The Take

Russia is exploiting Ukraine’s coldest winter yet since it escalated the war four years ago. As negotiations between Ukraine, Russia and the United States continue to stall, will this winter freeze become Ukraine’s breaking point?
In this episode:
Oleksiy Sorokin (@mrsorokaa) Deputy Chief Editor, Kyiv Independent
Episode credits:
This episode was produced by Chloe K. Li, Marcos Bartolomé, and Melanie Marich, with Phillip Lanos, Spencer Cline, Maya Hamadeh, Tuleen Barakat, and our guest host, Kevin Hirten. It was edited by Tamara Khandaker.
Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhemm. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.
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After nearly two years of closure, Gaza’s Rafah crossing has reopened under tight Israeli controls. How is the crossing operating in practice? And what does this partial opening mean for the devastated state of Gaza’s health system, and for wounded patients and their families, and the fragile "ceasefire"?
In this episode:
Ali Harb (@Harbpeace), Al Jazeera Journalist
Episode credits:
This episode was produced by Noor Wazwaz and Sarí el-Khalili with Melanie Marich, Tuleen Barakat, and our host, Kevin Hirten. It was edited by Tamara Khandaker and Alexandra Locke.
Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhemm. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.
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Cubans are cooking on charcoal and facing worsening power blackouts after the US cut the island off of Venezuelan oil exports. US President Donald Trump promised Cuba will “fail” soon and threatened tariffs on any nations doing business with the island. Can Cuba’s communist government survive the latest US push for regime change?
In this episode:
Ed Augustin (@EdAugReporter), Independent Journalist
Episode credits:
This episode was produced by Haleema Shah and Melanie Marich with Phillip Lanos, Spencer Cline, Chloe K. Li, Tuleen Barakat, Maya Hamadeh, and our host, Kevin Hirten. It was edited by Kylene Kiang.
Our engagement producers are Adam Abou-Gad, Vienna Maglio, and Munera AlDosari. Andrew Greiner is lead of audience engagement.
Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.
Connect with us:
@AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

Spain's government will grant legal status to undocumented migrants currently living in the country. The decree, passed after years of grassroots campaigning, will potentially impact about 500,000 migrants and comes in stark contrast to the anti-immigration sentiment in other EU countries. Why has the Spanish government decided to embrace its migrant population now?
In this episode:
Marcos Bartolomé, Producer, Al Jazeera
Episode credits:
This episode was produced by Melanie Marich, with Phillip Lanos, Spencer Cline, Chloe K. Li, Tuleen Barakat, Alexandra Locke, Marcos Bartolomé, Tamara Khandaker, and our guest host, Kevin Hirten. It was edited by Kylene Kiang and Tamara Khandakher.
The Take production team is Marcos Bartolomé, Sonia Bhagat, Spencer Cline, Sarí el-Khalili, Sarí el-Khalili, Tamara Khandaker, Kylene Kiang, Phillip Lanos, Chloe K. Li, Melanie Marich, Haleema Shah, and Noor Wazwaz. Our editorial interns are Tuleen Barakat and Maya Hamadah. Our guest host is Kevin Hirten.
Our engagement producers are Adam Abou-Gad and Vienna Maglio. Andrew Greiner is lead of audience engagement.
Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.
Connect with us:
@AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

This week: 123 days into a "ceasefire", Israel has killed at least 524 Palestinians in Gaza.
 Israel reopened the Rafa Crossing as Israeli strikes continued to claim lives. Israel is continuing to destroy cemeteries in Gaza. Israel has killed more than 71,769 Palestinians in Gaza since October 7th, 2023.
In this episode:
Hani Mahmoud, Al Jazeera Correspondent
Ibrahim al-Khalili, (@_ibrahimalkhalili) Al Jazeera Correspondent
Episode credits:
This episode was produced by David Enders. Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our lead of audience development and engagement is Andrew Greiner and Munera AlDosari is our engagement producer. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera's head of audio.

Connect with us:
@AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube