History Impossible

In this very special episode of History Impossible, we are joined by the esteemed journalist, political commentator, and fellow historical podcaster Eli Lake, host of the incredible Breaking History podcast and writer of many incredible articles over the past few decades. Eli’s own series runs the gamut of many historical topics, particularly with resonance and direct connections to the headlines of the day (hence the name of the show), and there have been a number of cross-overs of our shared interests, particularly when it comes to the history of the Holy Land in particular and Middle East in general.

Most recently, Eli re-released his two-part series on the birth of modern Iran, which I very much enjoyed at the time of its original release, but even more so after the cataclysmic events in Iran began to kick off in early 2026. What particularly caught my eye was his investigation into the “Red-Green alliance” via the Iranian Revolution, which stood in harmony with the same alliance that formed vis-à-vis the Palestinian nationalist cause. As readers and listeners of History Impossible no doubt know, we have examined the contours of this alliance in the past, but have taken a much closer look at the “Green-Brown alliance” that we have seem form between the far right and Islamism in the past, and, it appears, now in the present.

Therefore, Eli seemed like the best person to talk to about this development. We discussed it and much more, including stuff more in his wheelhouse (that is, contemporary politics, from his Burkean right-of-center perspective), as well the nature of conspiracy theories, and what the hell seems to have happened to Tucker Carlson. It was a great conversation, so please enjoy!

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History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider donating today if you want to show some love for what I do and make and what to help keep the show and all my written content going:

David Adamcik
David Alsbach
Gregg Anderson
approso1999
Rajan Athul
Robert Babeon
Michael Beach
Benjamin
Greg Bosai
Johannes Breitsameter
Carol ABC
Charles C
Chomo the Clown
Curtis Christiansen
Jason Coleman
Clayton Connell
Click
Cliffydeuce
CR
B.Cyr
daddygorgon
Danny
Lynda Davis
Paul DeCoster
Regina Dick-Endrizzi
Neil Dickens
Nathan Diehl
Bob Downing
Dramicas
J Dub
Martin E.
Eastone
Gavin Edwards
Howie Feltersnatch
Pierre Ghazarian
Josh Goedert
Sam Graham
Jayson Griesmeyer
Nathan Grote
Benjamin Hamilton
Peter Hauck
Jack Henneman
Eric Hodges
Mike Jarulic
Joe6245
Lionel Joseph
Thomas Justesen
Mike Kalnins
Bryn Kaufman
Leah Kodner
Benjamin Lee
Constance Loucks
Maddy
Mounty of Madness
Jose Martinez
Mike Mayleben
S.M. McAvoy
Judy McCoid
Mike
Kyle Mohney
Kostas Moros
Ryan Mortenson
Cameron Needham
Shiran
Skip Pacheco
David Page
Molly Pan
Sr. Powell
Brian Pritzl
AnaR737
PJ Rader
Gleb Radutsky
Aleksandr Rakitin
Reptilycus
Matthew M. Rice
Phillip Rice
Terry Rosen
Dan S
Jon Andre Saether
Jake Scalia
Emily Schmidt
Julian Schmidt
Andrew Seeber
Joshua Simpson
Cameron Smith
Jerry Spangler
timetosuccedd1995
Thomas Squeo
Athal Krishna Sundarrajan
Jared Cole Temple
Ward Van Roy
Pierre Vorupuni
Robert VS
weaverap
Jonny Wilkie
Christian Wilson
Janora Winsor
F. You

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-impossible--5634566/support.

This episode includes AI-generated content.

As covered in the most recent episode of History Impossible, the Nazis could be pretty keen on developing supposedly strange bedfellows, especially as the Second World War continued. This could be seen most pointedly in the SS’s attempted merging of Islamic aesthetics and religious practices with National Socialist values with the creation of the Handschar division in Bosnia. While that division did not last long and was plagued by problems from its very inception, the idea that such an ideological and theological merge could be accomplished did not end with the division. In fact, it was only the beginning.

