Speakers

Yana Abu Taleb is the Jordan Director of EcoPeace Middle East. Yana leads EcoPeace activities concerning the Jordan River, Dead Sea, and our Good Water Neighbors and Water Energy Nexus projects. Yana supervises international project development, liaising with and lobbying government and private sector figures and organizations on regional policy issues related to environmental protection

Hoda A. Al Khzaimi is currently a research assistant professor at New York University Abu Dhabi and the Director of Center of Cyber Security in New York University Abu Dhabi. Alkhzaimi has a specific expertise in Cryptology; cryptanalysis, constructing and validating security hardware and software components, constructing trusted security architectures for different environments in different

Abla Abdel Latif is currently the Chair of the Presidential Advisory Council for Economic Development, and the Executive Director and Director of Research of The Egyptian Center for Economic Studies (ECES). She is also a Member of the Central Bank of Egypt’s Coordinating Council and has been a Board Member of the National Bank of

Gilbert Achcar is Professor of Development Studies and International Relations at SOAS University of London. He has degrees in Philosophy (ESL, Beirut), Social Sciences (UL, Beirut) and a PhD in Social History/International Relations (University of Paris-VIII). Before joining SOAS in 2007, he taught and/or researched various universities and research centers in Beirut, Berlin and Paris.

Varsen Aghabekian is a Palestinian politician and academic. On 31 March 2024, she was appointed Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Expatriates by the Palestinian Authority, becoming the first person of Armenian descent to hold a ministerial position in the government. On 23 June 2025, she was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates

Yousuf Al Bulushi is a former senior diplomat, innovator and entrepreneurial leader. Al Bulushi brings forward more than 20 years of work experience in the combined fields of science diplomacy, innovation, entrepreneurship, science and technology development and education. He has a proven track record in leading disruptive technology initiatives (4IR, SPI, future disruptive technology, Blockchain

Reem al Hashimy was appointed to the UAE Cabinet as Minister of State in February 2008.  In February 2016, Reem was sworn in as Minister of State for International Cooperation, in the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Prior to this, Reem led the UAE’s bid to host the World Expo 2020 in Dubai.  She served

Mohamed Al Hassan is the Special Representative for Iraq and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI). He has more than 30 years of experience in diplomacy, peacebuilding, and development, having served in senior roles within Oman’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as Ambassador to the Russian Federation with concurrent accreditation to several

Abdullah Abdel Razzaq al-Dardari is a United Nations Assistant Secretary-General and the United Nations Development Program Assistant Administrator and Director, Regional Bureau for Arab States. Prior to his appointment in 2023, he was the United Nations Development Program’s Resident Representative in Kabul, Afghanistan. Previously, he worked for the World Bank. He has also served in

Ebtesam Al-Ketbi is the President and Founder of the Emirates Policy Center. Al-Ketbi is a Professor of Political Science at the United Arab Emirates University. In recognition of her role and the great respect she enjoys as part of the distinguished elite in the UAE and the Gulf region, Al-Ketbi was appointed in 2015 as

Shaikh Humaid Al‑Maani is the Head of the Diplomatic Academy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Sultanate of Oman. He also serves as Head of the Global Affairs Department. In these roles, he leads diplomatic training and policy development initiatives, and represents Oman in key international collaborations on diplomacy, humanitarian law, and foreign

Professor Hassan Al‑Momani is a leading scholar in international relations and conflict resolution, currently serving as Dean of the Prince Al‑Hussein Bin Abdullah II School of Political Science & International Studies at the University of Jordan, and as Director of its Center for Strategic Studies. He earned his BA (1983) and MA (1984) in International Relations

Farea al-Muslimi is Chairman and co-founder of the Sanaa Center for Strategic Studies. He is also an Associate Fellow at Chatham House. He previously worked for the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut and Middle East Institute in Washington, D.C. as a Visiting Scholar where he covered Yemen and Gulf. al-Muslimi’s writings and analysis on

Bader Mousa Al-Saif is an intellectual historian of modern and contemporary Middle East and Islamic thought. He focuses on the Arabian Peninsula, namely its public policy, political history, culture, reform dynamics, transnational trends, and gender studies. Al-Saif is the recipient of various awards, co-founder of several NGOs, and has published numerous peer-reviewed articles and book

Salma Al-Shami is the director of research at Arab Barometer.  She has more than 10 years of experience conducting mixed-method academic research and leading needs assessments and monitoring and evaluation efforts on topics such as education, inequality, migration and displacement, social cohesion and integration, knowledge-based economies, and civil society development throughout the Middle East and

