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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20120213T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20120213T180000
DTSTAMP:20260409T103425
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SUMMARY:Peter Bergen Lectures on the Remaking of the Middle East
DESCRIPTION:On February 13\, 2012\, Peter Bergen delivered the 2011-2012 CIRS Faculty Distinguished Lecture titled\, “The Awakening: How Revolutionaries\, Barack Obama\, and Ordinary Muslims are Remaking the Middle East.” In addition to being CNN’s security analyst\, Bergen is a Schwartz Fellow at the New American Foundation and an adjunct lecturer in public policy at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Bergen was introduced to the audience by Will Cha\, Student Government President at the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar. \n \n \nBergen discussed five different\, but interrelated topics\, which he listed as “Al Qaeda\, terrorism\, Afghanistan/Pakistan\, the Arab Spring\, and the influence of President Obama on some of these issues.” On the topics of Al Qaeda and terrorism\, Bergen explained how he was one of the few Westerners to have met the world’s most-wanted man\, Osama bin Laden\, face to face in 1997 in Eastern Afghanistan. During that interview\, Bin Laden declared war on the United States because of its support for Israel\, sanctions against Iraq\, as well as other foreign policy critiques. Bin Laden described the United States as weak and scarred from all of its past failed wars and pullouts from Vietnam\, Beirut\, and Mogadishu. This analysis of a weak United States\, Bergen said\, was an important insight into why 9/11 happened because it showed that Bin Laden thought that he could pressure the United States into similarly pulling out of the Middle East. It turned out\, however\, that “9/11 was a major strategic error for Al Qaeda because\, first of all Al Qaeda – which of course means ‘the base in Arabic’ – lost their base in Afghanistan\,” he said. So\, instead of the United States being pressurized to exit the Middle East\, the reverse happened\, and now\, as a result\, the United States has increased its presence on the ground in several different countries of the Arab world. Bergen continued by saying that “the 9/11 attacks were a strategic failure not only because they didn’t achieve the goal that Bin Laden wanted\, but also because they led eventually to the defeat of Al Qaeda\, and\, in fact\, to the death recently of Bin Laden himself.” \n \n \n“Al Qaeda was losing the war of ideas in the Muslim world\,” Bergen argued\, not because the United States and the West were winning\, but because Al Qaeda was losing any support it ever had through its detrimental demands and actions. “Al Qaeda and groups like it position themselves as the defenders of true Islam\, but Muslims began to notice that many of Al Qaeda’s victims were\, in fact\, Muslims\,” in Iraq\, Indonesia\, Jordan\, and elsewhere in the world. This turned past supporters and sympathizers into outspoken opponents and enemies of Al Qaeda. Because “Bin Laden never proposed a positive vision of the Middle East\,” in terms of economic\, infrastructural\, or developmental policies\, he had nothing to offer Muslims but destruction\, which is not an impressive prospect of future governance\, Bergen explained. “The idea of an Al Qaeda hospital or an Al Qaeda school is an oxymoron\,” he said. \n \n \nThe Arab Spring was an interesting backdrop for understanding exactly how weak and out of touch Al Qaeda was with Arab societies across the Muslim world\, Bergen argued. The fall of Arab regimes signaled some of the most significant events in the region in decades\, and\, yet\, Bin Laden was silent on these issues\, despite his penchant for commenting on important world events over the years. Thousands of people marched through cities in Egypt\, Tunis\, and Libya\, and yet none voiced any affiliations with Al Qaeda’s anti-Western ideologies. “Bin Laden’s foot soldiers and his ideas were notably absent in the events of the Arab Spring.” \n \n \nDescribing what he thought the future governance of the Middle East will look like\, Bergen said that “the monarchies in the Middle East\, for a variety of reasons\, are going to be able to weather the Arab Spring fairly well.” This is because monarchies have the benefit of being able to transform themselves from absolute to constitutional\, unlike dictatorships\, which are by definition absolute. \n \n \nElsewhere in the surrounding region\, although there is a rapidly increasing population and only 2% economic growth in Pakistan\, there are still some emerging positives such as a strong independent media\, judiciary\, and civil society groups. Similarly\, in Afghanistan\, there have been some positive developments\, especially in terms of schooling\, a decrease in infant mortality\, an increase in GDP\, better infrastructure\, and a general