National Interest Foundation

The Abraham Accords Promised Peace: What's the Reality?
2022-06-01 12:00 - 13:30 (America/New_York) | Zoom Meeting, 1800 K Street, NW, Suite 1124, Washington, DC, 20006, United States
An NIF Zoom event discussion regarding the shortcomings of the Abraham Accords. Some of the countries who signed on to the agreement claimed that it would improve the daily lives of Palestinians and stop more illegal Israeli settlements. Let’s see the facts.

Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. Please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry for those who fail to do so, i.e. inputting “NA” in the “organization” or “job title” section.

Speakers
Diana Buttu, Palestinian-Canadian Lawyer and Analyst
Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, Secretary General and Co-Founder of the Palestinian National Initiative (PNI)
Maha Hussaini, Strategy Director of Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor

Moderator
Khaled Saffuri, Founder and President of the National Interest Foundation (NIF)

About our Speakers:
Diana Buttu is a Palestinian-Canadian lawyer who previously served as a legal advisor to the Palestinian negotiating team and was part of the team that assisted in the successful litigation of Israel’s separation wall before the International Court of Justice at the Hague in 2004, which resulted in the indictment of the wall. She frequently comments on Palestine for international news media outlets such as CNN and BBC, is a political analyst for Al Jazeera International, and is a regular contributor to The Middle East magazine. She maintains a law practice in Palestine, focusing on international human rights law. Earlier in her career, Buttu worked on the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, serving as the only female negotiator during her five-year tenure. She was a fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and at Harvard Law School. She also held a fellowship at the Stanford Center for Conflict Resolution and Negotiation and is an instructor at Harvard Extension School. Buttu received her undergraduate degree from the University of Toronto, a JD from Queen’s University in Canada, an LLM from the University of Toronto, a JSM from Stanford University, and an executive MBA from Kellogg Northwestern School of Management.
Dr. Mustafa Barghouti is the secretary general and co-founder of the Palestinian National Initiative (PNI) – also known as al-Mubadara. PNI seeks to develop mass nonviolence and international solidarity as the preferred means of resisting the Israeli Occupation, and to mobilize public opinion by making the Palestinian story visible in the news media. A physician by practice, he has been a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) since 2006 and is also a member of the Palestinian Central Council (PCC). Dr. Barghouti is an advocate for the development of Palestinian civil society and grassroots democracy, and writes extensively for a local and international audience on civil society, democracy issues and the political situation in Palestine, and on health development policy for Palestinians living under occupation. In 2007, he served as minister of information in the Palestinian unity government. He ran for president in the 2005 presidential election, coming second after Mahmoud Abbas. Barghouti has worked extensively on defending human rights and internal democracy, and is the founder and chairman of the Palestinian Medical Relief Society (PMRS).
Maha Hussaini is the Strategy Director of Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor and an award-winning journalist based in Gaza. She holds a master’s degree in political science – refugee studies. Maha started her career in the field of human rights and journalism in 2014, where she covered and documented violations during Israel’s military attack on the Gaza Strip.

About our Moderator:
Khaled Saffuri is the Founder and President of the National Interest Foundation (NIF), a nonpartisan think tank and nonprofit organization established in April of 2018 which is focused on bettering relationships between the United States and countries across the globe through the promotion of smarter foreign policy. Mr. Saffuri has previously served as a Principal at Meridian Strategies providing international business and government clients with unparalleled strategic and public affairs consulting services, and also founded and ran one of the United States’ prominent and most active organizations to represent the Middle East and Muslim-Americans. He has worked for many years with Members of Congress and has testified in front of Congressional Committees, advising them on international issues and leading Congressional delegations to the Middle East. Due to his extensive background and expertise, Mr. Saffuri is a regular contributor to a number of important media outlets in the United States and internationally including CNN, CBS, and BBC and contributes articles and written publications to outlets such as The Washington Post and The American Conservative.

Note: additional speakers may be announced later.

2022 STG/NIF/ORSAM Istanbul Conference - The U.S. and International Shifting Dynamics
2022-06-18 | Elite World Europe Hotel, Halkalı Merkez, Basın Ekspres Cd. No:4, 34303, Küçükçekmece/İstanbul, Turkey
Strategic Thinking Group (STG) – Istanbul in Collaboration with The National Interest Foundation (NIF) – Washington D.C. & Center for Middle East Studies (ORSAM) – Ankara are hosting a second international conference under the title:
“The U.S. and International Shifting Dynamics“
Saturday, June 18, 2022
Istanbul, Turkey

Opening Session

Remarks
Speaker
Time

Chairman of the Strategic Thinking Group
Mohammed Salem Al-Rashed
09:30 – 10:00

President of the National Interest Foundation
Khaled Saffuri

President of the Center for Middle East Studies
Ahmet Uysal

The First Panel: Biden Administration Policy in the Middle East

Topic
Speaker
Moderator
10:00

U.S. strategy towards the Palestinian issue
Jim Moran
Khaled Saffuri
15 Minutes

U.S. strategy towards Iran
Tim Constantine
15 Minutes

U.S. strategy towards Turkey
Talha Kose
15 Minutes

U.S. strategy towards crises in the region (Iraq – Yemen – Syria – Libya – Sudan…)
Abdullah Al-Shayji
15 Minutes

Questions and Comments
30 Minutes

Coffee Break
11:30 – 11:45

The Second Panel: U.S. Relations with China, Russia, and the Role of Turkey

Topic
Speaker
Moderator
11:45

U.S.-China relations
Doug Bandow
Esam Omeish
15 Minutes

U.S.-Russian relations and the War in Ukraine
Saul Anuzis
15 Minutes

U.S. interactions and the role and position of Turkey in regional alliances
Ahmed Uysal
15 Minutes

The international poles (U.S. and the European Union – Russia – China) and regional alliances
Mohamed Hussein Abu Saleh
15 Minutes

Questions and Comments
30 Minutes

Lunch Break
01:15 – 02:15

The Third Panel: Regional and International Dynamics and Economic Interactions

Topic
Speaker
Moderator
02:15

International conflicts and inflation
Abdul Hafez Al-Sawy
Gamal Nassar
15 Minutes

International conflicts and gas and oil
Zaed Abdulvahab
15 Minutes

The Russian-Ukrainian War and global food security
Tarik Al-Azami
15 Minutes

Economic dynamics and the future of the U.S. dollar
Bruce Fein
15 Minutes

Questions and Comments
30 Minutes

Coffee Break
03:45 – 04:00

The Fourth Panel: Global Media and International Conflicts

Topic
Speaker
Moderator
04:00

Global media and the Palestinian issue
Ali Younes
Nursin Guney
15 Minutes

War & Peace and media coverage
David Hearst
15 Minutes

Global media and Turkey
Mehmet Özkan
15 Minutes

Arab media, crises, and wars in the region
Ahmed Ramadan
15 Minutes

Questions and Comments
05:00 – 05:30

A First-Hand Account Into China's Genocide Against the Uyghurs
2022-08-16 12:00 - 13:30 | National Interest Foundation, 2000 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 7000, Washington, DC, 20006, United States
The National Interest Foundation invites you to attend a lunch discussion and book signing event with Nury Turkel regarding his powerful recent memoir No Escape: The True Story of China’s Genocide of the Uyghurs. Mr. Turkel will discuss his personal story, China’s egregious violations against the Uyghurs, and his work to address the humanitarian crisis.

Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. Please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry for those who fail to do so, i.e. inputting “NA” in the “organization” or “job title” section.

Speaker
Nury Turkel, Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute

Moderator
Kelley Beaucar Vlahos, Senior Advisor and Editorial Director, Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft

About our Speaker:
Nury Turkel is the first U.S.-educated Uyghur-American lawyer, foreign policy expert, and human rights advocate. He was born in a re-education camp at the height of China’s tumultuous Cultural Revolution and spent the first several months of his life in detention with his mother. He came to the United States in 1995 as a student and was later granted asylum by the U.S. government. Since June 2022, Nury has served as the Chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, having been reappointed by Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) in May of 2022 for a two-year term. In September 2020, Turkel was named one of the TIME 100 Most Influential People in the World; and in May 2021, he was named on Fortune‘s List of the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders. Turkel is a respected opinion leader and a foreign policy expert primarily focusing on diplomatic, economic, and national security issues involving China, Central Asia, and Turkey. He is a Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He also serves as the Chairman of the Board for the Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP), which he co-founded in 2003. Turkel has published policy-oriented commentaries and op-eds in publications such as Foreign Affairs, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Time, Newsweek, Foreign Policy, USA Today, The Hill, The Independent, and The Diplomat. He has spoken at numerous policy forums, academic institutes, and human rights conferences, regarding the mass internment of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims in China. He has appeared on major media outlets, including CNN, BBC, Fox News, Al Jazeera, Australian ABC, Sky News, France 24, and TRT World. He has testified before Congress, including most recently before the Congressional-Executive Commission on China in October 2019, speaking about Uyghur internment camps, and advocating a legislative response to China’s atrocities. Many of his recommendations have been incorporated into U.S. laws and pending bills relating to Uyghurs and China in Congress, including the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020 (Public Law 116-145).

About our Moderator:
Kelley Beaucar Vlahos comes to the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft from The American Conservative (TAC), where for the last three years she served as the magazine’s executive editor. Before joining TAC in 2017, Vlahos served as a contributing editor to the magazine, reporting and publishing regular articles on U.S. war policy, civil liberties, foreign policy, veterans, and Washington politics since 2007. She also organized the magazine’s major annual foreign policy conference for the last three years. Prior to that, Vlahos was director of social media and a digital editor at WTOP News in Washington, D.C. from 2013 to 2017. She spent 15 years as an online political reporter for FOX News at the channel’s Washington D.C. bureau, as well as Washington correspondent for Homeland Security Today magazine. She is on the board of PublicSquare.net, a non-profit media project promoting informed Left-Right debate. Her recent media appearances include C-SPAN’s Washington Journal, Tucker Carlson Tonight, NPR’s 1A, POTUS on Sirius XM, and Al Jazeera. Before moving to the nation’s capital, Vlahos earned her degree in Journalism-Mass Media at Central Connecticut State University and worked her way through local and regional newspapers in her home state of Connecticut, including The New Britain Herald and The Torrington Register Citizen. She is co-host of the Crashing the War Party podcast with Daniel Larison and Barbara Boland.

Note: additional speakers may be announced later.

A Conversation w/ Former Secretary of Defense and U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel
2022-10-06 12:00 - 13:30 | National Interest Foundation, 2000 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 7000, Washington, DC, 20006, United States
The National Interest Foundation invites you to attend a lunch discussion event with former U.S. Secretary of Defense and former U.S. Senator, The Honorable Chuck Hagel, regarding American Engagement in the Middle East.

Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. You will receive a confirmation email if you have been successfully added to our event attendee list upon registration. Those who do not receive a confirmation email will not be admitted. Also, please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry for those who fail to do so.

Speaker
The Honorable Chuck Hagel, Former U.S. Secretary of Defense and Former U.S. Senator

Moderator
Bruce Fein, Law Offices of Bruce Fein

About our Speaker:
The Honorable Chuck Hagel was the 24th Secretary of Defense, serving from February 2013 to February 2015. He is the only Vietnam veteran and the first enlisted combat veteran to serve as Secretary of Defense.
Hagel served two terms in the United States Senate (1997-2009) representing the state of Nebraska. Hagel was a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations; Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs; and Intelligence Committees. He Chaired the Foreign Relations International Economic Policy, Export and Trade Promotion Subcommittee; and the Banking Committee’s International Trade and Finance, and Securities Subcommittees. Hagel also served as the Chairman of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China and the Senate Climate Change Observer Group.
Previously, Secretary Hagel was Co-Chairman of the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board, Chairman of the Atlantic Council, and a Distinguished Professor at Georgetown University. He served as a member of the Secretary of Defense’s Policy Board and Secretary of Energy’s Blue Ribbon Commission on the Future of Nuclear Power, Systemic Risk Council Board of Directors. Hagel also served as Chief Operating Officer of the 1990 Economic Summit of Industrialized Nations (G-7 Summit) and Deputy Administrator of the Veterans Administration under President Ronald Reagan and Deputy Commissioner General of the 1982 World’s Fair.
Prior to his election to the U.S. Senate, Hagel was president of McCarthy & Company, an investment banking firm in Omaha, Nebraska. In the mid-1980’s, Hagel co-founded VANGUARD Cellular Systems, Inc., a publicly traded corporation. He was President and CEO of the World USO and Private Sector Council (PSC).
Some of Hagel’s current commitments include service on the United States Military Academy Board of Visitors; Board of Trustees of RAND; Advisory Board of Corsair Capital; Senior Advisor to the McCarthy Group; Centennial Scholar, Georgetown Walsh School of Foreign Service; Distinguished Scholar, University of Nebraska at Omaha; Distinguished Statesman at the Atlantic Council; Board of Directors of Public Broadcasting Service (PBS); Board of Trustees of the United States Capitol Historical Society; Director and Co-Founding Member of the American Security Project; Advisory Board Chairman of the HillVets Veterans Organization; and Chairman of the Veterans Justice Commission.
He is the author of the book, America: Our Next Chapter. He and his brother Tom are the subjects of a 2018 book by General Daniel Bolger entitled, Our Year of War. Hagel is also the subject of a 2006 book by Charlyne Berens entitled, Chuck Hagel: Moving Forward. He is a graduate of the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Hagel and his wife, Lilibet, have a daughter (Allyn) and son (Ziller).

About our Moderator:
Bruce Fein was associate deputy attorney general under President Reagan, counsel to the Joint Congressional Committee on Covert Arms Sales to Iran, and senior policy advisor to Ron Paul’s 2012 presidential campaign. Mr. Fein is a constitutional and international lawyer, and author of “American Empire Before The Fall.” He has testified before Congress on more than 200 occasions.

Note: additional speakers may be announced later.

How the UAE-Russian Alliance Threatens the U.S.?
2022-11-14 12:00 - 13:30 | National Interest Foundation, 2000 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 7000, Washington, DC, 20006, United States
The National Interest Foundation invites you to attend a private lunch discussion event with British academic Matthew Hedges regarding his wrongful detainment, imprisonment, and torture at the hands of the United Arab Emirates government, his research, and what he is doing now for accountability and research on the UAE’s support for Russian sanctions evasion.

Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. You will receive a confirmation email if you have been successfully added to our event attendee list upon registration. Those who do not receive a confirmation email will not be admitted. Also, please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry for those who fail to do so.

About our Speaker:
Matthew Hedges is an academic focusing on authoritarianism. While conducting fieldwork research for his PhD in the UAE, he was detained, tortured, and sentenced to life imprisonment under the charge of espionage on behalf of the British Government. He was awarded his doctorate by Durham University and has since published this as Reinventing the Sheikhdom: Clan, Power and Patronage in MBZ’s UAE. His current research focuses on the commercial activities of non-Western intelligence organizations.

About our Moderator:
Khaled Saffuri is the Founder and President of the National Interest Foundation (NIF), a nonpartisan think tank and nonprofit organization established in April of 2018 which is focused on bettering relationships between the United States and countries across the globe through the promotion of smarter foreign policy. Mr. Saffuri has previously served as a Principal at Meridian Strategies providing international business and government clients with strategic and public affairs consulting services, and also founded and ran one of the United States’ prominent and most active organizations to represent the Middle East and Muslim-Americans. He has worked for many years with Members of Congress and has testified in front of Congressional Committees, advising them on international issues and leading Congressional delegations to the Middle East. Due to his extensive background and expertise, Mr. Saffuri is a regular contributor to a number of important media outlets in the United States and internationally including CNN, CBS, and BBC and contributes articles and written publications to outlets such as The Washington Post and The American Conservative.

A Lunch Conversation with Dr. Majed Bin Mohammed Al-Ansari
2023-03-16 12:30 - 14:00 | National Interest Foundation, 2000 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 7000, Washington, DC, 20006, United States
The National Interest Foundation invites you to attend a lunch discussion event with Dr. Majed Bin Mohammed Al-Ansari, regarding U.S. relations with Qatar and the Middle East.

Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. You will receive a confirmation email if you have been successfully added to our event attendee list upon registration. Those who do not receive a confirmation email will not be admitted. Also, please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry to those who fail to do so.

About our Speaker:
Dr. Majed Bin Mohammed Al-Ansari currently serves as an advisor to H.E. the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and as the Official Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar. He received his bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Leeds University in Political Science and his Ph.D. and MA in Social Change from Cathy March Insitute of the University of Manchester. Dr. Al-Ansari worked previously as Director of the Qatar International Academy for Security Studies (QIASS) and Director of the Policy Department at the Social and Economic Survey Research Institute (SESRI) of Qatar University (QU). During his work at the university, he also served as an assistant professor at QU’s Department of International Affairs. Al-Ansari started his career as a researcher in international relations at the office of the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs in 2005. He also took on various roles in multiple civil society institutions. He wrote regularly in Al Sharq and Al Arab national Newspapers between 2006 and 2022. Dr. Al-Ansari serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Center for Strategic Studies at Qatar Armed Forces.

About our Moderator:
Khaled Saffuri is the Founder and President of the National Interest Foundation (NIF), a nonpartisan think tank and nonprofit organization established in April of 2018 which is focused on bettering relationships between the United States and countries across the globe through the promotion of smarter foreign policy. Mr. Saffuri has previously served as a Principal at Meridian Strategies providing international business and government clients with strategic and public affairs consulting services, and also founded and ran one of the United States’ prominent and most active organizations to represent the Middle East and Muslim-Americans. He has worked for many years with Members of Congress and has testified in front of Congressional Committees, advising them on international issues and leading Congressional delegations to the Middle East. Due to his extensive background and expertise, Mr. Saffuri is a regular contributor to a number of important media outlets in the United States and internationally including CNN, CBS, and BBC and contributes articles and written publications to outlets such as The Washington Post and The American Conservative.

Human Rights and U.S. Foreign Policy
2023-05-17 10:00 - 16:00 | Rayburn House Office Building, 45 Independence Avenue Southwest, Room 2168 (The Gold Room), Washington D.C., 20515, United States
Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. Please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry for those who fail to do so, i.e. inputting “NA” in the “organization” or “job title” section.

Event Synopsis: Human rights continue to be a growing issue around the world and many of the past policies that were employed to punish human rights abusers are not as effective as they were in the past. U.S. policy has been consistently inconsistent in who they condemn, often excluding allies and oil-rich nations from punishment. NIF invites you to join us on May 17, 2023, to explore and discuss the intricacies and shortcomings of U.S. foreign policy and the impact it has on international human rights.

Conversation with Dr. Mohamed Moncef Marzouki, Former President of Tunisia
2023-09-26 18:00 - 19:30 | National Interest Foundation, 2000 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 7000, Washington, DC, 20006, United States
The National Interest Foundation invites you to attend a dinner event with the former President of Tunisia, Dr. Mohamed Moncef Marzouki.

Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. You will receive a confirmation email if you have been successfully added to our event attendee list upon registration. Those who do not receive a confirmation email will not be admitted. Also, please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry to those who fail to do so.

Event Synopsis: Democratic backsliding has continued in Tunisia as despot Kais Saied continues to consolidate his power. He has removed multiple democratic institutions with checks on his power. During this event, we will discuss the current events on the ground in Tunisia and things people are doing to combat Saied’s regime.

