October 1, 2025 at 6:43 PM
Argentina cut a deal with China that undercuts American soybean farmers already crushed by Trump’s tariffs.
Now Trump wants send $20 billion of YOUR tax dollars to bail out his political ally in Argentina.
America First? More like Trump first.
Now Trump wants send $20 billion of YOUR tax dollars to bail out his political ally in Argentina.
America First? More like Trump first.
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
When my grandfather died in 2004, I was 11. At his home in Nijmegen I found a battered briefcase, unopened for years. Inside: photos, consular forms and letters — a history of falling empire, colonial decoupling and rising nationalism that marked those who lived it.
newlinesmag.com/first-person...
newlinesmag.com/first-person...
Caught Between States as an Empire Dissolved
A Dutch-Indonesian family’s documents from the mid-20th century reveal a painful story of separation and an administrative nightmare that prefigures today’s xenophobic politics
newlinesmag.com
September 30, 2025 at 11:05 AM
When my grandfather died in 2004, I was 11. At his home in Nijmegen I found a battered briefcase, unopened for years. Inside: photos, consular forms and letters — a history of falling empire, colonial decoupling and rising nationalism that marked those who lived it.
newlinesmag.com/first-person...
newlinesmag.com/first-person...
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
My friend, @idreesahmad.bsky.social, wrote about about Tony Judt's proposal for a well-defended Palestinian state as the only durable solution. (Judt's position was misrepresented by Jonathan Freedland in an essay for NYRB).
www.thenation.com/article/arch...
www.thenation.com/article/arch...
The NYRB Is Rewriting Tony Judt’s Stance on Israel
Judt called for a just resolution to the conflict, not the preservation of a “Jewish State.”
www.thenation.com
September 20, 2025 at 6:49 PM
My friend, @idreesahmad.bsky.social, wrote about about Tony Judt's proposal for a well-defended Palestinian state as the only durable solution. (Judt's position was misrepresented by Jonathan Freedland in an essay for NYRB).
www.thenation.com/article/arch...
www.thenation.com/article/arch...
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
A man in Washington, DC, plays the Imperial March from Star Wars while following patrolling soldiers. One of the soldiers threatens to call the police.
September 14, 2025 at 6:23 PM
A man in Washington, DC, plays the Imperial March from Star Wars while following patrolling soldiers. One of the soldiers threatens to call the police.
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
Not comprehending how the same @ezrakleinbot.bsky.social who interviewed me wrote this. I support the instinct to turn down the volume. But you can't simultaneously warn that we're the brink of authoritarianism while valorizing one of authoritarianism's most influential architects and supporters.
Opinion | Charlie Kirk Was Practicing Politics the Right Way
www.nytimes.com
September 11, 2025 at 1:23 PM
Not comprehending how the same @ezrakleinbot.bsky.social who interviewed me wrote this. I support the instinct to turn down the volume. But you can't simultaneously warn that we're the brink of authoritarianism while valorizing one of authoritarianism's most influential architects and supporters.
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
Why Arab dictators betray the Palestinians and do nothing serious to stop the genocide even suppressing protests against Israel in their own countries #SaudiArabia #UAE #Egypt @idreesahmad.bsky.social @marcnelsonart.bsky.social @petertatchell.bsky.social
responsiblestatecraft.org/arab-leaders...
responsiblestatecraft.org/arab-leaders...
Why Arab leaders aren't helping the Palestinians in Gaza
As the world watches, they see a number of powerful governments virtually on the sidelines.
responsiblestatecraft.org
August 25, 2025 at 7:57 AM
Why Arab dictators betray the Palestinians and do nothing serious to stop the genocide even suppressing protests against Israel in their own countries #SaudiArabia #UAE #Egypt @idreesahmad.bsky.social @marcnelsonart.bsky.social @petertatchell.bsky.social
responsiblestatecraft.org/arab-leaders...
responsiblestatecraft.org/arab-leaders...
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
Urgent - Gaza Censorship
Aid workers accuse NGOs of 'whitewashing' Israel's Gaza war. Int journalists banned as the Israelis also allowed by NGOs to submit to censorship like #IRC which refused to comment on complicity in report #GazaStarving
@idreesahmad.bsky.social
www.dw.com/en/aid-worke...
Aid workers accuse NGOs of 'whitewashing' Israel's Gaza war. Int journalists banned as the Israelis also allowed by NGOs to submit to censorship like #IRC which refused to comment on complicity in report #GazaStarving
@idreesahmad.bsky.social
www.dw.com/en/aid-worke...
Aid workers accuse NGOs of 'whitewashing' Israel's Gaza war – DW – 08/22/2025
Several international NGOs have limited their language and advocacy on the topic of Gaza, a DW investigation found. They fear that Israel might otherwise refuse them permits to operate in the Palestin...
www.dw.com
August 23, 2025 at 5:55 PM
Urgent - Gaza Censorship
Aid workers accuse NGOs of 'whitewashing' Israel's Gaza war. Int journalists banned as the Israelis also allowed by NGOs to submit to censorship like #IRC which refused to comment on complicity in report #GazaStarving
@idreesahmad.bsky.social
www.dw.com/en/aid-worke...
