Ishaan Tharoor
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social
Global affairs columnist @WashingtonPost.com, anchor of The Post's WorldView column and newsletter on int'l politics. Dad. New Yorker. Victoria concordia crescit. New to BlueSky!
Pinned
Column | As Trump hosts MBS, Palestinian plight fades from view again
Neither a political process endorsed at the United Nations nor deepening U.S.-Saudi ties change the bleak reality for Palestinians on the ground.
wapo.st
Yuli Novak, executive director of B'Tselem, fears the return of a status quo where Israel can carry on with “much less criticism, because there is the facade of things being okay.” In the meeting of Trump and Mohammed, you can see the edifice behind that facade rising.
My latest:
wapo.st/4idIxRC
My latest:
wapo.st/4idIxRC
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
"Greeks living in Afghanistan were Buddhist 500 years before China and a thousand years before Southeast Asia" is one of those things that sounds made up but is in fact true
November 20, 2025 at 3:25 PM
"Greeks living in Afghanistan were Buddhist 500 years before China and a thousand years before Southeast Asia" is one of those things that sounds made up but is in fact true
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
Yuli Novak, executive director of B'Tselem, fears the return of a status quo where Israel can carry on with “much less criticism, because there is the facade of things being okay.” In the meeting of Trump and Mohammed, you can see the edifice behind that facade rising.
My latest:
wapo.st/4idIxRC
My latest:
wapo.st/4idIxRC
Column | As Trump hosts MBS, Palestinian plight fades from view again
Neither a political process endorsed at the United Nations nor deepening U.S.-Saudi ties change the bleak reality for Palestinians on the ground.
wapo.st
November 19, 2025 at 9:18 PM
Yuli Novak, executive director of B'Tselem, fears the return of a status quo where Israel can carry on with “much less criticism, because there is the facade of things being okay.” In the meeting of Trump and Mohammed, you can see the edifice behind that facade rising.
My latest:
wapo.st/4idIxRC
My latest:
wapo.st/4idIxRC
Yuli Novak, executive director of B'Tselem, fears the return of a status quo where Israel can carry on with “much less criticism, because there is the facade of things being okay.” In the meeting of Trump and Mohammed, you can see the edifice behind that facade rising.
My latest:
wapo.st/4idIxRC
My latest:
wapo.st/4idIxRC
Column | As Trump hosts MBS, Palestinian plight fades from view again
Neither a political process endorsed at the United Nations nor deepening U.S.-Saudi ties change the bleak reality for Palestinians on the ground.
wapo.st
November 19, 2025 at 9:18 PM
Yuli Novak, executive director of B'Tselem, fears the return of a status quo where Israel can carry on with “much less criticism, because there is the facade of things being okay.” In the meeting of Trump and Mohammed, you can see the edifice behind that facade rising.
My latest:
wapo.st/4idIxRC
My latest:
wapo.st/4idIxRC
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
"Neither the political process endorsed at the United Nations nor deepening U.S.-Saudi ties change the bleak reality for Palestinians on the ground," writes @ishaantharoor.bsky.social today in his WorldView column for the @washingtonpost.com.
wapo.st/4idIxRC
wapo.st/4idIxRC
Column | As Trump hosts MBS, Palestinian plight fades from view again
Amid a fragile ceasefire in Gaza, the challenges facing Palestinians have apparently become secondary concerns for Saudi and U.S. leaders.
wapo.st
November 19, 2025 at 12:21 PM
"Neither the political process endorsed at the United Nations nor deepening U.S.-Saudi ties change the bleak reality for Palestinians on the ground," writes @ishaantharoor.bsky.social today in his WorldView column for the @washingtonpost.com.
wapo.st/4idIxRC
wapo.st/4idIxRC
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
More than 200,000 Iraqi civilians were killed in the wake of the post-9/11 wars writes @ishaantharoor.bsky.social, citing our research.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Column | Dick Cheney’s Iraq War legacy lives on
The former vice president is outlived by the cascading consequences of a war he defended to the last, even as Republican politics shifted.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:00 PM
More than 200,000 Iraqi civilians were killed in the wake of the post-9/11 wars writes @ishaantharoor.bsky.social, citing our research.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
"Kazakhstan’s entry into the pact, which could formally happen in December, appears to be more about courting Trump with a symbolic gesture than forging Middle East peace."