About our Speaker:
Mohamed Moncef Marzouki is a Tunisian politician who served as the fifth president of Tunisia from 2011 to 2014. Through his career he has been a human rights activist, physician and politician. On 12 December 2011, he was elected President of Tunisia by the Constituent Assembly.
Dr. Mohamed Moncef Marzouki was born in Grombalia, Tunisia in 1945, and followed his family into political exile in Morocco in 1961, because of his father’s opposition to President Habib Bourgiba. An excellent student, he won a scholarship to study in France, where he earned his medical degree at the University of Strasbourg in 1973, with specialties in neurology, internal medicine and public health. At Strasbourg, Dr. Marzouki wrote his thesis on human rights and medical experimentation under the supervision of Professor Marc Klein, a Holocaust survivor who had been imprisoned in Auschwitz and Buchenwald, and who had a profound intellectual influence on him.
Dr. Marzouki was President of the Tunisian League for Human Rights from 1989 to 1994. In the early 1990’s, Dr. Marzouki founded the National Committee for the Defense of Prisoners of Opinion, which was declared illegal by then-President Zine el Abedine Ben Ali’s regime. In July 1994, announced his candidacy for President of Tunisia. That year, he was arrested and imprisoned, and held in solitary confinement for several months. Dr. Marzouki was released in 1995, after South African President Nelson Mandela appealed to Ben Ali on his behalf. For several years, Dr. Marzouki was denied a passport and prohibited from travelling abroad, and lived under constant surveillance. In 1998, Dr. Marzouki became the spokesperson for the National Council for Freedom in Tunisia, a post he occupied until 2001. In 2000, Dr. Marzouki was dismissed from his post as Professor of Public Health at the University of Sousse. In 2001, he founded the Congress for 2/2 the Republic (CPR), a political party that was banned by Ben Ali’s regime.

About our Moderator:
Khaled Saffuri is the Founder and President of the National Interest Foundation (NIF), a nonpartisan think tank and nonprofit organization established in April of 2018 which is focused on bettering relationships between the United States and countries across the globe through the promotion of smarter foreign policy. Mr. Saffuri has previously served as a Principal at Meridian Strategies providing international business and government clients with strategic and public affairs consulting services, and also founded and ran one of the United States’ prominent and most active organizations to represent the Middle East and Muslim-Americans. He has worked for many years with Members of Congress and has testified in front of Congressional Committees, advising them on international issues and leading Congressional delegations to the Middle East. Due to his extensive background and expertise, Mr. Saffuri is a regular contributor to a number of important media outlets in the United States and internationally including CNN, CBS, and BBC and contributes articles and written publications to outlets such as The Washington Post and The American Conservative.

Decoding the War on Gaza
2023-11-15 12:00 - 15:00 | National Press Club, 529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor, First Amendment Room, Washington D.C., 20045, United States
Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. You will receive a confirmation email if you have been successfully added to our event attendee list upon registration. Those who do not receive a confirmation email will not be admitted. Also, please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry to those who fail to do so.

Event Synopsis:
The ongoing conflict in Palestine and Israel has garnered significant attention across the globe since October 7th. Although political and media circles are focused on the Gaza Strip other factors are at play including the situation in surrounding kibbutzim and Tel Aviv, emboldened settler incursions into neighboring villages, operations in the West Bank, as well as the role of regional and international powers. We have assembled a panel of notable experts and professionals to analyze editorial coverage of the conflict which has been subject to scrutiny with allegations of bias in favor of either party. Simultaneously, there have been allegations of serious war crimes which have been offset by declarations of the right to self-defense either of a sovereign state or an occupied people as referenced in Article 51 of the UN charter, Article 27 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, and United Nations General Assembly Resolution 37/43 (1982).

Panel I: Media Coverage & Editorial Accountability
Miko Peled is considered by many to be one of the clearest voices calling for justice in Palestine, support of the Palestinian call for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS), and the creation of a single democracy with equal rights in all of historic Palestine. Miko is also a contributor to several online publications including the Mint Press, The Electronic Intifada, Democracy Now, and Mondoweiss, and has been invited to speak all over the world.
James Zogby is the founder and president of the Arab American Institute (AAI), a Washington, D.C.–based organization that serves as a political and policy research arm of the Arab-American community. He is also the managing director of Zogby Research Services, LLC. Zogby is featured frequently on national and international media as an expert on Middle East affairs. In 2010, Zogby published the highly-acclaimed book, Arab Voices.
Ryan Grim is The Intercept’s D.C. Bureau Chief and the host of the podcast Deconstructed. He authors the newsletter Bad News and was previously the Washington bureau chief for HuffPost, where he led a team that was twice a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, and won once.
Laila Al-Arian is an executive producer for Fault Lines. Prior to joining Fault Lines, Laila worked for AJE for four years, covering everything from Guantanamo Bay’s youngest detainee to the re-settlement of Iraqi refugees in the U.S
Hafez Al Mirazi (Moderator) is a Columnist, Independent Broadcaster, and Professor of Practice in television journalism. He’s currently a columnist at Al Manassa, an Egyptian news website, writer and media critic, and host of YouTube shows, including his current series “On Gaza from Washington.”

Panel II: International Law and the Case for War Crimes
Bruce Fein is a nationally and internationally renowned constitutional lawyer, scholar, and writer. Currently, Fein serves as the President and founder of the law firm, Bruce Fein and Associates Inc. He makes regular appearances on national television and radio, including MSNBC, FOX News, C-Span, BBC, Reuters, and NPR.
Sarah Leah Whitson is the Executive Director of DAWN. Previously, she served as executive director of Human Rights Watch’s Middle East and North Africa Division from 2004 – 2020, overseeing the work of the division in 19 countries, with staff located in 10 countries.
Emily Schaeffer Omer-Man is a human rights litigator with over 15 years practice challenging policies and practices of the Israeli occupation in Israeli and foreign courts and representing human rights defenders denied access to Israel and Palestine. She is currently a Lecturer and specialist in International Humanitarian Law, International Criminal Law, and International Human Rights Law at American University.
Bruce DelValle (Moderator) is the founder and principal shareholder of DelValle Law PLLC. Mr. DelValle often appears in various international courts and tribunals in matters relating to genocide, voting irregularities, and crimes against humanity. Mr. DelValle is also considered a constitutional law expert and often represents various international and domestic clients on matters concerning individual civil rights, freedom of speech and of the press, human rights, and constitutional law litigants.

How Strong is South Africa's Case Against Israel at the ICJ?
2024-01-31 18:00 - 19:30 | National Interest Foundation, 2000 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 7000, Washington, DC, 20006, United States
The National Interest Foundation invites you to attend a dinner conversation regarding South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.