Dlawer Ala’Aldeen is the Founding President of the Middle East Research Institute (MERI), based in Erbil, Iraq, and a former Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research in Kurdistan Regional Government (2009-2012). Ala’Aldeen studied Medicine in Baghdad, then started a clinical academic career in the UK and was Professor of Medicine in Nottingham University. He

Ranj Alaaldin is a foreign policy analyst specialised in international security, good governance, track II diplomacy, and public sector reforms. He is a fellow at the MECGA, Director of the Carnegie Corporation’s Crisis Response Council, and a senior consultant at the World Bank.  Alaaldin obtained his PhD in International Law at the London School of

Since 2021, Her Royal Highness Princess Rym Ali has been serving as President of the Anna Lindh Foundation, reinforcing its position as a powerful bridge between governments, civil society, cultural leaders and all those invested in the future of the Euro-Mediterranean region, driving impactful collaborations. Princess Rym holds a degree from Columbia University’s School of

Faisal Alotaibi is a strategy consultant at the Saudi Data & AI Authority (SDAIA), where he leads advisory projects on artificial intelligence adoption, governance, and digital transformation. His work includes contributing to ALLaM, Saudi Arabia’s flagship Arabic large language model, and co-developing AI frameworks adopted by multiple government entities. Faisal has supported over 150 consultation

Jassim Alshirawi is the  Secretary General of the International Energy Forum (IEF), the largest international organization of energy ministers, headquartered in the Diplomatic Quarter of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. His term officially began on January 1, 2025. Mr. Alshirawi contributed to the advancement of Bahrain’s energy sector in various roles, including as advisory to the Minister of

Carlo Altomonte is Vice President and Senior Associate Research Fellow at ISPI. He is Associate Professor of Economics of European Integration at Bocconi University and Non-Resident Fellow at Bruegel, a EU think tank. He has been regularly acting as consultant for a number of national and international institutions, including the Italian Government, the United Nations

Eleonora Ardemagni is Senior Associate Research Fellow at ISPI. She is an expert on Yemen, the Gulf monarchies, Arab armed forces and armed groups and a Teaching Assistant (“Regional Studies Middle East/“History of Islamic Asia”; “New Conflicts”) at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan. She is also Adjunct Professor at the Graduate School

Aliyeh Ataei is an Iranian author and playwright. Her novels and personal essays tackle such themes as war, identity, and émigré life. She has received several prestigious awards, including Mehregan-e Adab for Best Novel. Ataei finished high school in Birjand and left for the capital to continue her studies at Tehran University of Art where

Richard Atwood is Crisis Group’s Executive Vice President. For several years, he was Crisis Group’s chief of policy, working with regional programs and other colleagues to develop and promote the organisation’s analysis and prescriptions. Prior to that, Richard was New York director, representing Crisis Group at the United Nations. He helped pioneer the organisation’s cross-regional

Lukas Aubin is a Senior Research Fellow at IRIS, in charge of the Sport and Geopolitics programme, specializing in the geopolitics of Russia and sport.  Doctor of Slavic Studies (University of Paris Nanterre – University of Paris Lumières), holder of a double Franco-Russian Master’s degree in geopolitics of the post-Soviet space at the Russian State

Joseph Bahout is the director of the Issam Fares Institute and an associate professor of practice in the PSPA Department at AUB. Until recently, Joseph Bahout was a scholar at Carnegie Endowment in Washington DC, professor at Sciences-Po Paris, and consultant to the policy planning unit of the French MoFA. Prior to that, he was

Nomi Bar-Yaacov is  an award-winning peace negotiator and the number 1 TV commentator on Middle Eastern affairs and geopolitics in Europe. Her extensive experience includes positions with prestigious organizations such as the United Nations and Chatham House, where she serves as a Fellow in the International Security Program.  Bar-Yaacov previously worked as the Director of

Sara Bazoobandi is a Marie Curie Fellow at the GIGA Institute of Middle East Studies and Associate Research Fellow at ISPI. She is also a non-resident Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council and at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. Prior to this, she was a Senior Lecturer in International Political Economy at Regent’s

Dr. Houda Ben Jannet Allal is Director General at the Mediterranean Organization for Energy and Climate since January 2013. Prior to her elevation to General Director, she held several positions, most recent ones being successively Director of Renewable Energy and Sustainable Development and Strategy Director. Her fields of expertise mainly relate to energy prospects, renewable

H.H. Sheikh Abdullah was appointed Deputy Prime Minister in mid-2024 in addition to his duties as Minister of Foreign Affairs. He plays a vital leadership role in reinforcing the UAE’s influence regionally and globally. H.H. Sheikh Abdullah also chairs the Education, Human Development, and Community Council and contributes actively to financial and economic policy through

