Essential Middle East

Ukraine attracts fighters from the Middle East

In the first episode of the Essential Middle East podcast, we look into why foreign fighters are in Ukraine.

A soldier's combat patch on uniform — A badge is pictured on a uniform of a foreign fighter as they are ready to depart towards the front line in the east of Ukraine following the Russian invasion. [Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters]

This is the premiere episode of the Essential Middle East podcast.

The war in Ukraine has attracted thousands of foreign fighters battling on both sides from around the world including the Middle East. Some call them mercenaries, while others call them volunteers. So why are they joining the fight?

In this episode:

Wa’el Alzayat, a Middle East policy expert based in Washington, DC and CEO of Emgage, a national Muslim American civic organisation

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Source: Al Jazeera