Aid workers accuse NGOs of 'whitewashing' Israel's Gaza war. Int journalists banned as the Israelis also allowed by NGOs to submit to censorship like #IRC which refused to comment on complicity in report #GazaStarving
@idreesahmad.bsky.social
www.dw.com/en/aid-worke...
On this day in 2013, Bashar al Assad launched the biggest chemical attack of the 21st century, killing over 1,400, including 426 children. I wrote for @newlinesmag.bsky.social a detailed account of what happened that day and the impact this event had globally. newlinesmag.com/review/the-d...
The Day the World Stood Still
On August 21, 2013 the Syrian regime launched the biggest chemical attack of the 21st century. It was a seismic event whose repercussions are still being felt. This is an account of what happened that...
newlinesmag.com
August 21, 2025 at 1:53 PM
On this day in 2013, Bashar al Assad launched the biggest chemical attack of the 21st century, killing over 1,400, including 426 children. I wrote for @newlinesmag.bsky.social a detailed account of what happened that day and the impact this event had globally. newlinesmag.com/review/the-d...
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
NEW: 90,000 people protesting against the genocide in Gaza have shut down Sydney Harbour Bridge.
🇦🇺👏
🇦🇺👏
August 3, 2025 at 11:19 AM
NEW: 90,000 people protesting against the genocide in Gaza have shut down Sydney Harbour Bridge.
🇦🇺👏
🇦🇺👏
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
In my latest, I examine Bret Stephens’s silly attempt to deny Israel’s genocide. More revealing than the incompetence and bad faith on display is his motive for writing it in the first place—a motive he does not divulge lest he trash his own credibility in the process. 🧵
The Fix: Genocide Denial in the NYT
A New York Times writer dabbled in genocide denial. It did not go well.
www.readthedetox.com
July 30, 2025 at 5:32 PM
In my latest, I examine Bret Stephens’s silly attempt to deny Israel’s genocide. More revealing than the incompetence and bad faith on display is his motive for writing it in the first place—a motive he does not divulge lest he trash his own credibility in the process. 🧵
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
“One in three Gazans goes multiple days without eating, the World Food Programme said this week. Malnourished mothers can no longer produce milk to breastfeed their children, the injured are unable to heal and hospitals have run out of nutritional supplements to treat gaunt babies.”
‘There is nothing to buy’: Gaza’s descent into mass starvation www.ft.com/content/e5d7...
‘There is nothing to buy’: Gaza’s descent into mass starvation
Israel’s offensive and aid curbs tip enclave of 2.1mn Palestinians into famine
www.ft.com
July 26, 2025 at 11:05 AM
“One in three Gazans goes multiple days without eating, the World Food Programme said this week. Malnourished mothers can no longer produce milk to breastfeed their children, the injured are unable to heal and hospitals have run out of nutritional supplements to treat gaunt babies.”
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
The mass starvation & killing of Palestinians in Gaza at the hands of the Israeli gov’t is a chillul hashem, a desecration of God.
Jewish leaders who criticized Zohran Mamdani for three words he doesn’t use should raise their voices loudly here as well.
forward.com/opinion/7575...
Jewish leaders who criticized Zohran Mamdani for three words he doesn’t use should raise their voices loudly here as well.
forward.com/opinion/7575...
Gaza is starving. Where are the American Jewish leaders?
A fear of being labelled antisemitic still deters American Jews and Jewish institutions from taking a position that is morally correct.
forward.com
July 24, 2025 at 10:04 PM
The mass starvation & killing of Palestinians in Gaza at the hands of the Israeli gov’t is a chillul hashem, a desecration of God.
Jewish leaders who criticized Zohran Mamdani for three words he doesn’t use should raise their voices loudly here as well.
forward.com/opinion/7575...
Jewish leaders who criticized Zohran Mamdani for three words he doesn’t use should raise their voices loudly here as well.
forward.com/opinion/7575...
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
If the videos and photos of emaciated bodies and corpses coming out of Gaza were in black and white, what would they remind you of?
July 23, 2025 at 6:13 PM
If the videos and photos of emaciated bodies and corpses coming out of Gaza were in black and white, what would they remind you of?
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
🚨 Medics across the Gaza strip have sounded simultaneous ambulance sirens in an SOS distress call about the escalating famine and resulting collapse of the remaining healthcare system:
![#GazaGenocide
#GazaFamine
[photo of medics in scrubs standing together in a line]
4:26 AM • 7/20/25 • 79K Views](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:gvda6fem6r7selm4gzjjww4a/bafkreig237fsica6lbjdqymv4ihnv7ez2ub6wkzscbensve6ldr56ew7qm@jpeg)
July 20, 2025 at 1:45 PM
🚨 Medics across the Gaza strip have sounded simultaneous ambulance sirens in an SOS distress call about the escalating famine and resulting collapse of the remaining healthcare system:
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
I posted this on LinkedIn at the same time and it got removed for "terrorism"??? bsky.app/profile/sall...
July 16, 2025 at 4:37 PM
I posted this on LinkedIn at the same time and it got removed for "terrorism"??? bsky.app/profile/sall...