Speakers: Bruce Fein, Former Associate Deputy Attorney General
Sam Husseini, Independent Journalist

Moderator: Yasmeen Hussain, Attorney Specializing in International Humanitarian Law

Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. You will receive a confirmation email if you have been successfully added to our event attendee list upon registration. Those who do not receive a confirmation email will not be admitted. Also, please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry to those who fail to do so.

Event Synopsis: We will examine the importance of South Africa’s landmark case against Israel at the International Court of Justice – the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. South Africa is accusing Israel of committing the crime of genocide, in breach of the 1948 Genocide Convention, with its destructive military campaign in Gaza. The case details an array of evidence of Israeli war crimes and human rights violations being committed including the killing of tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians, the expulsion and displacement of Gaza Strip inhabitants, and the hindrance of food, water, medical, and other humanitarian assistance. The event will include discussion regarding the merits of the case, where things stand in the process, and how the prosecution of cases works at both the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court.

Parking: Free parking will be available around the building. We will inform building management about the event and they will not tow. If you wish to take the metro, it is a 7-minute walk from both the Tysons and Greensboro stations.

*A light dinner will be served at the event.

About our Speakers:
Bruce Fein has been a renowned legal-media fixture in Washington, D.C. for more than 50 years across the political spectrum. He featured on Attorney General William French Smith’s short-list of potential nominees to the United States Supreme Court. His unique network extends to all three branches of the government, the media, think tanks, universities, and a cluster of NGOs. Mr. Fein appears regularly on national and international television. His articles on law and public policy are ubiquitous. He conducts constitutional tutorials for Members of Congress and staff. He is Vice Chairman of the Committee for the Republic. He is author of Constitutional Peril: The Life and Death Struggle for Our Constitution and Democracy and American Empire Before The Fall. Mr. Fein served as senior policy advisor to Ron Paul’s 2012 presidential campaign. He contributes daily commentary on his substack page: brucefein.substack.com. His twitter hashtag is @brucefeinesq. He has testified as an expert witness before Congress on more than 200 occasions. He served on the American Bar Association’s Task Force on Presidential Signing Statements. He has lived through every major political-legal battle or crisis since 1969 beginning with the defeats of President Richard Nixon’s Supreme Court nominees Clement Haynsworth and G. Harold Carswell. Mr. Fein graduated with honors from Harvard Law School and served at the highest levels of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government before establishing his own law firm. Among other things, Mr. Fein served as special assistant to the assistant attorney general in the office of legal counsel at the U.S. Department of Justice, assistant director of the office of legal policy, associate deputy attorney general, general counsel of the Federal Communications Commission, research director for the Joint Congressional Committee on Covert Arms Sales to Iran, and clerk to federal Judge Frank A. Kaufman. Mr. Fein has been a newspaper columnist, professor at George Washington University, and Visiting Fellow at The Heritage Foundation and American Enterprise Institute. Mr. Fein specializes in constitutional, international law, civil liberties, and administrative law. He has assisted multiple countries in writing or rewriting constitutions. He offers unique multi-dimensional analyses and solutions for every client. He is a member of the bar of the United States Supreme Court, multiple federal appeals courts, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, and the District of Columbia Bar.

Sam Husseini is an independent journalist now writing at husseini.substack.com. Since October 2023, his work has focused on Israel’s slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza, especially highlighting the possibility of a country invoking the Genocide Convention at the International Court of Justice, which South Africa did on December 29, 2023, leading to oral arguments. In addition to Palestine, his work has focused on Iraq (in particular the draconian sanctions during the 1990s and falsifications about WMDs used as a pretext for the 2003 invasion), international law, U.S. government refusing to acknowledge Israel’s nuclear weapons arsenal, Covid origins, political and media disinformation, and issues of free speech. He has scrutinized and questioned officials, most recently at the State Department. His questioning of a Saudi official during the Arab uprisings in 2011 led to him being suspended from the Press Club (later overturned by the ethics committee). He is also senior analyst at the Institute for Public Accuracy, and the founder of VotePact, which advocates people from the left and right voting in pairs against the establishment duopoly.

About our Moderator:
Yasmeen Hussain has an extensive education in international law and human rights, and a career committed to public service. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Chicago in international studies with a concentration in human rights, conducting field research in her native Syrian village prior to writing her thesis on the role that minority groups played in mid-century Syrian politics. She also specialized in international humanitarian law while attending American University Washington College of Law, writing research papers on the importance of international special tribunals to prosecute war crimes. She is committed to a life of public service and worked in community development throughout the south side of Chicago, as well as environmental protection and conservation in the state of California. She currently works in legal advising at Covington & Burling in Washington, D.C.

Note: additional speakers may be announced later

Presidential Elections in Tunisia: More Dictatorship or a Return to Democracy?
2024-09-18 13:30 - 14:30 | Regus, 1050 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 500, Washington, DC, 20036, United States
The National Interest Foundation invites you to attend a panel discussion event regarding the upcoming October elections in Tunisia.

Speakers:
H.E. Ambassador (ret.) Gordon Gray, Former U.S. Ambassador to Tunisia
Sharan Grewal, Brookings Institution
Radwan Masmoudi, Center for the Study of Islam & Democracy
Patricia Karam, Arab Center Washington D.C.

Moderator:
Khaled Saffuri, National Interest Foundation

Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. You will receive a confirmation email if you have been successfully added to our event attendee list upon registration. Those who do not receive a confirmation email will not be admitted. Also, please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry to those who fail to do so.

*A light lunch will be served at the event.

About our Speakers:
H.E. Ambassador (ret.) Gordon Gray is the Kuwait Professor of Gulf and Arabian Peninsula Affairs at the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University. Prior to his retirement from the U.S. government after 35 years of public service, Ambassador Gray was the Deputy Commandant at the National War College. He was the U.S. Ambassador to Tunisia from 2009 until 2012, witnessing the start of the Arab Spring and directing the U.S. response in support of Tunisia’s transition. He served in Iraq as Senior Advisor to the Ambassador from 2008-2009 and was Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs from 2005-2008. Ambassador Gray’s other foreign assignments include Egypt, Canada, Jordan, Pakistan, and Morocco, where he began his career in government as a Peace Corps volunteer. Before joining the faculty at the Elliott School, Ambassador Gray was a Professor of Practice at Penn State’s School of International Affairs. He was previously Chief Operating Officer at the Center for American Progress and Executive Vice President at the National U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce. Ambassador Gray holds a B.A. from Yale, an M.A. from Columbia, and an honorary M.S. from the National Defense University.