consensus on the ground that the country is heading in the right direction. A future problem that will surface\, however\, will be the withdrawal of United States financial support and the subsequent economic crisis\, Bergen warned. \n \n \nIn conclusion\, Bergen noted that President Obama’s popularity in the Middle East has been in a steady state of decline\, stemming from\, among other things\, “the Obama Administration’s lack of real effort on the Israeli/Palestinian negotiations.” Many people thought of Obama as the “anti-war president\,” but he surprised everyone by actually being very tough on national security and has engaged the United States in a variety of covert and actual wars all over the world. \n \n \nFor more than 15 years\, Peter Bergen has traveled extensively throughout Afghanistan\, Pakistan\, Egypt\, Saudi Arabia\, and more recently Iraq\, to report on national security and the Al Qaeda network. His work can be found in many prestigious publications including the New York Times\, Washington Post\, Vanity Fair\, the Wall Street Journal\, and the International Herald Tribune. \n \n \nArticle by Suzi Mirgani\, CIRS Publications Coordinator 
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/peter-bergen-lectures-remaking-middle-east/
CATEGORIES:American Studies,Dialogue Series,Regional Studies
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20120219T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20120220T180000
DTSTAMP:20260409T103425
CREATED:20140924T163655Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240314T104941Z
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SUMMARY:The Evolving Ruling Bargain in the Middle East Working Group I
DESCRIPTION:On February 19–20\, 2012\, CIRS held a two-day working group meeting on the topic “The Evolving Ruling Bargain in the Middle East.” Several scholars and experts on the Middle East were invited to CIRS at Georgetown University’s Qatar (GU-Q) campus to take part in the discussions. At the conclusion of the research initiative\, the working group participants will contribute chapters towards a book on the subject. \n \n \nAs a preliminary consideration before commencing presentations and discussions\, the participants questioned the terms of the debate and offered different analyses of what “ruling bargain” might mean in different contexts and how this term differs from the notion of a “social contract.” There was consensus that every state-society relationship is bound by an unwritten and informal hegemonic understanding in the form of a social pact between the ruler and the ruled whether authoritarian or otherwise. In many countries of the Arab world\, this general understanding between state and public has been less of a “bargain” and more of a top-down “imposition” of governance. However\, the participants acknowledged that whether in authoritarian or democratic countries\, the terms of a social contract are in a state of constant flux and are negotiated on a daily basis whether peacefully or through violent means of resistance and uprisings. \n \n \nThe participants identified the necessary methodological threads that bring together the various issues as well as the general theoretical tropes that will run throughout the project. A central theme that emerged is the nature of the relationship between the citizen and the state in the Middle East and how this has been renegotiated through citizen action. For the first time in modern Arab history\, there have been demands for an alignment between the individual; the communal group whether gender-based\, religious\, ethnic\, or tribal; civil society organizations; and government agencies. The participants argued that it was always important to discuss the Arab Spring at the level of the individual and how Mohamed Bouazizi’s spontaneous act of self-immolation resonated with millions of people across the region who shared similar grievances. \n \n \nAlthough there have always been formal opposition parties in many Middle East states in one form or another\, these functioned as part of the status quo and served as mechanisms of legitimation of the authoritarian state. The public protests that constitute the Arab Spring are a means by which publics in Egypt\, Libya\, and Tunis\, as well as in other countries voice their dissatisfaction with the status quo. These protests are unprecedented and reveal the existence of a whole generation of people who demand change and who are\, in effect\, the informal opposition. People have carved out a platform within which they are active agents of change who are able to negotiate questions of power\, identity\, jurisprudence\, and accountability. Media networks such as Al Jazeera\, informal social media platforms\, and human communication networks more generally acted as catalysts for transmitting ideas that have had far-reaching consequences and have inspired people all over the world to forge vibrant and creative political cultures of