Donald Trump is once again banging the war drums, threatening military action against Iran. He has now assembled the largest US naval build-up in the region since the 2003 invasion of Iraq – including two aircraft carriers and hundreds of fighter jets.

The recent kidnapping of Maduro appears to have emboldened Trump and the warhawks in Washington, convincing them they can dictate terms through sheer force. But a war with Iran would not be a simple show of strength; it would risk spiralling far beyond US control.

This looming conflict is not an isolated event, but the product of decades of US imperialist intervention that has sown chaos across the Middle East. As Ben Curry and Hamid Alizadeh discuss in this latest episode, new fault lines are opening, which threaten fresh and bloody clashes across the region. All this while crises at home, including the fallout from the Epstein files, expose the deep rot at the heart of American capitalism.Fittingly, this episode also tackles a key question sent in by a listener: will a revolution necessarily be violent

New episodes of Against the Stream air every Thursday at 6pm GMT on YouTube.

📖 RECOMMENDED READING 📖

Red Sea rift: US allies split into armed camps

🔗https://marxist.com/middle-east-divide-fault-lines.htmThe establishment has been rocked before.

Epstein is an existential threat

🔗https://www.thetimes.com/uk/royal-family/article/epstein-king-charles-british-monarchy-d7nxllfgq?gaa_at=eafs&gaa_n=AWEtsqfauVuwblbIy7ObbYJ5jMpOy4JSsVK2VWzBII0HGdoA2-CILWfjl88pZFz3PVE%3D&gaa_ts=69a06606&gaa_sig=VxBVBRNrLEXvVW-tWp7tZ0xwCM7-Z6MjuWqKNJGscxX_5bQsVJaV5_Q673BjJE7n-nCzvPxbFQGUzbDIRq9WVg%3D%3D

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS ⏱️

00:00 – Intro

01:15 – Iran military buildup

24:09 – Realignment of powers in the Middle East

46:48 – Epstein scandal out of control

01:04:16 – Question: do communists want violence?

🌐 LINKS 🌐

✊ Join the Revolutionary Communist International: https://marxist.com/join-us.htm

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/revcomintern/

💬 Twitter: https://x.com/revcomintern/

The Cuban revolution is in grave danger! Trump's oil blockade has cut off the island's fuel supplies, plunging the country into prolonged blackouts, halting public transport, and threatening a full-scale humanitarian crisis. With Venezuelan oil cut off and Mexico bowing to US threats, Trump is tightening the noose to asphyxiate the island after 67 years of relentless pressure.

The aim of the US is to crush a revolution that refuses to submit to imperialist domination. Trump demands Cuba sever ties with Russia and China, open its economy to US capital, and surrender its sovereignty. The stakes couldn’t be clearer: the survival of the revolution depends not on bourgeois governments, but on the mobilisation of the working class and oppressed worldwide.

In this episode of our Marxist current affairs podcast, Against the Stream, Jorgé Martín and Hamid Alizadeh analyse the latest developments in the imperialist siege and discuss the history of the Cuban Revolution and how it got where it is today. New episodes of Against the Stream air every Thursday at 6pm GMT on YouTube.

📖 RECOMMENDED READING 📖

Memorandum From the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs (Mallory) to the Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs (Rubottom)

🔗https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1958-60v06/d499

Cuba 50 years later – where is the revolution going?

🔗https://marxist.com/cuba-50-years-later.htm

Rise up with Cuba, peoples of the world!

🔗https://medium.com/la-tiza/lev%C3%A1ntense-con-cuba-pueblos-del-mundo-2cf19db7647c

"This is Not a Dress Rehearsal": U.S. Engaged in Massive Military Buildup as Threat To Bomb Iran Grows

🔗https://www.dropsitenews.com/p/iran-us-nuclear-military-buildup-trump-khamenei?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email&triedRedirect=true

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS ⏱️

00:00 – Intro

01:17 – What is going on in Cuba?

14:05 – Impact of blockade

23:58 – Why does the US care about Cuba?

27:50 – Is Cuba a socialist country?

46:51 – Iran

55:39 – Viewer's question: Why would people go to work under communism?

🌐 LINKS 🌐

✊ Join the Revolutionary Communist International: https://marxist.com/join-us.htm

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/revcomintern/

💬 Twitter: https://x.com/revcomintern/

Over the last month, we have seen shocking images come out of Syria. ISIS flags waving over Raqqa. Jihadist militants knocking over the gravestones of Kurdish fighters. When it was set up, the Kurdish statelet of Rojava inspired people worldwide. Later, they beat back ISIS. Now ISIS have returned, and the Kurds are fighting for their lives. How has it come to this?

Meanwhile, the world has been left aghast by the release of millions more files related to billionaire pedophile Jeffery Epstein. This is not only the exposure of the sordid dealings of a lone sex trafficker, but his friends: the most powerful people in the world. Here, for the whole world to see, is an unprecedented insight into the sociology and morality of the ruling class. Moreover, as the perpetrators walk scott free, the release of increasingly shocking dirt is stirring up a guillotine mood in society.

