Kamaran M. Palani

An Associate Fellow at Al Sharq Strategic Research and a Lecturer in International Relations at Salahaddin University-Erbil. Palani is also a Research Fellow at the Middle East Research Institute. He is currently finalizing his PhD study at Leiden University.

Research Interests: Iraqi politics, regional Kurdish politics, de facto statehood in the international system, and violent extremism in the Middle East.

Tamer Badawi

An Iran analyst. He is an Associate Fellow at Al Sharq Strategic Research and a Programme Associate at the Middle East Directions Program at the European University Institute. He was previously a Policy Leader Fellow at the School of Transnational Governance in the European University Institute and prior to that a Research Fellow at Al Sharq Strategic Research.

Thembisa Fakude

Fellow at Al Sharq Strategic Research in Istanbul, Turkey. Deputy Chairperson Common Action Forum, Madrid, Spain. Columnist Middle East Monitor London, United Kingdom. Member of the Board Mail and Guardian, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Amjad Atallah

Amjad Atallah is the CEO of Vortex International and was a legal advisor to the Palestinian negotiating team from 2000 to 2003. He was most recently the Editor-in-Chief for Al Jazeera America and the former Bureau Chief for Al Jazeera English in the America

Muhanad Seloom

Muhanad Seloom is an independent analyst and academic researcher into ethno-sectarian conflicts. He is also the co-founder of the Iraqi Research Network (IRN), a non-profit research centre based in London. He is an associate lecturer in International Relations at the University of Exeter, United Kingdom.

Research Interests: Fields of political violence and peace-building, counterterrorism policies, ethno-nationalsit, Islamist and sectarian violence in the Middle East.

Yury Barmin

Yury Barmin is a risk consultant whose work focuses on issues related to the Middle East and Russia’s positioning there. He is an Expert at the Russian International Affairs Council, covering the Middle East and North Africa and Moscow’s policy towards the region as well as the conflict in Syria. Mr Barmin holds an MPhil in International Relations from the University of Cambridge; his dissertation looked into the failed Arab Spring protests in Bahrain and Kuwait.

Research Interests: Politics of the Gulf and the ties that exist between Russia’s North Caucasus and the GCC monarchies.

Inga Kristina Trauthig

Inga Kristina Trauthig is a Research Fellow at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation (ICSR) and PhD candidate at the War Studies Department at King’s College London. Her research focusses on non-state actors in the Middle East and North Africa, particularly Libya. At King’s College, she convenes the MENA Research Group within the Institute of Middle Eastern Studies (IMES). She also works on broader issues concerning violent extremism in Europe and the US. Inga has conducted work with UN-organisations, NGOs and private companies that addressed root causes of civil strife as well as practical and ideological competition between state and non-state actors in the Middle East. She holds an MLitt in Middle East, Caucasus and Central Asian Security Studies from the University of St Andrews in Scotland.

Betul Dogan Akkas 

Betul Dogan Akkas is a PhD candidate at joint degree program between Qatar University Gulf Studies Center and Durham University School of Government and International Affairs. She also received her MA degree with a thesis titled “Securitization of Qatari Foreign Policy” at Qatar University. Dogan Akkas completed her BA in International Relations at Bilkent University. Following her undergraduate studies, she conducted field research in Jenin, Palestine. Her research interests and publications include foreign policymaking, security strategies and social transformation of the Gulf Monarchies and Yemen. 

Fırat Kimya

Fırat Kimya is an Associate Fellow at Al Sharq Strategic Research and a PhD Candidate in the department of Politics at the University of Virginia.  His research explores the formation of democratic institutions, particularly political parties, before and after democratic transition processes. Regionally, He is interested in Europe and MENA, utilizing a comparative approach to the study of democratization. His research interests include political parties, corruption and party finance, democratization in the MENA, social movements, European politics, and democratic consolidation.

Twitter address: Fırat Kimya, https://twitter.com/frtkmy

M. Nurullah Gulec

M. Nurullah Gulec graduated from Bogazici University with bachelor’s degrees in Economics and Mathematics. Then, he completed his MPhil in Economics at the University of Oxford. He is now continuing his Ph.D. studies in Economics at Duke University. He is interested in industrial organization, development, and political economy.

Nicci Enchmarch

Nicola Enchmarch is the Managing Director of Al Sharq Forum in the United Kingdom. She has a wealth of commercial and Not for Profit experience acquired over 20+ years in business and management consultancy roles across multiple industry sectors within the UK, New Zealand, Europe and the MENA region. Nicola has experience working in multi-national and cross-functional environments from enterprise-wide to micro-level projects. Nicola holds a BRS in Environmental Studies and continues to maintain an active interest within this field.