resistance. \n \n \nOther issues that were discussed during the meeting include the effect of the Arab Spring on the rise of Islamist parties such as the Muslim Brotherhood; the effect of foreign influence on social unrest; the active participation of women in the political arena; questions of constitutional reform; future international relations and foreign policies; and the emergence of new political parties and discourses that have long been absent in many Middle Eastern countries. In addition\, the scholars analyzed specific case-studies related to the situations in Syria\, Libya\, Egypt\, Bahrain\, Iran\, Yemen\, and Tunis. Although each country has its own set of complex political dynamics dictating possible outcomes\, the participants also discussed the reasons why people in Morocco and Algeria did not join in public protests. \n \n \nTowards the conclusion of the working group meeting the participants cautioned about using the word “revolution” to describe the uprisings in the Middle East. Even though they agreed that tremendous changes have taken place\, they questioned whether it was possible to completely eradicate ingrained patronage networks and whether these post-authoritarian regimes would actually transition to democracies. A cloud of uncertainty still lingers over the fate of all these countries and so\, during these unpredictable times\, it is important to ask “what happens next?” \n \n \n  \n \n \n\nClick here for the working group’s agenda\nRead more about the research initiative\n\n \nParticipants and Discussants:\n \nAbdullah Al-Arian\, Wayne State UniversityHatoon Al-Fassi\, Qatar University; King Saud UniversityMazhar Al-Zo’by\, Qatar UniversitySaïd Amir Arjomand\, The Stony Brook Institute for Global StudiesZahra Babar\, CIRS – Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarJohn T. Crist\, CIRS – Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarMichael Driessen\, CIRS – Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarMarie Duboc\, American University in CairoJohn Foran\, International Institute for Climate Action Theory; University of California\, Santa BarbaraShahla Haeri\, CIRS – Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarShadi Hamid\, Brookings Doha CenterNader Hashemi\, Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of DenverThomas Juneau\, Department of National Defence\, Government of CanadaMehran Kamrava\, CIRS – Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarJackie Kerr\, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarRami George Khouri\, Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of BeirutBahgat Korany\, American University in CairoFred H. Lawson\, Mills CollegeMiriam Lowi\,The College of New JerseyMari Luomi\, CIRS – Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarQuinn Mecham\, Middlebury CollegeSuzi Mirgani\, CIRS – Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarGerd Nonneman\, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarJames C. Olsen\, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarAhmad H. Sa’di\, Ben-Gurion UniversityDirk Vandewalle\, Dartmouth College  \n \n \nArticle by Suzi Mirgani\, Manager and Editor for CIRS Publications
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/evolving-ruling-bargain-middle-east-working-group-i/
CATEGORIES:Focused Discussions,Regional Studies
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20120221T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20120221T180000
DTSTAMP:20260409T103425
CREATED:20141023T093701Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210901T132555Z
UID:10000934-1329811200-1329847200@cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu
SUMMARY:Ahmad Sa'di on Population Management and Political Control
DESCRIPTION:On February 21\, 2012\, Ahmad H. Sa’di\, Professor in the Department of Politics and Government at Ben-Gurion University of Negev\, delivered a CIRS Monthly Dialogue on the topic “Population Management and Political Control: Israel’s Policies towards the Palestinians in the First Two Decades\, 1948-1968.” Sa’di based his lecture on the results of investigations into historical and archival Israeli documents regarding the management of the Palestinian population. \n \n \nIsraeli authorities and academics claim that Israel never conducted any form of systematic control of Palestinian populations. Yet\, the documents that Sa’di analyzed rebuke this claim and list detailed descriptions of the extreme measures taken in order for Israeli authorities to control and reduce the size of the Palestinian population during the early years of establishing the Israeli state. These “archival documents could shed light and help clarify premises of policies\, world views\, dogmas\, and what social scientists call discourses\,” he said. \n \n \nSa’di recounted that Israel was established in 1948 through the occupation of 77.8% of historical Palestine. In November 1948\, Israel conducted a census aimed at presenting a