As communists, we more than anyone need to understand the significance and meaning of these events. In this episode of our Marxist current affairs podcast, Against the Stream, Fred Weston and Hamid Alizadeh sat down to do just that.

New episodes of Against the Stream air every Thursday at 6pm GMT on YouTube.

📖 RECOMENDED READING 📖

Donald Trump and the ‘Epstein Class’

🔗https://marxist.com/donald-trump-and-the-epstein-class.htm

Kurds under siege in Rojava

🔗https://marxist.com/kurds-under-siege-in-rojava-only-revolutionary-struggle-against-imperialism-can-prevent-a-massacre.htm

FT: The Epstein rot goes deep

🔗https://www.ft.com/content/3f8277cd-2b47-49ff-b264-fd7ce89c924f

Syria, Turkey, and the Oppression of the Kurds:

🔗https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivBJ4vpzsqs

IMPORTANT NOTICE: This video was pre-recorded a week in advance. We will return to normal programming on Thursday 12th February.

A lot is said about Hugo Chávez and the Bolivarian Revolution. The billionaire-owned media cry out indignantly that was a dictator who ruined life for ordinary Venezuelans. But over the course of his presidency, he won a total of 19 democratic elections and referendums with record voter turnout – how many bourgeois politicians can claim the same?

In the meantime, the imperialists in Washington launched a number of coup attempts; all of which failed miserably, when brought face to face with the will of the organised masses. The power of the working class is like no other on Earth, and the Venezuelan Revolution offers an invaluable glimpse of what is possible when this power is unleashed.

What was it about Chávez’ methods and outlook that allowed him to lead the most important revolutionary movement of the 21st century? And what was it about those same methods and outlook that ultimately led to its defeat after his death?

Jorge Martín and Hamid Alizadeh answer these questions and more on this week’s episode of Against the Stream. Tune in every Thursday at 6pm GMT for a Marxist analysis of world events.

📖 RECOMMENDED READING 📖

'The Revolution Will Not Be Televised' – Documentary on the failed 2002 coup

🔗https://vimeo.com/513876099

Carry Out the Legacy of Hugo Chávez

🔗https://marxist.com/carry-out-the-legacy-of-hugo-chavez.htm

From Alan Woods' book 'The Venezuelan Revolution: A Marxist Perspective':

Encounters with Hugo Chávez

🔗https://marxist.com/book-the-venezuelan-revolution-marxist-perspective/encounters-with-hugo-chavez.htm

Marxists and the Venezuelan Revolution

🔗https://marxist.com/book-the-venezuelan-revolution-marxist-perspective/marxists-andnbspthe-venezuelan-revolution.htm

🌐 LINKS 🌐

✊ Join the Revolutionary Communist International:

https://marxist.com/join-us.htm

📸 Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/revcomintern/

💬 Twitter:

https://x.com/revcomintern/

The movement against ICE in Minneapolis is not just any ordinary protest – it is a microcosm of the revolutionary events that will shake the United States in the period ahead. With their class struggle methods, culminating in the first general strike in America in 80 years, the workers of Minneapolis not only forced Trump to retreat, they have also inspired millions across the country and the world.

These events are a living and breathing lesson in the mechanics of revolution. They also show how, under the surface, the conditions for revolution – and particularly the consciousness of the classes – can develop undetected, before bursting to the surface in the form of dramatic events, which Trotsky described as the molecular processes of socialist revolution.

With more revolutionary shocks inbound, we as communists need to study and explain what is going on. In this episode of our Marxist current affairs podcast, Against the Stream, Fred Weston and Hamid Alizadeh delve into the events playing out in the US, and address how we can intervene in the struggle and prepare for the battles ahead.

New episodes of Against the Stream air every Thursday at 6pm GMT on YouTube.

📖 RECOMMENDED READING 📖

United States: the 2026 Minnesota general strike – a historic turning point

🔗https://marxist.com/united-states-the-2026-minnesota-general-strike-a-historic-turning-point.htm

Welcome to the American Winter – The Atlantic

🔗https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/2026/01/minneapolis-uprising/685755/

Minneapolis Makes History: Now Spread the General Strike! [Podcast] – Revolutionary Communists of America

🔗https://youtu.be/nFi3sJCU1AY?si=r40nsT37QGFPZq1o

ICE Terrorizes Minneapolis: GENERAL STRIKE in the air [Podcast] – Revolutionary Communists of America

🔗https://youtu.be/EGBrOxhSqjs?si=5Eq9ycZ_E5xP7_qA

🌐 LINKS 🌐

✊ Join the Revolutionary Communist International: https://marxist.com/join-us.htm

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/revcomintern/

💬 Twitter: https://x.com/revcomintern/

Donald Trump has bulldozed his way into 2026. Now, he has put the acquisition of Greenland at the top of his new year’s wishlist, sending the Europeans into panic and jeopardising trans-Atlantic relations even further.