By @ishaantharoor.bsky.social
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
By @ishaantharoor.bsky.social
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Column | Kazakhstan’s curious journey to the Abraham Accords
The news that Kazakhstan would be the latest state to join the U.S.-brokered normalization deals between Israel and a clutch of Arab states furrowed many eyebrows.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 10, 2025 at 7:32 AM
"Kazakhstan’s entry into the pact, which could formally happen in December, appears to be more about courting Trump with a symbolic gesture than forging Middle East peace."
By @ishaantharoor.bsky.social
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
By @ishaantharoor.bsky.social
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
“The clash that Mamdani’s victory sets up is not one of civilizations. Rather, it’s of competing visions of the world — one anchored in Trump’s angry nationalist project and the other in Mamdani’s global city.”
I’ll take the latter any day.
via @ishaantharoor.bsky.social
I’ll take the latter any day.
via @ishaantharoor.bsky.social
Column | Mamdani’s global city clashes with Trump’s nationalist project
Liberal mayors of major cities around the world have found themselves at odds with ascendant far-right populists. Mamdani will undoubtedly face a similar fight.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 5, 2025 at 7:06 PM
“The clash that Mamdani’s victory sets up is not one of civilizations. Rather, it’s of competing visions of the world — one anchored in Trump’s angry nationalist project and the other in Mamdani’s global city.”
I’ll take the latter any day.
via @ishaantharoor.bsky.social
I’ll take the latter any day.
via @ishaantharoor.bsky.social
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social on the NYC election:
"The clash that Mamdani’s victory sets up is not one of civilizations. Rather, it’s of competing visions of the world — one anchored in Trump’s angry nationalist project and the other in Mamdani’s global city."
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
"The clash that Mamdani’s victory sets up is not one of civilizations. Rather, it’s of competing visions of the world — one anchored in Trump’s angry nationalist project and the other in Mamdani’s global city."
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Column | Mamdani’s global city clashes with Trump’s nationalist project
Liberal mayors of major cities around the world have found themselves at odds with ascendant far-right populists. Mamdani will undoubtedly face a similar fight.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 5, 2025 at 12:32 PM
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social on the NYC election:
"The clash that Mamdani’s victory sets up is not one of civilizations. Rather, it’s of competing visions of the world — one anchored in Trump’s angry nationalist project and the other in Mamdani’s global city."
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
"The clash that Mamdani’s victory sets up is not one of civilizations. Rather, it’s of competing visions of the world — one anchored in Trump’s angry nationalist project and the other in Mamdani’s global city."
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
this is the most successful a CIA officer has been at toppling a government in years.
November 5, 2025 at 1:13 AM
this is the most successful a CIA officer has been at toppling a government in years.
In the shadow of Sudan’s misery, President Donald Trump has done conspicuously little. He insists he’s the world’s greatest peacemaker — claiming credit for resolving conflicts that, in some instances, are either still raging or never existed in the first place.
November 3, 2025 at 4:59 PM
In the shadow of Sudan’s misery, President Donald Trump has done conspicuously little. He insists he’s the world’s greatest peacemaker — claiming credit for resolving conflicts that, in some instances, are either still raging or never existed in the first place.
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
"In the shadow of Sudan’s misery, President Donald Trump has done conspicuously little.....The White House was more focused on gutting USAID, an agency that propped up critical elements of the humanitarian complex aiding Sudanese people."
By @ishaantharoor.bsky.social.
wapo.st/49qdcbO
By @ishaantharoor.bsky.social.
wapo.st/49qdcbO
Column | Sudan’s war takes horrific turn, as Trump looks away
The White House loves quick deals and photo-ops, but there’s no simple solution to ending the war in Sudan.
wapo.st
October 31, 2025 at 12:54 PM
"In the shadow of Sudan’s misery, President Donald Trump has done conspicuously little.....The White House was more focused on gutting USAID, an agency that propped up critical elements of the humanitarian complex aiding Sudanese people."