Sharan Grewal is a nonresident senior fellow in the Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings Institution. He is also an assistant professor of government at American University and a faculty affiliate at the Middle East Initiative at Harvard. He received a doctorate in politics from Princeton University in 2018. Grewal’s research examines revolutions and democratic transitions, particularly in Egypt and Tunisia. His first book, “Soldiers of Democracy? Military Legacies and the Arab Spring” (Oxford University Press, 2023), examines why militaries support or thwart democratic transitions. It won the APSA Best Book in MENA Politics Award and co-won the Robert Jervis Best International Security Book Award. He is currently writing a second book on the rise and fall of Tunisian democracy. Sharan has published academic articles in the American Political Science Review and the American Journal of Political Science, among other journals. These articles have explored the effects of U.S. military training in Tunisia, the response of Algeria’s military to the Hirak protests, and the conditions under which Islamists moderate or radicalize. These articles have won best paper and article awards from APSA as well as the Perry World House-Foreign Affairs Emerging Scholars Prize. Sharan has also written for the Washington Post, Foreign Policy, New Lines Magazine, and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and has been interviewed by the New York Times, Associated Press, Wall Street Journal, and Reuters, among others.

Radwan Masmoudi is the founder and president of the Center for the Study of Islam & Democracy (CSID), a Washington-based non-profit organization dedicated to promoting freedom, democracy, and good governance in the Arab/Muslim world. He is also the editor-in-chief of the Center’s quarterly publication, Muslim Democrat. In 1998, Masmoudi established the Center for the Study of Islam & Democracy (CSID). Four years later, he left his engineering career to serve as the full-time president of CSID. Under his leadership, CSID has grown into a major institution with programs and activities in over 20 countries, and over 600 regular and associate members. Throughout his career, he has written and published several articles on Islam, democracy, freedom, and human rights in the Muslim world. He is a frequent commentator on several TV networks including CNN, Al-Jazeera, Fox News, Algerian TV, and MBC.

Patricia Karam is a nonresident Fellow at Arab Center Washington DC. She held multiple senior managerial positions in nongovernmental organizations over the past 20 years, working at the nexus of problem analysis, policy formulation, and impactful program implementation aimed at social and policy change in a range of complex, conflict-ridden settings across the globe. Most recently, Karam was Middle East North Africa (MENA) Regional Director at the International Republican Institute, where she was responsible for the strategic oversight and leadership of a multimillion-dollar portfolio of programs focused on citizen-responsive governance, political party development, legislative strengthening, and civil society capacity-building. Prior to that, as MENA Director at the Natural Resource Governance Institute, Karam was responsible for research, advocacy, grant-making, and technical assistance projects aimed at improving natural resource governance managed through country offices she established in Lebanon, Iraq, Tunisia, and Libya. As a deputy director at the International Center for Transitional Justice, she oversaw educational transitional justice programs and spearheaded the expansion of a Documentation Affinity Group, a global network of action-oriented and grassroots documentation-focused human rights groups. She also held a combination of senior management, fundraising, and grant-making roles at the US Institute of Peace, Iraq Foundation, the Iraqi Embassy, and New York University’s Trauma Studies Program. Karam’s research expertise covers political party development, conflict-mitigation, peacebuilding and transitions, good governance and anti-corruption, natural resource management, transitional justice and human rights, and gender/women’s rights and empowerment. She has published widely on the politics of Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and North Africa, as well as on great power competition and the dynamics of authoritarianism and conflict in the broader Middle East region. She holds a dual Political Science/Religious Studies BA from Brown University and an MSFS degree with an Arab Studies concentration from Georgetown University. Her PhD work at New York University revolved around identity politics in the Western Sahara.

About our Moderator:
Khaled Saffuri is the Founder and President of the National Interest Foundation (NIF), a nonpartisan think tank and nonprofit organization established in April of 2018 which is focused on bettering relationships between the United States and countries across the globe through the promotion of smarter foreign policy. Mr. Saffuri has previously served as a Principal at Meridian Strategies providing international business and government clients with strategic and public affairs consulting services, and also founded and ran one of the United States’ prominent and most active organizations to represent the Middle East and Muslim-Americans. He has worked for many years with Members of Congress and has testified in front of Congressional Committees, advising them on international issues and leading Congressional delegations to the Middle East. Due to his extensive background and expertise, Mr. Saffuri is a regular contributor to a number of important media outlets in the United States and internationally including CNN, CBS, and BBC, and contributes articles and written publications to outlets such as The Washington Post and The American Conservative.

Note: additional speakers may be announced later

The Fall of Assad and the Future of Syria
2024-12-17 18:00 - 19:30 | National Interest Foundation, 2000 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 7000, Washington, DC, 20006, United States
The National Interest Foundation invites you to attend a panel discussion event regarding the latest developments in Syria after the ousting of Assad and what to expect next.

Speakers:
Dr. Tarek Abou Ghazala, American Coalition for Syria
Radwan Ziadeh, Damascus Center for Human Rights Studies
Raghid Okla, Syrian-American Activist
Bassam Barabandi, People Demand Change

Moderator:
Khaled Saffuri, National Interest Foundation

Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. You will receive a confirmation email if you have been successfully added to our event attendee list upon registration. Those who do not receive a confirmation email will not be admitted. Also, please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry to those who fail to do so.

*A light dinner will be served at the event.

Parking: Free parking will be available around the building. We will inform building management about the event and they will not tow. If you wish to take the metro, it is a 7-minute walk from both the Tysons and Greensboro stations.

About our Speakers:
Dr. Tarek Abou Ghazala is an Interventional Cardiologist practicing in Northern Virginia. He established the Virginia Cardiovascular Group and served as the President of the Medical Society of Northern Virginia and the Chairman of Medicine and Director of Cardiovascular Services then elected Chief of Staff at Stonesprings Hospital in Aldie Virginia. He was then elected Director at the Medical Society of Virginia in 2019. Dr. Abou Ghazala is an active political advocate of the Syrian uprising, currently serving as the President of Kayla’s List PAC, a Political Action Committee aiming to promote congressional candidates that support freedom, social & economic justice, and dignity for people across the globe. Previously, Dr. Abou Ghazala co-founded the American Coalition for Syria, encompassing 10 organisations advocating for freedom and democracy for the Syrian people. He also sits on the Board of Directors of the Syrian American Medical Society, Washington DC Chapter, and is a signatory to the 10 Principles for Freedom and Democracy for Syria, put forth by active Syrian Americans. He appeared on many media outlets in person and by writing. Dr. Abou Ghazala graduated from the Faculty of Medicine at the Damascus University in 1991. He later continued his training in the United States completing his residency in Internal Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio and his fellowship in Cardiordivascular Diseases at the University of Missouri Hospital and Clinics in Columbia, Missouri.