Why does Trump want Greenland? What would such a prospect mean for Europe on the world stage? And how are Trump’s actions abroad tied to the crisis at home, where the ICE murder of Renee Good has sparked an explosive movement. In this episode of our Marxist current affairs podcast, Against the Stream, Jorge Martín and Hamid Alizadeh discuss these questions and more, highlighting the underlying capitalist crisis that is driving all of these disasters.New episodes of Against the Stream air every Thursday at 6pm GMT on YouTube.📖 RECOMENDED READING 📖United States: anti-ICE rage surges in Minnesota — prepare for a general strike!https://marxist.com/united-states-anti-ice-rage-surges-in-minnesota-prepare-for-a-general-strike.htmAmerican imperialism increases pressure to take over Greenlandhttps://marxist.com/american-imperialism-increases-pressure-to-take-over-greenland.htm

2026 is only a few weeks old, yet world events are already unfolding at breakneck speed. From Donald Trump’s kidnapping of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela, to the killing of Renee Good and the protests against ICE in Minneapolis, and now the growing mass movement and the prospect of US intervention in Iran, huge events are shaking up the world situation.

In the first episode of the new season of our current-events podcast Against the Stream, Jorge Martín and Hamid Alizadeh unpack what these developments mean. They focus in particular on Iran: what is really happening on the ground, how today’s crisis is the product of centuries of imperialist meddling in the region, and what position communists should put forward in response.

Against the Stream is the Marxist current-affairs podcast of the Revolutionary Communist International. New episodes air every Thursday at 6pm GMT on YouTube.

📖 RECOMMENDED READING 📖

Iran:

Imperialists and Pahlavis – hands off Iran!

🔗https://marxist.com/imperialists-and-pahlavis-hands-off-iran.htm

After Ruining a Treasured Water Resource, Iran Is Drying Up - Yale E360

http://e360.yale.edu/features/iran-water-drought-dams-qanats

The effect of international sanctions on the size of the middle class in Iran - ScienceDirect

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0176268025001090

How Iran’s economic pain sparked explosion of unrest – Financial Times

http://www.ft.com/content/770dc40f-66be-4542-a584-3b6144117314

Venezuela:

Donald J Trump’s New Year’s gift to the world

🔗https://marxist.com/donald-j-trump-s-new-year-s-gift-to-the-world.htm

Trump’s attack on Venezuela: condemn this act of criminal aggression! – RCI statement

🔗https://marxist.com/condemn-criminal-us-attack-on-venezuela.htm

A week from US military aggression: where is Venezuela going?

🔗https://marxist.com/a-week-from-us-military-aggression-where-is-venezuela-going.htm

[Podcast] Hands off Venezuela

🔗https://marxist.com/podcast-hands-off-venezuela.htm

ICE:

United States: ICE murder of Renee Good – who are the real terrorists?

🔗https://marxist.com/united-states-ice-murder-of-renee-good-who-are-the-real-terrorists.htm

🌐 LINKS 🌐

✊ Join the Revolutionary Communist International:

https://marxist.com/join-us.htm

📸 Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/revcomintern/

💬 Twitter:

https://x.com/revcomintern/

As 2025 draws to a close, workers and young people around the world will look back on a year that has starkly exposed the blind alley of world capitalism. Trump’s return to the White House has only deepened the disorder, with his administration’s foreign and economic policies causing chaos on the world stage. The recently released National Security Strategy makes one thing unmistakably clear: the United States is not in the position it used to be, no longer capable of policing the globe on its own.

This redivision of the world will not unfold calmly or peacefully – as the events of 2025 have shown. The relentless succession of crises is shaking consciousness on a mass scale, pushing hundreds of millions to question the status quo. Increasingly, people are searching for a way out of society’s dead end, and a growing layer is becoming receptive to communist ideas.

In this episode of Against the Stream, Jorge Martín and Hamid Alizadeh look back on the tumultuous year, discuss what lies ahead, and explore how communists should prepare for the struggles to come.

Against the Stream is the Marxist current-affairs podcast of the Revolutionary Communist International. New episodes air every Thursday at 6pm GMT on YouTube.

📖 RECOMMENDED READING 📖

National Security Strategy of the United States of America

🔗https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2025-National-Security-Strategy.pdf

“Just 0.001% hold three times the wealth of poorest half of humanity, report finds”

https://www.theguardian.com/inequality/2025/dec/10/just-0001-hold-three-times-the-wealth-of-poorest-half-of-humanity-report-finds

The meaning of China’s $1tn trade surplus

🔗https://www.ft.com/content/80933ccf-a23f-43ab-b83c-1d2055e5995d

Labour is slow-marching working people to populism

🔗https://www.ft.com/content/1052957c-90ef-4e00-b599-e45643c5c8e4

How asset managers like BlackRock took over the world

🔗https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/2025/06/16/how-asset-managers-like-blackrock-took-over-the-world-vulture-capitalism-extract-grace-blakeley/#:~:text=In%20this%20extract%20from%20her,concentration%20of%20money%20and%20power.

The world turned upside down – a system in crisis

🔗https://marxist.com/world-perspectives-2025.htm

🌐 LINKS 🌐

✊ Join the Revolutionary Communist International: https://marxist.com/join-us.htm

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/revcomintern/

💬 Twitter: https://x.com/revcomintern/