By @ishaantharoor.bsky.social.
wapo.st/49qdcbO
By @ishaantharoor.bsky.social.
wapo.st/49qdcbO
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social channels everybody who watched Turkey's descent into pure authoritarianism and is now watching Trump do the same damn things in this piece
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Column | Before Trump gutted the White House, Erdogan built his ‘White Palace’
As long as there’s been human civilization, there have been leaders with vanity projects.
www.washingtonpost.com
October 28, 2025 at 12:27 PM
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social channels everybody who watched Turkey's descent into pure authoritarianism and is now watching Trump do the same damn things in this piece
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Elon Musk's Twitter in one image
October 27, 2025 at 4:39 PM
Elon Musk's Twitter in one image
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
100%. And by the way, that is generally true in all dictatorships-in-the-making
ordinary americans are filming ice agents and trying to save their neighbors. for all the hemming and hawing during 2024 about how democracy was an elite concern, the elites gave up far more quickly than average people.
October 24, 2025 at 3:11 PM
100%. And by the way, that is generally true in all dictatorships-in-the-making
What do Taylor Swift songs accomplish that K-Pop Demon Hunters’ do not? And the latter has the charming virtue of being adored by children, not adult cultists.
October 17, 2025 at 1:19 PM
What do Taylor Swift songs accomplish that K-Pop Demon Hunters’ do not? And the latter has the charming virtue of being adored by children, not adult cultists.
Question for the Bluesky nerderati: What's the most egregious invocation of Sparta / macho ancient Greek iconography or history that you've seen in modern 21st century politics?
October 16, 2025 at 7:57 PM
Question for the Bluesky nerderati: What's the most egregious invocation of Sparta / macho ancient Greek iconography or history that you've seen in modern 21st century politics?
My latest
Trump declares a new ‘dawn’ in Middle East. It could be a false one. wapo.st/476s1gN
Trump declares a new ‘dawn’ in Middle East. It could be a false one. wapo.st/476s1gN
Column | Trump declares a new ‘dawn’ in Middle East. It could be a false one.
With the victory lap over, now comes thorny issue of building a genuine peace.
wapo.st
October 15, 2025 at 7:04 PM
My latest
Trump declares a new ‘dawn’ in Middle East. It could be a false one. wapo.st/476s1gN
Trump declares a new ‘dawn’ in Middle East. It could be a false one. wapo.st/476s1gN
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social writes "Regional leaders have conveyed to Trump the importance of reviving the moribund peace process between Israelis and Palestinians....But Trump has spoken little of the aspirations of Palestinians...."
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Column | Trump declares a new ‘dawn’ in Middle East. It could be a false one.
With the victory lap over, now comes thorny issue of building a genuine peace.
www.washingtonpost.com
October 15, 2025 at 4:27 PM
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social writes "Regional leaders have conveyed to Trump the importance of reviving the moribund peace process between Israelis and Palestinians....But Trump has spoken little of the aspirations of Palestinians...."
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
In Venezuela, @ishaantharoor.bsky.social writes, Trump’s efforts of late have had little to do with peace
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Column | For Venezuela, a peace prize in the shadow of war
The White House wasn’t thrilled when President Trump didn’t win the Nobel Peace Prize, which went instead to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado. Trump’s recent efforts in the context of...
www.washingtonpost.com
October 13, 2025 at 7:27 PM
In Venezuela, @ishaantharoor.bsky.social writes, Trump’s efforts of late have had little to do with peace
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
New from me at Cato: I go through the numerous and massive First Amendment and academic-freedom violations of Trump's proffered "compact" with universities and then talk about the mechanism by which it would be enforced, by way of what I describe as a "retroactive push-button guillotine."
Universities Must Defend Their Independence by Rejecting Trump's "Compact"
The Trump administration has proffered a “compact” to universities that would require them to surrender their independence and academic freedom. How many First Amendment violations can we identify in ...
www.cato.org
October 11, 2025 at 2:08 AM
New from me at Cato: I go through the numerous and massive First Amendment and academic-freedom violations of Trump's proffered "compact" with universities and then talk about the mechanism by which it would be enforced, by way of what I describe as a "retroactive push-button guillotine."
