The Civilian Protection Podcast

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the human toll of the war has been devastating. But obscured by news about fatalities, injuries and material damages is the longer-term impact of this conflict. In this episode, we’ll explore the environmental degradation caused by military operations in Ukraine and its consequences for civilians, and discuss why protecting the environment is an essential part of protecting civilians.

Guests:

• Yevheniia Zasiadko (Head of Climate Department, Ecoaction)
• Iryna Nikolaieva (Environment Expert and Researcher, PAX)
• Erin Bijl (Senior Project Officer ‘Protection of Civilians’, PAX)

This podcast is brought to you by CIVIC and PAX. This episode was written by Erin Bijl with assistance from Annie Shiel, Marc Garlasco, Tate Musinahama, Selma van Oostwaard and Brittany Roser.

This episode included a clip from BBC News. We further referred to data by OHCHR, an article on Earth.org and we quoted from the UN website for 6 November.

To learn more about the impact of military operations on the environment and subsequent civilian harm, see:

• Interactive Map of the potential environmental impacts caused by Russian aggression in Ukraine, Ecoaction website
• Conflict & Environment, PAX website
• PAX Briefing Note to the United Nations Security Council on harm to the environment from military operations in Ukraine

Full interviews with Yevheniia Zasiadko (Ecoaction) and with Iryna Nikolaieva will soon be posted on the CIVIC and PAX website.

On October 7, Hamas attacks in Israel killed an estimated 1,200 people and took over 200 people hostage. The Israeli response, including intense bombardments and a ground offensive in Gaza, has been extremely destructive, reportedly killing over 13,000 Palestinians including 5,500 children as of the time of this episode’s recording. In this episode, Emily Tripp, Director of the casualty counting organization Airwars, joins us to make sense of these numbers and explain the process and importance of casualty recording.

Guest: Emily Tripp, Director of Airwars

This podcast is brought to you by CIVIC and PAX.

You can find a full transcript of this episode here.

This episode includes clips from FOX 26 Houston, France 24, ABC News, US Defense Department, NPR, and Al Arabiya English.

To learn more about civilian harm in Gaza, see:

• Airwars, Israel and Gaza 2023
• CIVIC, Civilians in Gaza Running out of Self-Protection Options
• PAX: Dutch Government, Don’t Give Israel Carte Blanche
• Just Security, Law and Policy Guide to US Arms Transfers to Israel
• Every Casualty Counts, Casualty Recorders Network

On April 22, 2018, planes belonging to the Saudi- and Emirati-led Coalition dropped a bomb on a wedding celebration in Al-Raqa village, in Yemen. The attack killed 21 civilians, including eleven children, and injured 97 people. And it did so using a bomb that was made and sold in the United States. In this episode, we explore the US arms trade system and policies that made this, and so many incidents like it, possible.

Guests:

• Ali Jameel (Accountability and Redress Director, Mwatana for Human Rights)
• Tony Wilson (Founder & Director, Security Force Monitor at Columbia Law School Human Rights Institute)
• Joyce Sohyun Lee (Visual Forensics Video Reporter, The Washington Post)

This podcast is brought to you by CIVIC and PAX. This episode was written by Annie Shiel with assistance from Marc Garlasco, Tate Musinahama, Ari Tolany, John Ramming Chappell, Selma van Oostwaard, Erin Bijl, and Frank Slijper.

This episode included a clip from Al Jazeera.

To learn more about arms sales and civilian harm, see:

• Day of Judgment, a report from Mwatana for Human Rights, PAX, and University Network for Human Rights on the role of the US and Europe in civilian death, destruction, and trauma in Yemen.
• A Washington Post piece outlining the findings of their joint investigation with Security Force Monitor into US support for the Saudi- and Emirati-led Coalition in Yemen; the Security Force Monitor methodology; and additional analysis from the Monitor.
• With Great Power, a report by CIVIC and the Stimson Center on civilian harm risks in US arms transfers.

Bonus materials:

• Full interview with Ali Jameel (Mwatana for Human Rights) and with Joyce Soyhun Lee (The Washington Post) and Tony Wilson (Security Force Monitor) will soon be posted on the CIVIC and PAX website.

On February 24, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. Since that day, thousands of civilians have been killed or injured and over ten million people have been internally displaced or fled Ukraine as refugees. In this episode, our CIVIC colleagues in Ukraine share their experiences living through the war, the dangers facing civilians, and what must be done to protect them.

Thank you for tuning in to Season 1 of the Civilian Protection Podcast. Please help us by filling out a quick listener survey so we can learn more about our audience and what you want to hear from us as we work on Season 2: https://forms.gle/LyrrM8UNR5s9kRK99.

Guests and co-hosts:

• Beatrice Godefroy (Europe Program Director, Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC))
• Oksana and Liza (members of the CIVIC Ukraine team)
• Annie Shiel (US Policy & Advocacy Senior Advisor, CIVIC)
• Marc Garlasco (Military Advisor Protection of Civilians, PAX)

This episode included audio clips from The Independent and MSNBC.

This podcast is brought to you by CIVIC and PAX. This episode was written by Annie Shiel, Beatrice Godefroy, and CIVIC’s Ukraine Team, with assistance from Marc Garlasco, Monica Zuraw, Ari Tolany, and Selma van Oostwaard.

On September 19, in a 24-hour lightning military operation, Azerbaijan seized Nagorno-Karabakh, the disputed region that has been an epicenter of conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia. In the days and weeks that followed, tens of thousands of ethnic Armenians – nearly the entire population of Nagorno-Karabakh – have fled. In this episode, Alissa de Carbonnel, Deputy Director for Europe and Central Asia at the International Crisis Group, joins us to discuss the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh and the humanitarian crisis that has resulted.

Guest: Alissa de Carbonnel, Deputy Director for Europe and Central Asia, International Crisis Group

This podcast is brought to you by CIVIC and PAX.

You can find a full transcript of this episode here.

To learn more about the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, see:

• International Crisis Group: Responding to the Humanitarian Catastrophe in Nagorno-Karabakh