“On this episode of SEPADPod Simon speaks with Thomas Pierret, Senior Researcher at CNRS-IREMAM, Aix-en-Provence. Thomas is the author of a number of important works on Syria, focussing on the relationship between religion and state, most notably Religion and State in Syria: The Sunni Ulama from Coup to Revolution, published by Cambridge University Press. On this episode, Simon and Thomas talk through the role of Islam within the Syrian state, exploring how the regime has cultivated a nuanced set of relationships which occur within broader socio-economic contexts.”