The Brookings Institution published a study of American opinions on the Middle East, conducted by the University of Maryland’s Program on International Policy Attitudes and Anwar Sadat Chair Shibley Telhami. The study sought to gauge American first impressions and public opinion of the attacks on U.S. embassies in the Middle East, and whether attitudes on other issues have changed since the attacks. A poll conducted as part of the study found that a majority ...

The Center for National Policy hosted an event on Thursday (10/4) entitled “U.S.-Egyptian Relations: Where is the Bilateral Relationship Headed?” The discussion centered around the slow and initial tepid response of the new Egyptian leadership to the attack on the U.S. embassy in Cairo. The response caused some members of Congress to advocate for a cut in U.S. assistance. On the other hand, both Egyptian and U.S. officials have indicated ...

The U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) brought Syrian opposition members together on Thursday (10/4) to discuss the Day After Project, an eight-month effort to plan for a post-Assad Syria, coordinated by USIP and created by a group of 50 academics and opposition members. Although the report was released in August, this was the first presentation the report to the U.S. public. The project was divided into working groups, and each ...

On Monday, the Woodrow Wilson International Center hosted a lecture by Wilson Center Senior Scholar David Ottaway, entitled “Saudi Arabia's Race against Time,” to highlight the current situation in Saudi Arabia. For full event notes, continue reading below or click here for a PDF. Ottaway began his talk by discussing Saudi Arabia's response to the American film that has sparked protests throughout the Middle East. On Saturday, September 15, the Grand Mufti ...

On Tuesday evening, Politics and Prose bookstore hosted a discussion of the newly-released book “Islam and the Arab Awakening” with its author Dr. Tariq Ramadan, Professor of Islamic Studies at Oxford University and President of the European Muslim Network. For full event notes, continue reading below or click here for the PDF version. Ramadan provided an overview of the main arguments presented in his book. He first stated that “the awakening of the ...

The Rafik Hariri Center hosted a panel discussion on Thursday (9/13) entitled, “Security Challenges to Libya’s Quest for Democracy” to discuss how the issues of security affect Libya as it continues to build its capacity for governance. The recent attacks on the U.S. consulate in Libya made the discussion all the more pertinent. The panel included Dr. Karim Mezran, Senior Fellow at the Hariri Center for the Middle East; Dr. ...

The MENA Initiative hosted a panel discussion on Tuesday (9/11) entitled “Can We Do More? The U.S. and the Arab Spring” to discuss how the U.S. can assist in the transitions of Middle Eastern governments. The panel included Ambassador William B. Taylor, Special Coordinator for Middle East Transitions at the State Department; Dr. Nathan Brown, Professor of Political Science and International Affairs at George Washington University; and Mickey Bergman, Executive ...

On Tuesday (9/11) the Johns Hopkins SAIS department hosted a panel discussion entitled, “Middle East and Arab Spring: Prospects for Sustainable Peace on Tuesday,” part of a series of events exploring the relationship between democracy and conflict. The panel included Azizah al-Hibri of KARAMAH: Muslim Women Layers for Human Rights, Dr. Muqtedar Khan of the University of Delaware, Laith Kubba, of the National Endowment for Democracy, Dr. Peter Mandaville of ...