Dr Alexandre Bish is Head of Research Innovation at the North Africa and Sahel Observatory and an Honorary Research Fellow at University College London. He co-founded MyRA, an ethical AI platform for qualitative data analysis.  He holds a PhD in Security and Crime Science from UCL, where his research examined irregular migration, smuggling, and trafficking

Ambrogio Bongiovanni is a professor of Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue at the Pontifical Gregorian University and the Pontifical Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies (Rome). He has conducted research at Jawaharlal Nehru University and the Christian Institute for the Study of Religion and Society in Delhi (India), and has collaborated as an expert with the

Franco Bruni is President of ISPI and Co-Head of the Observatory on Europe and Global Governance. He is Emeritus Professor at the Department of Economics of Bocconi University, where he was Full Professor of International Monetary Theory and Policy and Member of the University’s Board of Directors. He studied at Bocconi University and at the

Andrea Cabrini is the Managing Editor of Class CNBC, the Italian branch of CNBC. He’s also Co-Managing Editor of Milano Finanza, Italy’s premier financial magazine, coordinating digital and print platforms. Cabrini is a financial journalist and anchor with three decades of experience covering the economy, global markets, and the banking and asset management industry. He

Gregg Carlstrom is the Middle East correspondent for The Economist, based in Cairo and covering the region from Morocco to the Gulf. Previously he was a correspondent for The Times. His work has also been published in Foreign Policy, Foreign Affairs, The Atlantic, Newsweek, Politico, New York, GlobalPost, The National, PRI, the San Francisco Chronicle,

Ennio Cascetta is Professor of Transportation Systems Planning, with a career spanning the University of Reggio Calabria, the University of Naples Federico II, Universitas Mercatorum, and more than 30 years as a visiting professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Author of over 200 scientific publications and textbooks widely adopted worldwide, he ranks among

Riccardo Chartroux joined Rai in 1992 and started working for Tg3 three years later, when the then-director Lucia Annunziata brought him to the news desk, while also serving as correspondent. He later moved to the foreign desk following the Lady Diana tragedy. In 2010 he was promoted to anchor Tg3, taking the place of Bianca

Edmondo Cirielli is the Italian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. He is a Brigadier General of the Carabinieri Auxiliary Corps, and was elected elected Member of the Chamber of Deputies for the first time 2001. In 2009, he was elected President of the Province of Salerno for the Centre-Right Coalition. He holds

Javier Colomina is the Special Representative of the NATO Secretary General for the Southern Neighbourhood. He entered the diplomatic service in 2001. He was First Secretary of the Mission of Spain to the U.N. (2002-2006) and Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Spain in Damascus, Syria (2006-2008). From 2011 to 2014, Colomina served

Mr Carlos Conde is leading the work of the OECD with Middle East and African countries, supervising the implementation of the Africa – OECD Partnership, in close coordination with the African Union Commission. Between 2007 and 2014, Mr Conde led the MENA-OECD Governance Programme in the Public Governance Directorate of the OECD and supported the

Liz Corbin is the Director of News at the European Broadcasting Union, where she oversees editorial strategy and innovation across Europe’s public service newsrooms. She previously held senior roles at the BBC, including Head of News for BBC World News and Editor of BBC Reality Check. With an academic background from University College London and

Mariano Crociata was ordained as a priest in 1979. He studied philosophy and theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University of Rome, where he was awarded a doctorate in theology in 1984. He ran the theology of religions department at Palermo’s Theological School. From 2003 he was Vicar General of the Diocese of Mazara del Vallo.

Maria Cuffaro is an Italian journalist and host of TG3.  Her journalistic career started at il Manifesto, for whom she was sent to India, Pakistan and South Africa. In 1986 she became a radio broadcaster at Italia Radio and went on to officially register as a professonal journalist in 1992. As investigative journalist, she has

Massimo Deandreis is General Director of SRM – Economic Research Center connected to Intesa Sanpaolo – specializing in the economy of Southern Italy and maritime studies. In 2016, he was elected President of GEI – the Italian Association of Business Economists. He has also served in senior roles within the Intesa Sanpaolo Group and previously

Staffan de Mistura is the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy on Western Sahara since October 2021. Previously, he has been UN Special Envoy for Syria from 2014 to 2018. In 2010, he was appointed Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan; in 2009, Deputy Executive Director for External Relations of the

