Sects and balances: a violent flare-up in Syria

<p>Horrifying attacks on Alawites, the sect of deposed leader Bashar al-Assad, throw into question the power—or the will—of Ahmed al-Sharaa, the country’s leader, to <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2025/03/10/a-horrific-killing-spree-shakes-syria?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">maintain peace</a>. For the first time in decades it now makes more sense to <a href="https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2025/02/13/why-you-should-repay-your-mortgage-early?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">pay off a mortgage early</a> (10:36). And high-end satellite data, once the preserve only of spies, could soon be available <a href="https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2025/02/25/spy-satellite-grade-images-could-soon-become-available-to-everyone?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">to all</a> (16:19).</p><br /><p><em>Get a world of insights by </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribing to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p><hr /><p style="color: grey; font-size: 0.75em;"> Hosted on Acast. See <a href="https://acast.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: grey;" target="_blank">acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>