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The MEC builds on LSE’s long engagement with the Middle East and North Africa and provides a central hub for the wide range of research on the region carried out at LSE.
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Speaker: Tom Woerner-Powell, University of Manchester Chair: Jonathan Hill, King's College London From his struggle against French colonialism in North Africa to his stand against religious sectarianism in Syria, the actions of Abd al-Qadir al-Jaza'iri have been an inspiration to many. The symbolic father of modern Algeria has frequently been presented as both an exemplary Muslim and a bridge between East and West. In this talk, Tom Woerner-Powell launches his book ‘Another Road to Damascus: an integrative approach to Abd al-Qadir al-Jaza’iri', in which he questions prevailing depictions of the historical figure in scholarly literature and beyond, and discusses his continued salience as a symbolic mediator between the supposedly conflicting zones of ‘Islam and Europe’, ‘East and West’. Recorded on 6 December 2017.
Speaker: Ian Black, LSE Middle East Centre Discussant: Tom Phillips, Royal College of Defence Studies Chair: Toby Dodge, LSE Middle East Centre This talk launches Ian Black’s book Enemies and Neighbours: Enemies and Neighbours: Arabs and Jews in Palestine and Israel, 1917–2017, in which he traces how, half a century after the watershed of the 1967 war, hopes for a two-state solution and an end to occupation have all but disappeared. Drawing on declassified documents, oral histories and his own on-the-ground reporting, Black recreates the major milestones in the most polarizing conflict of the modern age from both sides. Recorded on 29 November 2017.
Speaker: Madawi Al-Rasheed, LSE; John Chalcraft, LSE; Ewan Stein, University of Edinburgh Chair: Toby Dodge, LSE Three years after the Arab uprisings started in Tunisia, a panel of academics reflect on the causes and drivers behind these seminal events, how they have transformed countries like Egypt; but also why they have had less impact in other countries, such as Saudi Arabia. Recorded on 4 December 2013.
Speaker: Christian Emery, University of Plymouth Chair: Roham Alvandi, LSE In this talk, Dr Emery discusses the main findings from his new book: 'US Foreign Policy and the Iranian Revolution: the Cold War Dynamics of Engagement and Strategic Alliance'. He focuses on how US policy objectives in Iran were refashioned in light of three major and converging crises: the Iran hostage crisis, the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan, and the onset of the Iran-Iraq dynamic. Recorded on 2 December 2013. Image credit: U.S. Department of State, Flickr.
Speaker: Charles Shamas, MATTIN Group Chair: Federica Bicchi, LSE In July the European Commission published "guidelines on the eligibility of Israeli entities and their activities in the territories occupied by Israel since June 1967 for grants, prizes and financial instruments funded by the EU from 2014 onwards." This step has been variously described as a 'political earthquake', a sanction targeting Israeli settlements and settlement policies, and a confrontational move to save the two-State solution and the Middle East Peace Process from final collapse. But what precisely is taking place and how did we get here? What are the likely political consequences? This presentation outlines the processes that have driven the EU's production of these guidelines. In this light it will examine the role of the EU as a normative power striving to respect international law and comply with its own law while intensifying EU-Israel relations. Recorded on 11 November 2013. We apologise that the question and answer session is missing from this podcast.
Speaker: Christopher Schroeder Chair: Mark Schankerman, LSE Schroeder shares the stories of young Middle Eastern entrepreneurs and describes the broader economic and political challenges and opportunities facing them. He argues that the Middle East is a lens into a massive shift we should all be engaging in now. Recorded on 2 October 2013.
Speaker: Saleh Muslim Mohamed, Democratic Union Party (PYD) Chair: Robert Lowe, LSE MEC It is nine months since Kurds took control of towns in northern Syria, having established an unprecedented coalition of Kurdish parties. Saleh Muslim Mohamed, the co-President of the most prominent Syrian Kurdish party, assesses the progress of Kurdish politics and local government and the wider Syrian and regional context. Recorded on 3 May 2013.
Speakers: Karma Nabulsi, University of Oxford; Ilan Pappe, University of Exeter; Rosemary Hollis, City University London; Peter Kosminsky Chair: Jon Snow, Channel 4 News In this panel discussion, the speakers discuss aspects of the current situation in Palestine, including: Palestinian domestic politics, Israel’s position, the international dimension of the impasse and the insights into the conflict provided by film-making. Recorded on 26 April 2013.
Speaker: Roland Dannreuther, University of Westminster Chair: Fawaz Gerges, LSE When there are shifts in distribution of power in international politics, energy security emerges as a salient concern. Professor Dannreuther considers the implications of two shifts: first, the flow of energy from east to west (oil and gas) and the increasing links between Asia and energy-producing regions; and secondly, the flow from consumers of energy to producers of energy with the rise of resource nationalism. Recorded on 11 March 2013.
Speaker: Hazem Kandil, Cambridge University Chair: Fawaz Gerges, LSE Hazem Kandil explains why Egypt's popular uprising has so far failed to overthrow the regime through exploring the positions of the main players in the revolt: the military, security, and the various political factions. Recorded on 4 March 2013.
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