The Marib Puzzle: A Case of Stability and Economic Activity in War-Torn Yemen

Mohammed Al-Jaberi, a GU-Q senior majoring in Foreign Service and Arab Studies, and a CURA Publications Fellow, presented his research on “The Marib Puzzle: A Case of Stability and Economic Activity in War-Torn Yemen,” at a CURA Focused Discussion on April 3, 2019. Al-Jaberi, a citizen of Yemen, returned to his country this past year to…

The GCC Crisis: Qatar and its Neighbors Working Group I

On April 7-8, 2019, the Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS) held the first working group under its research initiative “The GCC Crisis: Qatar and its Neighbors.” The two day meeting brought together several scholars to discuss a range of topics. These included, Qatar’s management of the crisis; the UAE’s perspective and position on the…

The History and Evolution of American Torture and Secret Prisons (1898–2008)

GU-Qatar senior Ritica Ramesh presented her thesis research at a CURA Focused Discussion on April 3, 2019, in a talk entitled “History and Evolution of American Torture and Black Sites (1898–2008).” Ramesh outlined the history of the US government’s use of torture as an official policy in its warfare, going back to the Philippine-American War…

Firat Oruc CIRS Faculty Publication Workshop

On June 10, 2019, CIRS hosted a Faculty Publication Workshop for Firat Oruc, Assistant Professor of English and Humanities at Georgetown University in Qatar, to discuss his forthcoming book Petromodernity and Film: A Cultural History of the Moving Image in the Arabian Peninsula. Several cinema studies scholars were invited to read parts of the manuscript,…

Russia and the Middle East Working Group II

On August 25-26 2019, the Center for International and Regional Studies held the second working group under its research initiative on “Russia and the Middle East.” Over the course of two days, the convened scholars presented and received feedback on their papers that tackled a wide array of issues, including: Russia’s Middle East Policy, Russia…

Karine Walther on “American Missionaries, ARAMCO, and the Birth of the US-Saudi Special Relationship, 1889-1955”

Karine Walther is Associate Professor of History at GU-Q, and a 2019–2020 CIRS Faculty Fellow. During her fellowship at CIRS, Walther is completing research on American missions in Saudi Arabia at the end of the nineteenth century and the ways in which the groundwork they laid over subsequent decades paved the way for American oil interests…

CURA Seminar: Political Economy of the Contemporary Middle East

On September 26, 2019, the Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS) held a CURA Seminar under its CIRS Undergraduate Research Advancement initiative. During the seminar, CURA Fellows came together for an active discussion of research papers that were submitted to CIRS research initiative on “Political Economy of the Contemporary Middle East.” The papers were…

Political Economy of the Contemporary Middle East Working Group II

On September 29, 2019, the Center for International and Regional Studies held the second working group under its research initiative on “Political Economy of the Contemporary Middle East.” During the meeting, the convened scholars presented and received feedback on their papers that tackled a wide array of issues, including: economic integration in the Levant and…

CURA Workshop: The Art of Hearing and Seeing Data

On October 10, 2019, CIRS hosted a CURA workshop titled, "The Art of Hearing and Seeing Data: Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods," by Assistant Professor of Government at GU-Q, Dr. Uday Chandra. The workshop provided participants with an insightful breakdown of the practical fundamentals of qualitative research and data observation. Ranging from freshmen to seniors, the…

Football in the Middle East Working Group I

On October 27-28, 2019, the Center for International and Regional Studies held the inaugural working group for its research initiative on “Football in the Middle East.” The meeting brought together regional and international scholars and experts to discuss some of the understudied areas related to football in the region and to identify original research questions…

Sport, Politics, and Society in the Middle East

The Center for International and Regional Studies launched Sport, Politics, and Society in the Middle East at a CIRS Dialogue Series event on October 28, 2019. The edited volume examines the role that sports have played in the contemporary socioeconomic, cultural, and political milieus of the region. Danyel Reiche, Associate Professor for Comparative Politics at…

Tunisia in the Aftermath of the Arab Uprisings Working Group I

On November 10-11, 2019, the Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS) held the first working group under its research initiative, "Tunisia in the Aftermath of the Arab Uprisings." This was a Faculty Research Project under the intellectual leadership of a member of the Georgetown University faculty, Professor Mohamed Zayani. CIRS invited a group of…