
David Siddhartha Patel of Brandeis University explains the regional rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran, including how this rivalry is playing out in Lebanon, Yemen, and Qatar.
Guest Bios
David Siddhartha Patel
David Siddhartha Patel is a research fellow at the Crown Center for Middle East Studies at Brandeis University. Prior to joining the Crown Center, he served as an assistant professor in the government department at Cornell University. He holds a BA in political science and economics from Duke University and a PhD in political science from Stanford.

Episode Acknowledgements
Special thanks to Qatar Foundation International, which provided the seed funding and support to develop and launch this podcast and to produce this episode. Neither Qatar Foundation International nor the Qatar Foundation were involved in the decision to include a discussion of the nation of Qatar in this episode, or in the shaping of the content of that discussion.
Thanks to Dr. Patel for his time, knowledge, and enthusiasm in sharing his expertise on the crisis in Syria
Image Credits
“Aircraft_Fighter_Jet_F-15_Eagle_Royal_Saudi_Air_Force,” by Matt Morgan, used under Creative Commons License Attribution Share-Alike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0). The image has not been transformed in any way.
Featured Music
“Kim Arar,” by Wind of Anatolia, from the album Live at the 2014 Golden Festival, used with permission from Wind of Anatolia. The track has been excerpted and mixed with narrative.
“March on Gumdrop Field,” by Blue Dot Sessions, from the album Molerider, used under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). The track has been excerpted and mixed with narrative.
“Cold War Echo,” by Kai Engel, from the album Sustains, used under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). The track has been excerpted and mixed with narrative.
“Vik Fenceta,” by Blue Dot Sessions, from the album The Fence, used under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). The track has been excerpted and mixed with narrative.
“Vik Fence Haflak,” by Blue Dot Sessions, from the album The Fence, used under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). The track has been excerpted and mixed with narrative.
“Soothe,” by Blue Dot Sessions, from the album Bodytonic, used under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). The track has been excerpted and mixed with narrative.
“Lacquer Groove,” by Blue Dot Sessions, from the album Tiny Tiny Trio, used under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). The track has been excerpted and mixed with narrative.
“Transit Vidal,” by Blue Dot Sessions, from the album Rayling, used under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). The track has been excerpted and mixed with narrative.
“Eventual Victory,” by Blue Dot Sessions, from the album Codebreaker, used under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). The track has been excerpted and mixed with narrative and the track “Just the Feeling in the Room,” by Blue Dot Sessions.
“Just the Feeling in the Room,” by Blue Dot Sessions, from the album Wax Museum, used under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). The track has been excerpted and mixed with narrative and the track “Eventual Victory” by Blue Dot Sessions.
“Felt Lining,” by Blue Dot Sessions, from the album The Cabinetmaker, used under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). The track has been excerpted and mixed with narrative.
“Distill,” by Blue Dot Sessions, from the album Darby, used under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). The track has been excerpted and mixed with narrative.