legal position to deny Palestinian refugees the right of return at the end of the war. “This census founded the political basis for a hierarchical order of citizenship rights and entitlements. Jewish settlers who arrived before 1948 were placed at the top\, while Palestinian ‘present absentees’ were relegated to the bottom\,” he explained. \n \n \nSa’di argued that Israeli state policies focused on three issues that would comprise the basis of the state’s future strategy regarding population surveillance and control and involved strategies toward decreasing the size of the Palestinian population; rearranging its spatial distribution; and subjecting it to a tight regime of control and surveillance. Beside overt and coercive transfers and ghettoization\, other means of control included “insurmountable legal and practical hurdles in order to prevent the establishment of an organized political body to voice the opinions and concerns of the minority\,” as well as encouraging Arab students to study abroad and establishing Arabic-language media networks that espoused Israeli ideology. \n \n \nFurther\, more nuanced\, measures involved the introduction of family planning and the initiation of measures for the liberation of women – particularly the raising of their educational standards. Israeli policymakers reached the conclusion that an increase in a woman’s education causes a decline in her fertility. \n \n \nSa’di concluded the lecture by pointing to the necessity of conducting independent archival investigation that questions the dominant discourse relayed by Israel. He argued that not only do these documents show what guided Israeli thinking in the early years of establishing the state\, but also the relevance of Israeli regulations to current realities on the ground. “These tactics carry the fingerprints of Israeli diplomacy and aimed to absolve the Israeli State of liability for the actions of its agents\,” Sa’di explained. He cautioned that it is always important to point to the discrepancy between representation and reality. This\, he said\, “should not be overlooked nor underestimated\, particularly since Israel has always endeavored to present the image of a democratic\, enlightened\, and moral state.” \n \n \nAhmad Sa’di received a Ph.D. degree in sociology from the University of Manchester in 1991\, followed by two years of service for a Palestinian NGO. Sa’di has published over 38 articles\, in English\, Arabic\, Hebrew\, German and Japanese\, and most recently co-edited a book of Palestinian memoirs entitled Nakba: Palestine\, 1948 and the Claims of Memory. His areas of interest include political sociology\, the sociology of developing nations\, social movements and political mobilization\, and the discourse and methods of political control and surveillance used by Israel to control Palestinian citizens.  \n \n \nArticle by Suzi Mirgani\, Manager and Editor of CIRS Publications
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/ahmad-sadi-population-management-and-political-control/
CATEGORIES:Dialogue Series,Race & Society,Regional Studies
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20120226T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20120226T180000
DTSTAMP:20260409T103425
CREATED:20141026T105508Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240314T104904Z
UID:10000849-1330243200-1330279200@cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu
SUMMARY:Shahla Haeri on Women and Political Leadership in Muslim Societies
DESCRIPTION:Shahla Haeri\, a cultural anthropologist and a 2011-2012 CIRS Visiting Scholar\, gave a Focused Discussion titled\, “From Bilqis to Benazir: Women and Political Leadership in Muslim Societies” on February 26\, 2012. Haeri’s current research interests revolve around examining Muslim women in positions of power\, both past and present. \n \n \nHaeri began her talk by critiquing western media accounts of the Arab Spring that pondered the motivations compelling Muslim women to suddenly become active in politics. She pointed out that there was nothing sudden or unprecedented about Muslim women’s participation in the political domain as evidenced by the long and rich history of women in leadership roles. Haeri recounted the Judeo-Islamic story of the Queen of Sheba\, also known as Bilqis\, as one that is prominent in the Qur’an and favorably portrays the queen as a wise\, intelligent\, and caring ruler. The story of the Queen of Sheba shows that “the Queen’s gender is immaterial to her leadership and governance\, and gender politics plays no role in this Qur’anic story.” The story\, however\, has seldom played an important role in modern Muslim feminist discourse. “Given that this story permeates popular cultures and is explicitly specified in the Qur’an\, what has prevented Muslim women from appropriating the Queen’s model of leadership and actively participating in the political life of their societies?” Haeri mused. \n \n \nThe answer to this question\, she said\, can be found in the dynamics of an alleged hadith\, or prophetic saying\, and its patriarchal resonance in Muslim societies. The Prophet is reported to have said “those who entrust their affairs to women will never know prosperity.” In order to reconcile these two opposing narratives\, Haeri proposed juxtaposing the Qur’anic story that supports women’s political leadership with that of its reported condemnation in the hadith in order to determine the patriarchal and political machinations at work in undermining women in leadership roles. \n \n \nAs examples of Muslim women in power\, Haeri offered Raziya Sultan\, ruler of the medieval Mamluk dynasty in India; Benazir Bhutto\, the late Prime Minister of Pakistan who was democratically elected as leader of a highly conservative Muslim nation; and Ayesha\, the Prophet’s wife\, who led the “Battle of the Camel” against the reigning Caliph Ali. By examining the many historical examples of Muslim women in positions of power\, Haeri highlighted the religious ambivalence regarding Muslim women leaders rather than a categorical condemnation. Predominant patriarchal opposition\, she argued\, happens within a socio-political sphere\, rather than emanating primarily from the scripture. \n \n \nAll these women\, although hailing from different cultural traditions and historical periods\, shared a distinguished genealogical pedigree and had support from their powerful fathers or husbands. As Haeri explained\, “the patriarch’s support bestows power and prestige on the daughter\, facilitates her presence in the public domain\, and legitimates her political authority and activities\,” thus working to silence her detractors. Here lies what she has called “paradox of patriarchy.” While “history provides ample examples of fatal rivalries between the imperial fathers and coveting sons\, little is said on the political implications of the relationships between a patriarch and his daughter\, whom he may indeed favor over his sons who are in a structural position to dislodge the patriarch from his position of authority.” \n \n \nHaeri ended her discussion by noting that popular views against women in leadership were/are often emanating from patriarchal and political discourse\, and not necessarily from religious or scriptural dictates. “Aware of the hierarchy of the sources of authority in Islam – that between the Qur’anic revelations supporting women’s leadership and the alleged Prophetic hadith opposing it – religious authorities bide their time until an opportune moment arises to challenge the authority of a queen\, a sultan\, or a prime minister.” \n \n \nShahla Haeri is an Associate Professor of Cultural Anthropology and the former director of Women’s Studies Program (2001-2010) at Boston University. Trained as a Cultural Anthropologist with specific focus on law and religion\, Haeri has conducted ethnographic research in Iran\, Pakistan\, and India. Her ongoing intellectual and academic interests converge on the evolving yet contentious relationship between religion/law\, gender\, and the state in the Muslim world in general\, and in Iran in particular. She is the author of Law of Desire: Temporary Marriage\, Mut’a\, in Iran (1989\, 2006 4th pt. Arabic Tr.13th printing 2010)\, and No Shame for the Sun: Lives of Professional Pakistani women (2002/2004). \n \n \nShe is the recipient of the 2011-2012 Visiting Fellowship at Georgetown University’s Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS) at Doha\, Qatar. She has been awarded several grants and postdoctoral fellowships\, including Henderson Senior Research Fellowships in the Humanities at Boston University (2008-2009)\, Women’s Studies in Religion Studies at Harvard Divinity School (Colorado Scholar; 2005-2006)\, Fulbright (1999-2000\, 2002-2003)\, St. Anthony’s College\, Oxford University (1996)\, American Institute of Pakistan Studies\, (1991-1992)\, Social Science Research Council (1987-1988)\, Pembroke Center for Teaching and Research on Women\, Brown University (1986-1987)\, and the Center for Middle Eastern Studies\, Harvard University (1985-1986). \n \n \nDr. Haeri has produced a short video documentary (46 min.) entitled\, Mrs. President: Women and Political Leadership in Iran\, focusing on six women presidential contenders in Iran in 2001. This documentary is distributed by Films for Humanities and Sciences (www.films.com).  \n \n \nArticle by Suzi Mirgani\, Manager and Editor for CIRS Publications
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/shahla-haeri-women-and-political-leadership-muslim-societies/
CATEGORIES:Dialogue Series,Race & Society,Regional Studies
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20120226T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20120226T180000
DTSTAMP:20260409T103425
CREATED:20141026T110335Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210901T132537Z
UID:10000851-1330243200-1330279200@cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu
SUMMARY:Ambassador Larocco on the Gulf Looking East
DESCRIPTION:On February 26\, 2012\, CIRS hosted a Focused Discussion with Ambassador James Larocco Distinguished Professor and Director of the Near East South Asia Center at the National Defense University in Washington\, DC. The talk titled\, “The Gulf Looking East: Afghanistan\, Pakistan\, India\, and Iran\,” was supported by the United States embassy in Qatar. Citing full academic freedom\, Larocco gave his take on the Gulf’s relationship with its neighbors “from Marrakesh to Bangladesh.” He explained to the audience how representing a research center afforded him freedom from the official US diplomatic stance\, and that he was able to have frank conversations with Pakistani and Iranian authorities. \n \n \nThe Ambassador recounted his experiences as a diplomat in the Middle East. His interest in the region began in the 1970s and he has been a regular resident in the region for many years. Most recently\, Larocco described his role as that of an educator\, rather than an emissary of the US government. Describing\, the Near East South Asia Center\, he said that it is an institution that “was deliberately created to try to bring people together from this region to have serious dialogue\, to create communities of influence\, to eliminate misunderstandings\, and to – as much as possible – open minds.” There are currently over 3\,000 of the center’s alumni in leadership positions all over the world\, he said. In fact\, the alumni are so prevalent in politics\, that they constituted members of both the government as well as the opposition in a recent political dispute in the Maldives. \n \n \nThe current nexus of power in the Middle East\, the Ambassador said\, includes Turkey\, Saudi Arabia\, Iran\, and Israel – all of which exert tremendous amounts of hard and soft power\, and will continue to do so. Pakistan and Afghanistan\, Larocco said\, are in extremely difficult situations for which he did not see an immediate solution – although he suggested that Qatar’s diplomatic and economic efforts could play a leading role in the future of Pakistan. \n \n \nMoving further east\, the Ambassador said that he did not see China as a military threat\, but as a country that has grown powerful through commerce. China’s expansion “is strictly based on its mercantilist policy of securing economic interest because China has to produce 20 million jobs every year.” Much of the US government’s efforts in South Asia\, Larocco said\, have been established in order to contain the growing influence of China\, although this has never been acknowledged as official US policy. In the next few years\, people will notice that US policy\, as well as naval and military presence\, will shift towards South Asia\, he said. \n \n \nLarocco concluded by saying that “the Middle East\, for the most part in the United States\, is a problem to be worked with and to be endured\, whereas South Asia and the Asia Pacific region are considered the future for the policy of the United States”. In addition\, because of its strategic geographic location\, roughly 50% of all world trade passes through the Indian Ocean\, and so this also increases the challenges that will be faced in relation to maritime security. Because the local institutions and infrastructure are inadequately equipped to deal with the myriad future challenges\, including the increased threat of maritime piracy\, the Ambassador explained that “the Indian Ocean is going to be the focus of either conflict or cooperation.” \n \n \nRetired ambassador James Larocco joined the NESA Center as a distinguished professor in August 2009\, after serving more than 35 years as a diplomat. During the past 15 years\, he held key leadership assignments related to the Near East region\, including Director General of the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO)\, 2004-2009; Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for the Near East\, 2001-2004; U.S. Ambassador to the State of Kuwait\, 1997-2001 and Deputy Chief of Mission and Charge D’Affaires in Tel Aviv\, 1993-1996. His earlier postings included assignments as Deputy Director of Afghanistan\, Pakistan and Bangladesh Affairs at the State Department in Washington and key positions in American embassies in Egypt\, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. He left the Foreign Service with the personal rank of Career Minister\, which equates in U.S. military terms to Lieutenant General. During his career\, Ambassador Larocco received numerous awards\, including the Distinguished Service Award that was personally presented to him by then Secretary of State Colin Powell.  \n \n \nArticle by Suzi Mirgani\, Manager and Editor for CIRS Publications.
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/ambassador-larocco-gulf-looking-east/
CATEGORIES:Dialogue Series,Distingushed Lectures,Regional Studies
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