Mercedes Bellavista

Throughout her professional life, Mercedes has performed several roles, such as manager`s assistant, executive secretary, as well as project manager and worked with international companies, consulting firms and foundations in Spain, Switzerland, the United States and the United Kingdom. With an excellent ability to assess any situation, Mercedes provides a personalized approach and a smooth and easy communication style, and has the ability to adapt to a wide variety of environments and cultures

Her current roles in Al Sharq Forum Geneva: Executive Secretary and Project Manager

Yaser Sayed Omar

Administrative Director at Al Sharq Forum. Yaser has a +10 years Experience in the field of Management, Human Development, and Nonprofit Organizations. He also co-founded a number of civil society organizations working to provide support in the fields of education, charity, and human rights. He is a blogger and writer in many websites, including Huffington Post Arabi.

Mohammad Affan

Mohammad Affan is the acting director of Al Sharq Strategic Research, the coordinator of Al Sharq Program on Political Islam, and the managing director of Al Sharq Academia. A medical doctor by training, he holds a Ph.D. from the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, University of Exeter. Also, he obtained his MA degree in Comparative Politics at the American University of Cairo. His thesis was published in Arabic as a book titled: ‘Wahhabism and the Brotherhood: The Conflict on the Concept of the State and the Legitimacy of Power.’ In addition, he holds a post-graduate diploma in Civil Society and Human Rights from Cairo University, a diploma in Political Research and Studies from the Institute of Arab Research and Studies, and a diploma in Islamic Studies from The Higher Institute for Islamic Studies, Cairo. His research interests include Islamism and democratization in MENA region.

Mehmet Emin Cengiz

Rawan Hammoud

Rawan Hammoud is a research assistant at Al Sharq Strategic Research Center. She holds an MA from New York University and a BA from the American University of Beirut. Her work focuses primarily on the socio-political transformations in the aftermath of the Arab uprisings. 

Osama El-Mourabit

Osama El-Mourabit is a research assistant and program coordinator at Al Sharq Forum. He holds a MA in International Relations from the University of Humboldt-Berlin with a thesis on « the EU discourse towards the Southern Mediterranean: from the EMP to the ENP », and he is currently doing his PhD in Area Studies at the Middle East Technical University.

He has previously worked in various institutions, with research experiences at the Policy Center for the New South, the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), and the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA). His research focus includes the Global and Regional Power Competition in the Middle East, Identity and Foreign Policy, and the Soft Power theory.

Jawad Abazeed

Jawad Abazeed is the information specialist at Al Sharq Forum. He was the Community Coordinator for Al Sharq Youth Network from 2015 to 2016. He studied accounting at the University of Science and Technology in Yemen. Previously, he worked in accounting and operation management, and was an IT instructor.

Leen Hariri

Firdaous Amri

Executive Secretary at Al Sharq Forum. She completed her undergraduate program in History department at Istanbul Sehir University. Firdaous has been actively working in many NGO’s in Turkey and was member of Istanbul Cosmopolitan Municipality Youth Assembly. She took part in organizing several youth conferences and social activities, Turk Arab Youth Congress (TAYC) and Ramadan Tent 2014 and 2015.

Beshr Abdulhadi

Abdullah Yasir Atalan

Abdullah Yasir Atalan is a PhD student of Political Science at the American University. Abdullah also works as a fellow at the American University Center for Data Science, as well as an editorial assistant for Political Analysis Journal. He holds an MA in Middle Eastern Studies from King’s College, London. His research interests cover political economy, civil-military relations, and regime types in the Middle East.

Anna Jacobs

Anna Jacobs is a Political Officer with The Shaikh Group (TSG), focusing on the Track II Dialogue for Mutual Security in the Middle East. She is also a Non-Resident Fellow with the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington where she writes on foreign policy in the Middle East and North Africa with a focus on regional and great power competition, Gulf states, and North Africa. Her work has been published with the Brookings Institution, the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, Foreign Policy, The Washington Post, Chatham House, Al Jazeera English, Al Sharq Strategic Research, and elsewhere. Previously, she worked as the senior research assistant at the Brookings Doha Center, an Academic Director for the SIT Study Abroad journalism program in Morocco, a lecturer in political economy and media at Rabat’s Ecole de Gouvernance et d’Economie, and a political risk consultant. She received a Master of Philosophy in Modern Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Oxford where she specialized in political economy, foreign policy, and Arabic. She is a Fulbright Scholar and a graduate of the University of Virginia. 

Bilal Salaymeh

Bilal Salaymeh is a Ph.D. candidate at the Department of International Relations/Political Science at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies – Geneva (IHEID), and a doctoral researcher of the project “A child of its time: the impact of world politics on peacebuilding.” He completed his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in International Relations with high honour.

His research examines conflict dynamics and post-conflict peacebuilding/state-building. His geographic areas of expertise are Syria, Libya, Palestinian politics, and Turkish Foreign Policy towards the MENA region.       

He worked before for SETA Foundation – Foreign Policy Research Department. He also worked as a project assistant for two projects on Security Sector Reform (SSR) and Counter Violent Extremism (CVE) in Libya, funded by the Islamic Development Bank.