Radwan Ziadeh is a Senior Fellow at the Arab Center Washington DC, where he deals chiefly with issues pertaining to Syria. He has been documenting the ongoing human rights violations since the onset of the Syrian crisis and has testified before the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva and the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission in the US Congress. He served as a visiting fellow and scholar at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, the Institute for Middle East Studies of the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University, the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies at Georgetown University, the Center for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia University, Chatham House, the Carr Center for Human Rights at Harvard University, and the United States Institute of Peace. He was also a Prins Global Fellow at the Hagop Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies at New York University and a Reagan–Fascell Fellow at the National Endowment for Democracy. Dr. Ziadeh is the author of more than 20 books in English and Arabic including Power and Policy in Syria: Intelligence Services, Foreign Relations and Democracy in the Modern Middle East (2010), and Syria’s Role in a Changing Middle East: The Syrian-Israeli Peace Talks (2016). He holds a DDS in Dentistry from Damascus University, a Diploma in International Human Rights Law from American University, an MA in Democracy and Governance from Georgetown University, and a Diploma in Peace Negotiations and Conflict Studies from the University of Cyprus. Ziadeh is also the founder and director of the Damascus Center for Human Rights Studies in Syria (www.dchrs.org); and co-founder and executive director of the Syrian Center for Political and Strategic Studies in Washington, D.C. (www.scpss.org).

Raghid Okla is a Syrian-American activist and opinion’s columnist for various media outlets.

Bassam Barabandi is Co-Founder of People Demand Change and was a Non-Resident Fellow at the Newlines Institute. Born in Damascus City with familial ties to Deir Azzour Province, Syria, Bassam Barabandi worked in the diplomatic civil service of the Syrian Government for 14 years before leaving the Syrian Embassy in Washington DC in the summer of 2013 and co-founding People Demand Change Inc. Previously as a diplomat, Mr. Barabandi had numerous postings, including being the first secretary at the Embassy of Syria in Washington DC, the head of political affairs at the Syrian Embassy in Beijing, China, and a post at the Syrian Government’s UN mission in New York City. Through his time as a diplomat, Mr. Barabandi also worked with the World Bank, the US Treasury Department and as a liaison to the US Congress. Since the outbreak of the Syrian revolution in 2011, Mr. Barabandi was instrumental in providing unhindered access to consular services for all Syrians regardless of political or ideological affiliation, including access to many Syrians who had no other avenue through which to acquire passport extensions and other necessary legal documents. Mr. Barabandi has a BA in political science and public administration from the American University of Beirut and speaks fluent Arabic and English. Since co-founding PDC, Mr. Barabandi has written extensively on the Syrian conflict and has been published in Foreign affairs, Foreign policy, and was qouted by all main newspaper and reserch on Syria & has conducted guest interviews to provide his analysis for BBC, Al-Jazeera, Al-Arabiya, Sky News, France24 and other media outlets.

About our Moderator:
Khaled Saffuri is the Founder and President of the National Interest Foundation (NIF), a nonpartisan think tank and nonprofit organization established in April of 2018 which is focused on bettering relationships between the United States and countries across the globe through the promotion of smarter foreign policy. Mr. Saffuri has previously served as a Principal at Meridian Strategies providing international business and government clients with strategic and public affairs consulting services, and also founded and ran one of the United States’ prominent and most active organizations to represent the Middle East and Muslim-Americans. He has worked for many years with Members of Congress and has testified in front of Congressional Committees, advising them on international issues and leading Congressional delegations to the Middle East. Due to his extensive background and expertise, Mr. Saffuri is a regular contributor to a number of important media outlets in the United States and internationally including CNN, CBS, and BBC, and contributes articles and written publications to outlets such as The Washington Post and The American Conservative.

Note: additional speakers may be announced later

Gaza Ceasefire Deal and the Prospects of Success
2025-01-23 11:00 - 12:30 | Zoom Meeting
The National Interest Foundation invites you to attend a Zoom event regarding the Gaza ceasefire agreement that was recently reached and the prospects of successful implementation moving forward.

Speakers:
Dr. Annelle Sheline, Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft
Khaled Elgindy, Visiting Scholar at Georgetown University’s Center for Contemporary Arab Studies
Sam Husseini, Independent Journalist

Moderator:
Khaled Saffuri, National Interest Foundation

Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. You will receive a confirmation email if you have been successfully added to our event attendee list upon registration. Those who do not receive a confirmation email will not be admitted. Also, please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry to those who fail to do so.

About our Speakers:
Dr. Annelle Sheline is a research fellow in the Middle East program at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. She previously served as a Foreign Affairs Officer at the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor’s Office of Near Eastern Affairs (DRL/NEA), before resigning in March 2024 in protest over the Biden administration’s Gaza policy. She is a senior non-resident fellow at the Arab Center of Washington DC and a non-resident fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. She holds a PhD in political science from George Washington University. She has written for Foreign Affairs, The Washington Post, The Nation, Foreign Policy, and The New Republic, and has appeared on the BBC, CNN, CBS, and Al Jazeera.

Khaled Elgindy is a Middle East analyst and author as well as an adjunct professor in Arab Studies at Georgetown University. He is the author of the 2019 book, Blind Spot: America and the Palestinians, from Balfour to Trump (Brookings Institution Press). Elgindy previously served as director of the Middle East Institute’s Program on Palestine and Palestinian-Israeli Affairs from Jan. 2020 until Jan. 2025. From 2010 through 2018, he served as a resident scholar in the Foreign Policy program at the Brookings Institution. Prior to arriving at Brookings, he served as an adviser to the Palestinian leadership in Ramallah on permanent status negotiations with Israel from 2004 to 2009, and was a key participant in the Annapolis negotiations of 2007-08.

Sam Husseini is an independent journalist now writing at husseini.substack.com. Since October 2023, his work has focused on Israel’s slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza, especially highlighting the possibility of a country invoking the Genocide Convention at the International Court of Justice, which South Africa did on December 29, 2023, leading to oral arguments. In addition to Palestine, his work has focused on Iraq (in particular the draconian sanctions during the 1990s and falsifications about WMDs used as a pretext for the 2003 invasion), international law, US government refusing to acknowledge Israel’s nuclear weapons arsenal, Covid origins, political and media disinformation, and issues of free speech. He has scrutinized and questioned officials, most recently at the State Department. His questioning of a Saudi official during the Arab uprisings in 2011 led to him being suspended from the Press Club (later overturned by the ethics committee). He is also senior analyst at the Institute for Public Accuracy, and the founder of VotePact, which advocates people from the left and right voting in pairs against the establishment duopoly.