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
Nuanced analysis by @ishaantharoor.bsky.social, who asks how much credit does Trump deserve for the Gaza ‘peace’ deal?
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Column | How much credit does Trump deserve for Gaza ‘peace’ deal?
What happens in the coming weeks will be much more defining of Trump’s legacy than the victory lap he’ll take this weekend.
www.washingtonpost.com
October 10, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Nuanced analysis by @ishaantharoor.bsky.social, who asks how much credit does Trump deserve for the Gaza ‘peace’ deal?
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/1...
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social observes that "Israel’s tactical triumphs over the past two years have not resulted in clear strategic success."
wapo.st/4oaWMZ8
wapo.st/4oaWMZ8
Column | After two years, Israel’s Gaza war has reshaped the Middle East
Israel’s hard power preeminence in the Middle East seems paramount. But the country’s leaders — and the entire region — still face an array of political challenges.
wapo.st
October 8, 2025 at 1:30 PM
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social observes that "Israel’s tactical triumphs over the past two years have not resulted in clear strategic success."
wapo.st/4oaWMZ8
wapo.st/4oaWMZ8
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
George Carlin, eat your heart out.
The federal government's list of words to be scrubbed is more than seven, and it is growing fast.
pen.org/banned-words...
The federal government's list of words to be scrubbed is more than seven, and it is growing fast.
pen.org/banned-words...
Federal Government's Growing Banned Words List Is Chilling Act of Censorship
Banned words list 2025: The federal government is banning a growing number of words to comply with executive orders from President Trump.
pen.org
October 6, 2025 at 11:03 PM
George Carlin, eat your heart out.
The federal government's list of words to be scrubbed is more than seven, and it is growing fast.
pen.org/banned-words...
The federal government's list of words to be scrubbed is more than seven, and it is growing fast.
pen.org/banned-words...
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social spoke with Rob Malley, co-author of "Tomorrow is Yesterday: Life, Death, and the Pursuit of Peace in Israel/Palestine," for his column.
@imes-gw.bsky.social was pleased to host Rob Malley yesterday (9/30) for a discussion with @abuaardvark.bsky.social.
wapo.st/46LcR0f
@imes-gw.bsky.social was pleased to host Rob Malley yesterday (9/30) for a discussion with @abuaardvark.bsky.social.
wapo.st/46LcR0f
Column | A veteran of Middle East peace talks reflects on a history of failure
Robert Malley, a key diplomat in the Clinton administration, talks Oct. 7, ending the war in Gaza and the collapse of the two-state solution.
wapo.st
October 1, 2025 at 12:22 PM
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social spoke with Rob Malley, co-author of "Tomorrow is Yesterday: Life, Death, and the Pursuit of Peace in Israel/Palestine," for his column.
@imes-gw.bsky.social was pleased to host Rob Malley yesterday (9/30) for a discussion with @abuaardvark.bsky.social.
wapo.st/46LcR0f
@imes-gw.bsky.social was pleased to host Rob Malley yesterday (9/30) for a discussion with @abuaardvark.bsky.social.
wapo.st/46LcR0f
Reposted by Ishaan Tharoor
Again, the man with the single greatest access to real and true information in the history of the world
"I spoke to the governor, she was very nice," Trump said. "But I said, 'Well wait a minute, am I watching things on television that are different from what's happening? My people tell me different.'"
Almost ... a glimmer ... "am I in an anti-reality bubble populated by sycophants?" ... and gone.
Almost ... a glimmer ... "am I in an anti-reality bubble populated by sycophants?" ... and gone.
Trump seems to back off Portland military plan: 'Am I watching things on television that are different from what's happening?'
President Trump had said he will send troops to Portland to protect U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities, which he said were "under attack."
www.kgw.com
September 28, 2025 at 11:12 PM
Again, the man with the single greatest access to real and true information in the history of the world