Alan Déletroz is the Director General of Geneva Call. He has twenty years of experience in conflict-affected areas and has served in several organizations: Executive-in-Residence at the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, Vice-President of the International Crisis Group in Brussels, Director of the Open Society Institute in Tashkent, Delegate of the International Committee of the

After graduating from the lyceum, he attended the Department of Computer Engineering for a few months and then decided to enrol in Law School. In 2007-2008, he was appointed Faculty Advisor and President of the Student Council and, together with several first-year students, he founded the studentigiurisprudenza.it Student Association, an independent association that is still

Zoran Dimitrovski was appointed as a Deputy Minister at Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of North Macedonia and Foreign Trade on 23 of July 2024. Zoran Dimitrovski is a professional journalist, having worked for 35 years for the main Macedonian printed media. During his professional career he was an editor in chief of

Global Head of Infrastructure & Real Estate in the Intesa Sanpaolo Group (“ISP”). Since 2012 Riccardo is engaged in developing the relationship with major Global Concessionaires, TSO, EPC Contractors  and Infrastructure Funds worldwide, and in managing the Infrastructure team of Intesa Sanpaolo. This includes the supervision of ISP’s existing portfolio of infrastructure investments, as well

Karim El Aynaoui is the Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences of the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University. He is also President of the Policy Center for the New South (former OCP Policy Center) and serves as Advisor to the CEO and Chairman of OCP Group, a global leader in the phosphate sector.

Nawal El Moutawakel is a Moroccan former track and field athlete and current sports administrator. She won the gold medal in the women’s 400m hurdles at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, becoming the first woman from Morocco and the broader Arab and Muslim world to achieve this. She later held government positions in Morocco, including

Hossam Elsharkawi leads the efforts of the IFRC in the Middle East and North Africa.  Elsharkawi was formerly Vice President of Health in Emergencies, Learning and Innovation at the Canadian Red Cross, where he led the preparedness and response for complex humanitarian emergencies. He has also previously worked with the World Health Organization (WHO) to

Eran Etzion is a diplomat and strategist with more than 20 years of experience in senior government positions. He was head of policy planning at Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and deputy head of the National Security Council in the Prime Minister’s office.In 2014-2015, he was a visiting scholar at the Leonard Davis Institute for

Zaid Eyadat is the Director of the Center for Strategic Studies at the University of Jordan. He is a member of the Arab Barometer’s steering committee. Eyadat is a political scientist and game theorist. He is also the founding Dean of the Prince al-Hussein School of International Studies at the University of Jordan, where remains

Riccardo has more than ten years of professional experience as a political analyst and economist on North Africa, having worked for Eurasia Group, Energy Aspects and other consultancies. He has published articles for the Carnegie Endowment’s Sada Journal, Jadaliyya, the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung and the Financial Times.

Lama Fakih is Human Rights Watch’s Acting Deputy Executive Director and Chief Program Officer. Prior to her current acting role, Fakih was Middle East and North Africa Director and the Director of the Beirut office from March 2022 through March 2025 . She was the Director of the Crisis and Conflict Division from October 2019

Intissar Fakir is a Senior Fellow and Director of MEI’s North Africa and Sahel program. She has written extensively on North Africa’s evolving politics including Islamist electoral politics in post-2011 Morocco and Tunisia, the Western Sahara issue, foreign policy priorities in Morocco and the broader region, and the impact of COVID-19 on regional political stability.

Josep Ferré is the Executive Director of the Anna Lindh Foundation, promoting intercultural dialogue across the Euro-Mediterranean region. With a background as Director General of the European Institute of the Mediterranean (IEMed) and extensive experience in Euro-Mediterranean cooperation, he plays a key leadership role in fostering civil society engagement and dialogue across the region. 

Kirsten Fontenrose is a nonresident senior fellow at the Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative in the Atlantic Council’s Middle East Programs. Previously, Fontenrose was director of the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative in the Atlantic Council’s Middle East Programs until December 2021. Fontenrose spent 2018 as senior director for the Gulf at the

Benedikt Franke is Vice-Chairman and CEO with the Munich Security Conference (MSC). Before joining the MSC, he served as Senior Advisor for Strategic Affairs at the CSU and prior to that, he was the Special Assistant for former Secretary-General of the United Nations and Nobel Laureate Kofi Annan. Benedikt holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge

Paul Richard Gallagher is the current Secretary for Relations with States within the Holy See’s Secretariat of State, a position to which he was appointed in 2014. Prior to that, he had been appointed Papal Nuncio to Australia since 2012. Throughout the years, he has held posts in Tanzania, Uruguay, the Philippines, and the Vatican

Nazila Ghanea assumed her mandate as Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief on August 2022. She is Professor of International Human Rights Law and Director of the MSc in International Human Rights Law at the University of Oxford. Prior to that, she was Senior Lecturer at the University of London (2000-2006), and she

Amira Ghenim is a Tunisian writer and academic, born in 1978. She teaches Linguistics and Translation at Tunis University.  Her novel The Yellow Dossier won the 2020 Sheikh Rashid Bin Hamad Prize. A Calamity of Noble Houses was published in 2020.

