Alastair Crooke discusses "How Saudi Arabia Is Collapsing" with Napolitano
The full conversation draws an unusually large early audience, alongside a fast-starting Short about Saudi oil infrastructure.
Why this story? The video opened at a pace of 204,132 views a day, 11 times a normal first day on this channel (19,247).
Alastair Crooke : How Saudi Arabia Is Collapsing
Andrew Napolitano's Saudi Arabia coverage has moved from a short warning to an extended conversation with Alastair Crooke, the former British diplomat known for his Middle East commentary.
The interview, titled "Alastair Crooke : How Saudi Arabia Is Collapsing", reached about 166,000 views in 16 hours. That is already far beyond the channel's usual full-day audience for a regular video. Its comment section is also nearly nine times as busy as a typical first day, with some viewers asking Napolitano to give Crooke longer conversations.
Saudi Arabia is a recurring subject across the channel's latest interviews, not just this guest's appearance. Chas Freeman's title asks whether the country is collapsing, while Matt Hoh's asks whether its leadership can survive. Those are the questions and arguments the channel is presenting, rather than announcements of an established outcome.
A separate Short, "Saudi Arabia's 2-Year Oil Crisis: Can They Afford It? #shorts", is drawing an unusually large audience too. Its description attributes financial pressure to damaged oil infrastructure and lengthy repairs. Meanwhile, Napolitano's conversations with Scott Ritter about Trump and Putin, and Jeffrey Sachs about Trump's political prospects, have also opened well above the channel's usual pace.
Published on Trari
Where next?
- Subscribers
- 790,000 ▲ 1,000 this week
- Channel views, last 7 days
- 3,079,152
- Video published
- October 12, 2026
- Video views so far
- 165,847 (less than a day online)
- Video views, pace per day
- 204,132
The numbers
Crooke's interview and the Saudi oil Short both stand out against the channel's usual starts for their respective formats.
💡 Test your knowledge
What is the capital of Saudi Arabia?
Riyadh is Saudi Arabia's capital, while the other cities are capitals of neighboring Gulf countries.