About our Moderator:
Khaled Saffuri is the Founder and President of the National Interest Foundation (NIF), a nonpartisan think tank and nonprofit organization established in April of 2018 which is focused on bettering relationships between the United States and countries across the globe through the promotion of smarter foreign policy. Mr. Saffuri has previously served as a Principal at Meridian Strategies providing international business and government clients with strategic and public affairs consulting services, and also founded and ran one of the United States’ prominent and most active organizations to represent the Middle East and Muslim-Americans. He has worked for many years with Members of Congress and has testified in front of Congressional Committees, advising them on international issues and leading Congressional delegations to the Middle East. Due to his extensive background and expertise, Mr. Saffuri is a regular contributor to a number of important media outlets in the United States and internationally including CNN, CBS, and BBC, and contributes articles and written publications to outlets such as The Washington Post and The American Conservative.

Note: additional speakers may be announced later

Sudan War and Foreign Meddling
2025-11-06 12:00 - 13:30 | National Interest Foundation, 2000 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 7000, Washington, DC, 20006, United States
The National Interest Foundation invites you to attend an event regarding the latest developments surrounding the war in Sudan and the foreign meddling in the conflict.

Speakers:
H.E. Mohamed Abdalla Idris, Ambassador of Sudan to the United States
H.E. Dr. Khidir Haroun Ahmed, Former Ambassador of Sudan to the United States and Associate Professor of Political Science at the International University of Africa
Dr. Mohamed Elsanousi, Executive Director at the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers
Imam Mohamed Magid, Executive Imam at All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS) Center

Moderator:
Khaled Saffuri, President at the National Interest Foundation

Disclaimer: NIF events are by email invitation only and are non-transferable. You will receive a confirmation email if you have been successfully added to our event attendee list upon registration. Those who do not receive a confirmation email will not be admitted. Also, please note that when registering for any of our events, all required fields must be properly filled out. We reserve the right to deny entry to those who fail to do so.

About our Speakers:
H.E. Mohamed Abdalla Idris is the current Ambassador of Sudan to the United States. As a seasoned diplomat, he brings a sophisticated understanding of international relations, particularly in global health cooperation and humanitarian coordination. H.E. Ambassador Idris has played a pivotal role in representing Sudan’s national interests in Washington and beyond, often working to build cross-border partnerships for health and development. He has been instrumental in facilitating collaborations with global institutions, NGOs, and foreign governments to tackle infectious disease, bolster healthcare infrastructure, and equip Sudan for future public health challenges. Fluent in multiple languages and with a background that includes both international diplomacy and public service, H.E. Ambassador Idris combines strategic acumen with a humanitarian orientation. His leadership exemplifies how diplomacy and global health advocacy can work together to support resilient and equitable outcomes in developing nations.

H.E. Dr. Khidir Haroun Ahmed is the Former Ambassador of Sudan to the United States. He currently works as an Associate Professor of Political Science at the International University of Africa. Previously, Dr. Ahmed also served as Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of Sudan to the Republic of India between 2009 and 2011, as Non-resident Ambassador to Nepal, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives between 2009 and 2012, and as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Sudan to Japan between 1999 and 2001, among other roles. He has published several books including The Urban Dwellers – a novel in Arabic, Nostalgic Messages – an autobiography, and Visions on Thoughts, Culture and Literature. He has also published research in areas such as the story of secession of South Sudan, the impact of globalization on Arabic culture, and religious extremism.

Dr. Mohamed Elsanousi is the Executive Director of the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers, a global coalition that connects grassroots peacebuilders with international stakeholders to strengthen collective efforts toward sustainable peace. He also currently serves as a Commissioner on the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom. Previously, Dr. Elsanousi was the Director of Interfaith and Government Relations at the Islamic Society of North America. He served on the U.S. Department of State’s Working Group on Religion and Foreign Policy, where he contributed key recommendations to the Secretary of State and the Federal Advisory Commission to enhance collaboration between the U.S. government, civil society, and religious actors. He also played a leading role in developing the standards and protocols for protecting the rights of Christian, Jewish, and other religious minorities in Muslim-majority contexts—an effort that culminated in the landmark Marrakech Declaration, one of the most recognized Islamic theological documents in support of religious freedom. Dr. Elsanousi is the founder of Faiths4Vaccines, a national campaign mobilizing faith leaders and communities to support the Biden Administration’s goals of equitable vaccine distribution and combating vaccine hesitancy. He is a founding executive committee member of the Shoulder-to-Shoulder Campaign, and was recently appointed to the UN Security Council’s Nongovernmental Organization Working Group. He also co-chairs the Multifaith Advisory Council to the UN Interagency Task Force on Religion and Sustainable Development. In addition to these roles, Dr. Elsanousi serves on the boards of several interfaith and civic organizations, including the Religious Leadership and Civic Engagement Project at New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, the Center for Interreligious Dialogue at the Jewish Theological Seminary, and the Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies. He holds a bachelor’s degree in law, a master’s in law, and a doctorate in law and society from Indiana University’s School of Law.

Imam Mohamed Magid is the Executive Imam at the All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS) Center. He has dedicated over three decades to serving the Muslim community with unwavering commitment, compassion, and vision. Originally from Sudan, Imam Magid comes from a distinguished lineage of Islamic scholarship. He is recognized nationally and internationally for his leadership in promoting human rights, interfaith understanding, and community development. As the Resident Scholar of the ADAMS Center, Imam Magid plays a vital role in guiding the community through education, spiritual growth, and advocacy. His work has empowered individuals and families across generations, and his efforts to foster inclusivity and unity have earned him deep respect across diverse communities. In addition to his community leadership, Imam Magid is an accomplished author and public speaker. His lifelong dedication to service reflects an impeccable record of addressing the evolving needs of the Muslim community while upholding the timeless values of faith, justice, and compassion.

About our Moderator:
Khaled Saffuri is the Founder and President of the National Interest Foundation (NIF), a nonpartisan think tank and nonprofit organization established in April of 2018 which is focused on bettering relationships between the United States and countries across the globe through the promotion of smarter foreign policy. Mr. Saffuri has previously served as a Principal at Meridian Strategies providing international business and government clients with strategic and public affairs consulting services, and also founded and ran one of the United States’ prominent and most active organizations to represent the Middle East and Muslim-Americans. He has worked for many years with Members of Congress and has testified in front of Congressional Committees, advising them on international issues and leading Congressional delegations to the Middle East. Due to his extensive background and expertise, Mr. Saffuri is a regular contributor to a number of important media outlets in the United States and internationally including CNN, CBS, and BBC, and contributes articles and written publications to outlets such as The Washington Post and The American Conservative.

Note: additional speakers may be announced later