Kamel Ghribi is the President of GKSD Investment Holding Group. Since its inception, GKSD has become the provider of choice for the conception, creation and management of complex healthcare projects with a strong presence in Italy, Africa and the MENA region. As the driving force and President of ECAM (The European Corporate Council on Africa

Thomas Gomart was appointed Director of the French Institute of International Relations (IFRI) after serving as Director of strategic development from 2010 to 2015 and founding and directing IFRI’s Russia/NIS Center from 2004 to 2013. Prior to that, Gomart worked at Marne-la-Vallée University (1996-1999) and for the French Ministry of Defense. He has also been

Lucia Goracci is a foreign correspondent for Rai News 24. She graduated in Political Science from LUISS in Rome and joined Rai in 1995. Her first destination was for Rai’s regional tv news broadcast in Sicily, then Rai News 24 and TG3. She travelled to Africa, Europe, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel and the Palestinian territories

Nimrod Goren is Senior Fellow for Israeli Affairs at the Middle East Institute and Co-Founder of Diplomeds. He is also Co-Chair of a regional initiative at President Isaac Herzog’s Israeli Climate Forum. He holds a PhD in Middle Eastern Studies from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and was a Hubert Humphrey Fellow at Syracuse University’s

Gordan Grlić Radman is the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia, a position he has held since July 2019. A career diplomat, he previously served as Ambassador of Croatia to Germany and Hungary, and held senior roles at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, particularly in EU accession negotiations and Central

Karim Haggag is the Director of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) a leading global independent institute dedicated to research into conflict, armaments, arms control and disarmament. He is a former career Egyptian diplomat with over 25 years of service in Egypt’s diplomatic corps serving in numerous positions focusing Middle East regional security, arms

Emile Hokayem is the Director of Regional Security and Senior Fellow for Middle East Security at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. He specialises in regional politics, security and conflict analysis in the Middle East, including the national security and defence policies of the Middle Eastern States, the role of armed non-State actors, and the

Dr. Fuad Hussein was appointed as Iraq’s  Minister of Foreign Affairs in June, 2020. Dr. Fuad Hussein is a longtime activist of the Kurdish cause and resistance. During his studies at the University of Baghdad, he joined the Union of Kurdish Students and later the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) of General Mustafa Barzani. He completed

Hiba Husseini is the managing Partner at the Law Firm of Husseini and Husseini. Prior to returning to Palestine in 1994, she practiced law in Washington, DC. Ms. Husseini chairs the Legal Committee to Final Status Negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis and she has served as legal advisor to the peace process negotiations since

Sarine Karajerjian is the Program Director of the Environmental Politics program at the Arab Reform Initiative (ARI). Prior to working at ARI, she worked for 15 years at the AUB’s Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs since the Institute’s inception. Her previous work covered strategic management, fundraising and outreach, and partnerships and

Dr Lina Khatib is an associate fellow at the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Chatham House and visiting scholar with the Harvard Kennedy School’s Middle East Initiative at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. Previously, she was director of the SOAS Middle East Institute and Professor of Practice at the Department

A construction engineer from the UK, Pankaj Kanaksi Khimji is a director at Khimji Ramdas, one of the biggest business conglomerates in Oman. He is co-chairman of the Oman-India Joint Business Council and a board member of the Omani-British Friendship Association (OBFA). He has been an active member of the World Economic Forum and a

Merissa Khurma is the Program Director of the Middle East Program at the Wilson Center. She was a non-resident Fellow in the International Security program at New America. She has leadership experience working in a range of development projects in the Middle East that focused on economic development, the Syrian refugee crisis, education, youth, gender

Dr Michael Köhler is Ambassador and Co-lead of Grand Bargain, where he oversees the quality funding and catalysing sector-wide transformation focus areas. He is the Deputy Director-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations in the European Commission’s DG ECHO where he coordinates the world-wide EU humanitarian aid activities. From April 2022 to February

