The Ugly Age Of Empires That Is Now Returning (S01E176)

Thursday, October 22, 2026, Gibraltar

Right now Gibraltar is known mostly as a sunny getaway for UK pensioners, a British enclave on the Iberian Peninsula with ye olde charm and a famous rock used as the logo of an American insurance company.

But for centuries, Gibraltar—which abuts the strait between the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea—was a hotly contested piece of real estate contested by various empires and monarchs.

In the latest episode of badlands, host Borzou Daragahi visits the enclave, offers a brief tour, and ruminates on the newly emerging age of empires, with imperial wars of conquest being waged by Russia, the US, and Israel.

Borzou also discusses surging fears of a renewed war by Israel and the US against Iran—how Benjamin Netanyahu’s political desperation might lead to a new conflict.

Notes:

* Check out badlands’ Substack page for lots of content being removed from the paywall just this week. Also browse the YouTube channel.

* The New York Times reports that Trump and Netanyahu have already drawn up fresh war plans against Iran, but that the US president is undecided.

* Dropsite News interviewed Iran’s Supreme National Security Council secretary Mohsen Rezai, who offered some details of Iran’s war plans should the US and Israel attack.

* Here’s how to visit Gibraltar.

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