In this adaptation of a recent History Impossible essay, we contrast the well-known “Red-Green Alliance” that has been discussed here and elsewhere with the lesser-known, but no less significant and fascinating “Green-Brown Alliance,” that is, the ideological alliances made between individuals and groups on the Western far right and Islamist individuals and organizations around the world. Both new and familiar faces will make appearances in this story, which takes us from the postwar decades of the 20th century up until the present day, and attempts to address the fundamental question of just what makes Western, supposedly secular movements find common cause with theocratic despots and thugs.
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History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider donating today if you want to show some love for what I do and make and what to help keep the show and all my written content going:

David Adamcik
David Alsbach
Gregg Anderson
approso1999
Rajan Athul
Robert Babeon
Michael Beach
Benjamin
Greg Bosai
Johannes Breitsameter
Carol ABC
Charles C
Chomo the Clown
Curtis Christiansen
Jason Coleman
Clayton Connell
Cliffydeuce
CR
B.Cyr
daddygorgon
Danny
Lynda Davis
Paul DeCoster
Regina Dick-Endrizzi
Neil Dickens
Nathan Diehl
Bob Downing
Dramicas
J Dub
Martin E.
Eastone
Gavin Edwards
Howie Feltersnatch
Pierre Ghazarian
Josh Goedert
Sam Graham
Jayson Griesmeyer
Nathan Grote
Benjamin Hamilton
Peter Hauck
Jack Henneman
Eric Hodges
Mike Jarulic
Joe6245
Lionel Joseph
Brian Joy
Thomas Justesen
Mike Kalnins
Bryn Kaufman
Leah Kodner
Benjamin Lee
Constance Loucks
Maddy
Mounty of Madness
Jose Martinez
Mike Mayleben
Judy McCoid
Mike
Kyle Mohney
Kostas Moros
Ryan Mortenson
Cameron Needham
Shiran
Skip Pacheco
David Page
Molly Pan
Sr. Powell
Brian Pritzl
AnaR737
PJ Rader
Gleb Radutsky
Aleksandr Rakitin
Reptilycus
Matthew M. Rice
Phillip Rice
Terry Rosen
Dan S
Jon Andre Saether
Jake Scalia
Emily Schmidt
Julian Schmidt
Andrew Seeber
Joshua Simpson
Cameron Smith
Jerry Spangler
timetosuccedd1995
Thomas Squeo
Athal Krishna Sundarrajan
Jared Cole Temple
Ward Van Roy
Pierre Vorupuni
Robert VS
Jonny Wilkie
Christian Wilson
Janora Winsor
F. You

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-impossible--5634566/support.

After nearly five years, we have finally arrived at the point where we began this series about the so-called “Muslim Nazis.” We still have a little ways to go before we can call this story complete, but the image that inspired this half-decade deep dive into one of the darkest and strangest corners of the Second World War can finally be fully developed.

It took a journey across two continents and multiple countries, and context that spans two of the most—if not the most—controversial historical developments of the twentieth century, that is, the nascent Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the birth, death, and civil war of the old Yugoslavian kingdom. Only such a bizarre creation as the 13th Waffen Mountain Division of the Third Reich’s SS could result from such a complex web of geopolitics, nefarious figures, and chaotic and unbelievably violent forces and events. And yet, there was always a human side to this story.

The human side came not from the great figures of the story—the Grand Mufti’s or the Heinrich Himmler’s—but rather the men themselves and their own accounts of just what happened to bring them, the sons of Bosnia, into the arms of the Nazis, to say nothing of the ghastly crimes many of them committed. Their human qualities do not diminish the horror to which they contributed by a long shot, but they do help us understand the position they and so many like them were in. This is, in that sense, their story.

But it is the story of so much more. There are never-before suggested revelations about the Handschar that can be pieced together from the information we cover here, including the likely final ambition the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Hajj Amin al-Husseini had for the Division. This and more are covered in the greatest depth in this penultimate installment of History Impossible’s “Muslim Nazis” series.