Martin Konecny is EuMEP’s director. Before founding EuMEP, he was Brussels director of Crisis Action, an organisation focusing on the protection of civilians from armed conflicts including in Sudan and South Sudan, Syria, Afghanistan, Congo and Israel-Palestine. Subsequently, Martin Konecny was a senior analyst at the Open Society Foundations covering the Middle East, North Africa

Mrs Frida Krifca is the President of Chieam since April 2023. She is Minister of Agriculture of Albania as of September 2021, with 22 years of experience in administration and management and a special focus on the development and strengthening of the financial sector, use of financial services and business development, meeting national, international and

Zaki Laïdi is a Senior Research Fellow at CEVIPOF-Sciences Po and holds a HDR (a French qualification authorising the holder to supervise academic research). His research focuses on the political dimension of globalization, transformations of the international system (structure, ideas) and more particularly the role of Europe within that system.  He has been a visiting

Dr Craig Larkin is a Reader in Middle East Politics and Peace and Conflict Studies and Director of the Centre for the Study of Divided Societies (CSDS) at King’s College London. He is Co-Convenor of the War Studies MA Programme, Conflict Resolution in Divided Societies. He is also a Research Lead on Memory and Conflict

Ian Lesser is vice president at The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) and a member of GMF’s executive team, managing programs across the organization. He also serves as executive director of the Brussels office of GMF, and leads GMF’s work on the Mediterranean, Turkey, and the wider Atlantic. Prior to joining GMF,

Gideon Levy is a Haaretz columnist and a member of the newspaper’s editorial board.  Levy joined Haaretz in 1982, and spent four years as the newspaper’s deputy editor. He is the author of the weekly Twilight Zone feature, which covers the Israeli occupation in the West Bank and Gaza over the last 25 years, as

Hugh Lovatt is a policy fellow with the Middle East and North Africa programme at the European Council on Foreign Relations. Since joining ECFR, Lovatt has focused extensively on EU policy towards the Middle East Peace Process (MEPP), domestic Palestinian politics, and Israeli regional policy. His most recent publications include Rethinking Oslo: How Europe can

Chiara Lovotti is an ISPI Research Fellow and Scientific Coordinator of “Rome MED-Mediterranean Dialogues”, ISPI’s and the Italian MoFA’s annual flagship event. She is a specialist in international relations of the MENA, with a focus on Russia’s foreign policy in the area and associated political and security issues. Chiara’s doctoral research (University of Bologna) explored

Scientific Advisor for the Master in International Energy at PSIA, Giacomo Luciani is also Adjunct Professor at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva and Director of the Executive Master in International Oil and Gas Leadership. For the period 2010-13 he was appointed Princeton University Global Scholar, attached to the Woodrow Wilson School

Mirette F. Mabrouk is a MEI Senior Fellow and Founding Director of the Institute’s Egypt Studies program. She was previously Deputy Director and Director for Research and Programs at the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East at the Atlantic Council. Formerly a Fellow at the Project for U.S. Relations with the Middle East at

Paolo Magri is President of the Advisory Board of the ISPI (Italian Institute for International Political Studies) and Professor of International Relations at Bocconi University. He is member of the Europe Policy Group of the World Economic Forum (Davos); member of the Board of Directors of LUISS University and member of the Council of ECFR.

Mohammed Mahmoud is the CEO and Founder of the Climate and Water Initiative, and an internationally-experienced water resources management and climate adaptation policy expert. He is also the Lead for Middle East Climate and Water Policy with the United Nations University’s Institute for Water, Environment, and Health. Mohammed’s previous leadership roles included his tenures as

Firas Maksad is the managing director for the Middle East and North Africa practice at Eurasia Group. He oversees the team covering the region’s geopolitics and macroeconomics and US foreign policy toward that part of the world. Prior to joining Eurasia Group, Firas was a senior director and senior fellow at the Middle East Institute,

Emma Marcegaglia is Vice President of ISPI.  She holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the New York University. Marcegaglia is Deputy Chairman and CEO of Marcegaglia Steel and subsidiaries, operating in the steel processing sector, and Chairman and CEO of Marcegaglia Investments, the holding company that controls the Group’s diversified activities. Moreover, she

Brett McGurk is a Distinguished Fellow with the Atlantic Council and the Jeffrey M Talpins Foundation’s N7 Initiative. McGurk served as deputy assistant to former US President Joe Biden and White House coordinator for the Middle East region. In this role, he helped leading multi-month negotiations across the region to secure the release of Israeli

Roberta Medda-Windischer (LL.M, PhD), Senior Researcher and Group Leader for Equality and Diversity in Integrated Societies at Eurac Research Institute for Minority Rights (Bozen – Italy), is an international lawyer specialised in minority issues, human rights, diversity management and minority protection.  Medda-Windischer worked as Legal Officer for various international organisations, including the European Court of