Deniz Baran

Deniz Baran is a faculty member at Istanbul University’s International Law Department, and a lawyer registered to the Istanbul Bar Association, focusing on providing legal consultancy for foreign investors in Turkey and international investment arbitration cases. He is also contributing to Al Sharq Forum as its international law specialist. He is a PhD candidate in public international law at Istanbul University, where he also obtained his Bachelor’s and Master’s degree.

Baran used to coordinate the International Law Research Center (UHAM) which is affiliated to Fatih Sultan Mehmet University. He has previously conducted numerous international youth projects as Turkey&Balkans Regional Coordinator of Al Sharq Youth, the Chairman of Istanbul Youth Assembly Foreign Affairs Commission, the Turkish Delegate for Y20 2016 China Summit and the Deputy Chair of YCDC (Youth Commission of Diplomacy and Collaboration).

With a keen interest in media, he has taken up writing articles regarding international legal matters for various media outlets such as Middle East Eye, Perspektif Online and Anadolu Agency. He is currently a regular contributor to Al Jazeera where he publishes legal Op-Ed pieces on a monthly basis. 

Elif Beyza Karaalioğlu

Elif Beyza Karaalioğlu completed her MA in Conflict, Security and Development in the Department of War Studies at King’s College London, where she wrote her MA dissertation on the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)’s Article VI. Prior to her MA, she received her BA degree in Political Science and International Relations at Istanbul Şehir University. Her research and analysis focuses on international security, Turkish foreign policy and diplomacy, arms control and nuclear disarmament, and non-proliferation of WMD. Her analyses, opinion pieces, and policy briefs were previously published at various national and international media outlets such as UK PONI’s Nuclear Reactions Blog, Middle East Eye, Fair Observer, Global Political Trends Center (GPoT Center), Al Sharq Strategic Research, and Perspektif

Valentina Pegolo

Valentina Pegolo is a DPhil Candidate in International Relations (Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford) and an ESRC (Economic and Social Science Research Council) studentship holder. Her thesis focuses on the foreign policy of Iran in Central Asia. She has previously completed an MPhil in International Relations (University of Oxford) and a BA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (University of Oxford). She has conducted research as a political analyst for UK NGOs. Her areas of expertise include Iranian foreign policy, the international relations of Central Asia and the Middle East, and the study of ideology.

Harun Karcic

Dr. Harun Karcic is a foreign affairs editor at Al Jazeera Balkans based in Sarajevo. He has written extensively on Islam and foreign influences (particularly Saudi, Turkish and Iranian) in the Balkans. He has also written on the rising Russian and Chinese activity in the Balkans. He tweets @HarunKarcic

Huseyin Zengin

Huseyin Zengin is a PhD student at the University of Pittsburgh in the Department of Political Science. His interests span from democratization and populism to Turkish politics and the Kurdish Question. He published or has forthcoming articles at Studies in Comparative International Development, Turkish Studies, Social Science Information, and New Perspectives on Turkey. His dissertation project deals with the ongoing clashes in Southeastern Turkey between the state and the PKK and how violence affects ethnic identification in the region.

Khaled Fouad

Khaled Fouad is a Middle East energy and political analyst. He holds an MA in political sciences and international relations from Istanbul Aydın University (2020). He directed the research & studies department of the Egyptian Institute for Studies (EIS) during 2015-2019. He published many studies and articles in Al Jazeera, TRT Arabic, Egyptian Institute for Studies, and Arabic Post.

Nedra Cherif

Nedra Cherif is an independent analyst and researcher focusing on the political transitions in the MENA region since the Arab uprisings, with a particular attention on Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. Her research interests also include peace-building, local mechanisms of conflict resolution and reconciliation, and the role of cultural and ethnic minorities in rebuilding societies after conflict. She is a graduate in International Affairs and Political Science from Sciences Po Paris and the European University Institute in Florence.

Omid Shokri

Omid Shokri is a Washington-based Senior Energy Security Analyst, Author of, US Energy Diplomacy in the Caspian Sea Basin: Changing Trends Since 2001, currently serving as a Visiting Research Scholar in the Center for Energy Science and Policy (CESP) and the Schar, School of Policy and Government at George Mason University and analyst at Gulf State Analytics (GSA).

Omid holds PhD in International Relations His primary research interest lies in Energy diplomacy, Energy Transition, U.S. energy policy, geopolitics of energy, Iran-Turkey relations, and Iran-Russia relations, Caspian Sea region, Central Asia and GCC. He has fifteen years of extensive professional experience in global energy market studies, energy security and geopolitical risk.

He has published articles in various academic journals including Energy and Environment, Energy Intelligence, Middle East Policy, National Interest, Oil and Gas Journal, Springer, Palgrave Macmillan Publishing and appeared on the various media outlets, including Aljazeera, TRT World, Deutsche Welle, Anews, BBC Persian, Iran Int TV, and several others. Follow him at @ushukrik, https://uskenergy.com/