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History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider donating today if you want to show some love for what I do and make and what to help keep the show and all my written content going:

David Adamcik
David Alsbach
Gregg Anderson
approso1999
Rajan Athul
Robert Babeon
Michael Beach
Benjamin
Greg Bosai
Johannes Breitsameter
Carol ABC
Charles C
Chomo the Clown
Curtis Christiansen
Jason Coleman
Clayton Connell
Cliffydeuce
CR
B.Cyr
daddygorgon
Danny
Lynda Davis
Paul DeCoster
Regina Dick-Endrizzi
Neil Dickens
Nathan Diehl
Bob Downing
Dramicas
J Dub
Martin E.
Eastone
Gavin Edwards
Howie Feltersnatch
Pierre Ghazarian
Josh Goedert
Sam Graham
Jayson Griesmeyer
Nathan Grote
Benjamin Hamilton
Peter Hauck
Jack Henneman
Eric Hodges
Mike Jarulic
Joe6245
Lionel Joseph
Thomas Justesen
Mike Kalnins
Bryn Kaufman
Leah Kodner
Benjamin Lee
Constance Loucks
Maddy
Mounty of Madness
Jose Martinez
Mike Mayleben
Judy McCoid
Kyle Mohney
Kostas Moros
Ryan Mortenson
Cameron Needham
Shiran
Skip Pacheco
David Page
Molly Pan
Sr. Powell
Brian Pritzl
AnaR737
PJ Rader
Gleb Radutsky
Aleksandr Rakitin
Reptilycus
Matthew M. Rice
Phillip Rice
Terry Rosen
Dan S
Jon Andre Saether
Jake Scalia
Emily Schmidt
Julian Schmidt
Andrew Seeber
Joshua Simpson
Cameron Smith
Jerry Spangler
timetosuccedd1995
Thomas Squeo
Athal Krishna Sundarrajan
Jared Cole Temple
Ward Van Roy
Pierre Vorupuni
Robert VS
Jonny Wilkie
Christian Wilson
Janora Winsor
F. You

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-impossible--5634566/support.

History is often forged upon the frontiers—both literally and figuratively. That includes the field of history, whose frontiers have become wildly expanded with the advent of podcasting and other forms of content creation. This has certainly created tension, but it has also created opportunities for narratives and voices that would never have otherwise been heard. One of those voices is that of the incredible Jack Henneman of The History of the Americans podcast, one of the best historical podcasts on the market.

Jack approaches American history with a granular fixation and that has placed him in a very different position than my own grand narrative style that I have been aping from Dan Carlin for nearly seven years now, and this has given him unique insight into the history of the United States, which is why I wanted to discuss the momentous but also underrated event known as King Philip’s War. This war’s significance to colonial American development cannot be overstated and helped characterize America’s ongoing relationship with the frontier, as well as set the tone for future calamities, including my area of the interest: the Salem witchcraft crisis.

Thanks to this significance, Jack and I were able to discuss the way such events are approached in history, as well as the state of the field itself; without spoiling too much, I will just say that both Jack and I believe that there is a bit too much concern over the frontiers of the field, which I believe has become something of a walled garden. That said, the importance of epistemic humility and transparency are paramount when forging these frontiers, and these and more are other topics we cover.

So please enjoy this conversation with Jack Henneman of the History of the Americans podcast.

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History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider donating today if you want to show some love for what I do and make and what to help keep the show and all my written content going:

David Adamcik
David Alsbach
Gregg Anderson
Rajan Athul
Robert Babeon
Michael Beach
Benjamin
Greg Bosai
Johannes Breitsameter
Carol ABC
Charles C
Chomo the Clown
Curtis Christiansen
Jason Coleman
Clayton Connell
Cliffydeuce
CR
B.Cyr
daddygorgon
Danny
Lynda Davis
Paul DeCoster
Regina Dick-Endrizzi
Neil Dickens
Nathan Diehl
Bob Downing
Dramicas
J Dub
Martin E.
Eastone
Gavin Edwards
Howie Feltersnatch
Pierre Ghazarian
Josh Goedert
Sam Graham
Jayson Griesmeyer
Nathan Grote
Benjamin Hamilton
Peter Hauck
Jack Henneman
Eric Hodges
Mike Jarulic
Joe6245
Lionel Joseph
Thomas Justesen
Mike Kalnins
Bryn Kaufman
Leah Kodner
Benjamin Lee
Constance Loucks
Maddy
Mounty of Madness
Jose Martinez
Mike Mayleben
Judy McCoid
Kyle Mohney
Kostas Moros
Ryan Mortenson
Cameron Needham
Shiran
Skip Pacheco
David Page
Molly Pan
Sr. Powell
Brian Pritzl
AnaR737
PJ Rader
Gleb Radutsky
Aleksandr Rakitin
Reptilycus
Matthew M. Rice
Phillip Rice
Terry Rosen
Dan S
Jon Andre Saether
Jake Scalia
Emily Schmidt
Julian Schmidt
Andrew Seeber
Joshua Simpson
Cameron Smith
Jerry Spangler
timetosuccedd1995
Thomas Squeo
Athal Krishna Sundarrajan
Jared Cole Temple
Ward Van Roy
Pierre Vorupuni
Robert VS
Jonny Wilkie
Christian Wilson
Janora Winsor
F. You