Alberto Melloni is a professor of History of Christianity at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Director of the John XXIII Foundation for Religious Studies (Fscire) and Chair holder of the UNESCO Chair on Religious Pluralism and Peace at the University of Bologna. He studied history and church history at the University of Bologna,

Karim Mezran is Director of the North Africa Initiative and Resident Senior Fellow with the Rafik Hariri Center and Middle East programs focusing on the processes of change in North Africa. As a distinguished Libyan-Italian scholar, Mezran brings enormous depth of understanding to the transition in Libya and elsewhere in the region. In addition, Mezran

Curt Mills is the Executive Director of The American Conservative, where he previously served as senior reporter and contributing editor. He specializes in foreign policy and campaign coverage and has worked at The National Interest, U.S. News & World Report, Washington Examiner, and the Spectator. His work has appeared in Politico, UnHerd, Newsweek and the

Osama Mobarez has over thirty years of experience in the Oil & Gas industry. He is currently the Secretary General of the East Mediterranean Gas Forum (EMGF). Prior to this, he served for 14 years in the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, and he was responsible for the Realization Office to drive Egypt’s

Vali Nasr is the Majid Khadduri Professor of International Affairs and Middle East Studies at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), and a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center. He served as the eighth Dean of Johns Hopkins SAIS between 2012 and 2019 and served as Senior Advisor

Eshkol Nevo is one of Israel’s most celebrated contemporary novelists. A psychology graduate from Tel Aviv University and former advertising copywriter, he published his debut Bed & Breakfast (2001) before gaining widespread acclaim with his novel Homesick (2004), which earned the Book Publishers Association Gold Prize and the Raymond Wallier Prize in Paris.  Nevo has

Shishir Priyadarshi is currently President, Global Relations for the Adani Group, one of the largest infrastructure, power and renewable energy entity in the world. Earlier for over 25 years he worked in the World Trade Organization, including as the Director of the Development Division. Prior to that he served as a senior civil servant in

Francesco Rocchetti is the ISPI Secretary General and the Rome MED Dialogues Curator. Prior to that, he led the team that played a central role in building ISPI’s external profile and overseeing the brand and communications strategies, digital communications, and content marketing. He also worked on transforming the Institute’s digital identity and promoting the think

Nadine Saba is a Lebanese lawyer and humanitarian leader, co-founder and Director of Akkar Network for Development (AND) in northern Lebanon, where she has overseen grassroots initiatives in rural development, refugee support, women and youth empowerment, and municipal capacity-building for nearly two decades. She serves on the Steering Committee of the Lebanon Humanitarian and Development

Abdulaziz Al Sager is the chairman and founder of the Gulf Research Center. Sager is also the president of Sager Group Holding in Saudi Arabia, which is active in the fields of information technology, aviation services, and investments. Sager is a member of the Makkah Province Council and serves on the advisory board to various

Ghassan Salamé is the Minister of Culture in Lebanon. He served as the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative (SRSG) and Head of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), from 2017 until March 2020. In 2003, Mr. Salamé served as the Political Adviser to the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), where he played a

Paul Salem is the Vice President for International Engagement at Middle East Institute. He served previously as MEI’s President and CEO.  He is currently based in the Middle East and works on building partnerships throughout the region.  His research focuses on issues of political change, transition, and conflict as well as the regional and international

Ruth Hanau Santini is an Associate Professor of Politics and International Relations at the University of Naples L’Orientale and a Fellow at Brookings. She earned her MA from SOAS, University of London, and completed her PhD at the University of Naples Federico II. Her research focuses on European foreign policy, Middle East and North Africa politics, security, and

Obada Shtaya is Co-Founder and CEO of the Institute for Social and Economic Progress. Obada is a Fulbright scholar, pollster, and researcher with interests in social psychology, political economy, and social movement theory. Most recently, Obada supervised one of the most rigorous political orientation research projects ever done in Palestine using Moral Foundation Theory as

Katarzyna Sidło joined the EUISS as a Senior Policy Analyst for the Middle East and North Africa in December 2024. Previously, Katarzyna was Director of the Middle East and North Africa Department at CASE—Center for Social and Economic Research, Poland. During her eleven years at CASE, Katarzyna conducted policy-oriented and academic research, the former commissioned

Mohammed Soliman is the director of the Strategic Technologies and Cyber Security Program at the Middle East Institute, where he leads a global team of scholars to explore the policy challenges associated with the intersection of technology, geopolitics, and business in the Middle East and emerging markets more broadly. He is also a visiting fellow