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
Israel continues to target the same ports on Yemen’s Hodeidah coast. It's been over a year since the first strikes on these ports.
Despite significant damage to piers, visual evidence suggests the Houthis' fuel supply lines from the ports are still active
www.thenationalnews.com/news/mena/20...
Despite significant damage to piers, visual evidence suggests the Houthis' fuel supply lines from the ports are still active
www.thenationalnews.com/news/mena/20...
What effect have Israeli strikes had on Houthi Red Sea attacks? | The National
As Yemeni ports held by the rebels were hit again earlier this month, The National examines satellite imagery to gauge the damage
www.thenationalnews.com
July 14, 2025 at 7:11 PM
Israel continues to target the same ports on Yemen’s Hodeidah coast. It's been over a year since the first strikes on these ports.
Despite significant damage to piers, visual evidence suggests the Houthis' fuel supply lines from the ports are still active
www.thenationalnews.com/news/mena/20...
Despite significant damage to piers, visual evidence suggests the Houthis' fuel supply lines from the ports are still active
www.thenationalnews.com/news/mena/20...
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
3 Books Incarcerated Writers Recommend All Students Read
3 Books Incarcerated Writers Recommend All Students Read
What are books to read in prison? Here are three that touch on racism, love and meaning — and they're recommended by incarcerated writers.
prisonjournalismproject.org
May 21, 2025 at 10:36 PM
3 Books Incarcerated Writers Recommend All Students Read
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
For years Frontex gathered data and automatically passed it unlawfully to Europol. With @stavinoha.bsky.social & @lolahierro.bsky.social we investigated how this dragnet scooped up thousands of people, migrants and EU activists.
wearesolomon.com/mag/format/i...
wearesolomon.com/mag/format/i...
Frontex unlawfully shared thousands of people's personal data with Europol
Under the banner of fighting migrant smuggling, Frontex has collected, and unlawfully siphoned to Europol, personal data for years—quietly drawing thousands of migrants, as well as EU citizens aiding ...
wearesolomon.com
July 14, 2025 at 12:23 PM
For years Frontex gathered data and automatically passed it unlawfully to Europol. With @stavinoha.bsky.social & @lolahierro.bsky.social we investigated how this dragnet scooped up thousands of people, migrants and EU activists.
wearesolomon.com/mag/format/i...
wearesolomon.com/mag/format/i...
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
From @idreesahmad.bsky.social's new must-read @newlinesmag.bsky.social essay (full text at newlinesmag.com/argument/bey...)
July 8, 2025 at 3:45 PM
From @idreesahmad.bsky.social's new must-read @newlinesmag.bsky.social essay (full text at newlinesmag.com/argument/bey...)
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
"The politicians and journalists who were hitherto untroubled by the industrial-scale killing of Gazans suddenly discovered a faith in the sanctity of life, and their imaginations took flight."
Beyond Glastonbury’s Gaza Controversy by @idreesahmad.bsky.social.
newlinesmag.com/argument/bey...
Beyond Glastonbury’s Gaza Controversy by @idreesahmad.bsky.social.
newlinesmag.com/argument/bey...
Beyond Glastonbury’s Gaza Controversy
Chants against the Israeli military led by the punk-rap duo Bob Vylan have drawn outrage, but the underlying story is one of mounting horror at the war from artists and the public
newlinesmag.com
July 8, 2025 at 4:29 PM
"The politicians and journalists who were hitherto untroubled by the industrial-scale killing of Gazans suddenly discovered a faith in the sanctity of life, and their imaginations took flight."
Beyond Glastonbury’s Gaza Controversy by @idreesahmad.bsky.social.
newlinesmag.com/argument/bey...
Beyond Glastonbury’s Gaza Controversy by @idreesahmad.bsky.social.
newlinesmag.com/argument/bey...
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
My god - Around *100* trans prisoners who were in Iran’s Evin prison are missing after the Israeli strike flattened their section of the prison. 100.
The current death toll is 79. The 100 trans people are presumed dead, which would more than double the death toll.
archive.is/2025.07.06-2...
The current death toll is 79. The 100 trans people are presumed dead, which would more than double the death toll.
archive.is/2025.07.06-2...
July 6, 2025 at 9:38 PM
My god - Around *100* trans prisoners who were in Iran’s Evin prison are missing after the Israeli strike flattened their section of the prison. 100.
The current death toll is 79. The 100 trans people are presumed dead, which would more than double the death toll.
archive.is/2025.07.06-2...
The current death toll is 79. The 100 trans people are presumed dead, which would more than double the death toll.
archive.is/2025.07.06-2...
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
The article with an open racist as the primary source stays up, but the racist @nytimes.com will make a Black man delete posts critical of the article.
I deleted several posts about a Times story because they violated Times social media standards.
July 4, 2025 at 1:54 AM
The article with an open racist as the primary source stays up, but the racist @nytimes.com will make a Black man delete posts critical of the article.
Reposted by Idrees Ahmad
These daily massacres are no different to what Assad was doing in Syria. No different.
July 1, 2025 at 9:15 AM
These daily massacres are no different to what Assad was doing in Syria. No different.