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-impossible--5634566/support.

It’s unlikely that I’ve undersold the significance of the Salem witchcraft crisis to the development of American history, particularly in the religious and institutional context. But what I always felt somewhat sad about leaving out was the true horror of the event itself, and really the confusing knot that it has created throughout the nearly 340 years that have passed since its conclusion. Why did such a thing happen? What bewitched the people of Salem? Was it mass hysteria? Was it social contagion? Was it ergot poisoning? Was it real witchcraft? These questions, remarkably, are still asked to this very day.

That is why I enlisted the help of my friend and now second-time guest on History Impossible, Sebastian Major of Our Fake History to help me unravel this mystery for all of you fine people. Sebastian did a fantastic three-part series covering the witchcraft crisis—my favorite podcast to do so, in fact—a couple of years ago, so I figured there was no one better to get into the broad overview of this twisted and persistent legend of American history. We also looked at the psychological element of the Salem witchcraft crisis and how it carries a universal quality to this very day, with everything from the Satanic panic of the 1980s to the rapid devolution of metoo, to even the Epstein conspiracy theory industry, serving as interesting road markers to understanding the underlying mechanisms. And thanks to Sebastian’s Canadian status—don’t worry, I don’t hold it against him—we also had a little fun discussing bits of Canadian history and politics (something I am woefully uneducated in).

So please enjoy this conversation looking at what possessed Salem in 1692-1693, and perhaps what created the blueprint for strained social relations in American history forever.

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History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider donating today if you want to show some love for what I do and make and what to help keep the show and all my written content going:

David Adamcik
David Alsbach
Gregg Anderson
Rajan Athul
Robert Babeon
Michael Beach
Benjamin
Greg Bosai
Johannes Breitsameter
Carol ABC
Charles C
Chomo the Clown
Curtis Christiansen
Jason Coleman
Clayton Connell
Cliffydeuce
CR
B.Cyr
daddygorgon
Danny
Lynda Davis
Paul DeCoster
Regina Dick-Endrizzi
Neil Dickens
Nathan Diehl
Bob Downing
Dramicas
J Dub
Martin E.
Eastone
Gavin Edwards
Howie Feltersnatch
Pierre Ghazarian
Josh Goedert
Sam Graham
Jayson Griesmeyer
Nathan Grote
Benjamin Hamilton
Peter Hauck
Jack Henneman
Eric Hodges
Mike Jarulic
Joe6245
Lionel Joseph
Thomas Justesen
Mike Kalnins
Bryn Kaufman
Leah Kodner
Benjamin Lee
Constance Loucks
Maddy
Mounty of Madness
Jose Martinez
Mike Mayleben
Judy McCoid
Kyle Mohney
Kostas Moros
Ryan Mortenson
Cameron Needham
Shiran
Skip Pacheco
David Page
Molly Pan
Sr. Powell
Brian Pritzl
AnaR737
PJ Rader
Gleb Radutsky
Aleksandr Rakitin
Reptilycus
Matthew M. Rice
Phillip Rice
Terry Rosen
Dan S
Jon Andre Saether
Jake Scalia
Emily Schmidt
Julian Schmidt
Andrew Seeber
Joshua Simpson
Cameron Smith
Jerry Spangler
timetosuccedd1995
Thomas Squeo
Athal Krishna Sundarrajan
Jared Cole Temple
Ward Van Roy
Pierre Vorupuni
Robert VS
Jonny Wilkie
Christian Wilson
Janora Winsor
F. You

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-impossible--5634566/support.