Professor Kristina Stoeckl is a prominent sociologist specializing in religion and politics, currently a Professor of Sociology at LUISS University in Rome and formerly at the University of Innsbruck. She holds a PhD in Social and Political Sciences from the European University Institute in Florence . Her early studies include Comparative Literature and Russian at

Antonio Tajani was appointed Vice President of the Council of Ministers and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in October 2022. He graduated in Law from La Sapienza University of Rome and was an officer in the Italian Air Force.  He began his career as a journalist in 1980 and worked as a parliamentary

Valeria Talbot is a Senior Research Fellow and Head of ISPI’s Middle East and North Africa Centre. She also is a lecturer at the Master in Middle Eastern Studies in ASERI – Catholic University, and at the IULM University of Milan. She was ISPI scientific coordinator of Arab Trans, a FP7 funded research project on

Ex consigliere diplomatico presso l’Ufficio del Primo Ministro, è il primo inviato speciale italiano per il Corridoio India-Medio Oriente-Europa (Imec)

Kadri Tastan is a nonresident senior fellow in GMF’s Brussels office. His research focuses on Türkiye, the EU, transatlantic relations, energy, climate, and trade. Prior to joining GMF, he was an expert on European affairs and environmental issues at the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Türkiye (TOBB). Tastan has also been an IPC Mercator fellow at

Roberto Tottoli is the Rector of the Università di Napoli “L’Orientale” and a distinguished scholar of Islamic studies. His academic work focuses on the Qur’an, the prophetic tradition, and the transmission of Islamic texts. A professor of Islamic Studies, he has authored and edited numerous publications that have contributed significantly to the field, both in

Rim Turkmani is a Research Fellow at the Conflict and Civil Society Research Unit in the Department of International Development at LSE, where she directs the Syria conflict research programme. Her policy-oriented research work focuses on identity politics, legitimate governance, transforming war economy it into peace economy and the relationship between local and external drivers

Ali Vaez is Crisis Group’s Iran Project Director and Senior Adviser to the President. Vaez holds a Ph.D. from the University of Geneva He led Crisis Group’s efforts in helping to bridge the gaps between Iran and the P5+1 that led to the landmark 2015 nuclear deal. Previously, he served as a Senior Political Affairs

Dr. Gelsomina Vigliotti began her term as EIB Vice-President on 11 October 2021. Her areas of oversight include financing of SMEs and mid-caps, equity and equity-type products, EIB-EIF cooperation, counterpart monitoring and restructuring, new products and special transactions, microfinance, financing operations in Italy, Malta, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Palestine and Syria. Prior to this, she

Antonio Villafranca is Vice President for Research at ISPI and Co-Head of the Europe and Global Governance Centre. He has coordinated several research projects funded by Italian Institutions (such as the “Osservatorio di Politica Internazionale” of the Italian Parliament) and by the EU Commission and Parliament (including Gr:een, Rastanews, Trade and Economic Relations with Asia,

Karin von Hippel served as Director General of RUSI for almost a decade after a distinguished career in the US State Department, which included a spell as Chief of Staff to General John Allen, Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter-ISIL. A former senior research fellow at the Centre for Defence Studies, King’s

William Wechsler is senior advisor for Middle East Programs at the Atlantic Council and interim director of the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East. Previously, Wechsler served as deputy assistant secretary of defence for counternarcotic and global threats, where his key areas of focus included integrating law enforcement operations into U.S. military campaigns in

Isabelle Werenfels is a Senior Fellow at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs. Her areas of expertise are North Africa and the Middle East, with a focus on authoritarian resilience, migration policies and “turn to Africa” of the Maghreb states and Maghreb-EU migration cooperation. From October 2023 to April 2024, she was Member

Maha Yahya is director of the Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center, where her work focuses broadly on political violence and identity politics, pluralism, development and social justice after the Arab uprisings, the challenges of citizenship, and the political and socio-economic implications of the migration/refugee crisis. Prior to joining Carnegie, Yahya led work on

Professor Ahmed Abdullah Zayed Hegab was appointed Director of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in August 2022. He has worked as a Professor of Sociology at the Faculty of Arts at Cairo University since 1991. He took on many administrative and academic positions over the past years, in addition to his experience in the field of translation

Shaya Mohsin Zindani is the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of Yemen. Previously, he held several positions in the diplomatic service, such as Extraordinary Ambassador and Plenipotentiary to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (2017-2024), the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (2010-2015) and the Italian Republic (2005-2010). He’s member of the Supreme Committee for Political and