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Middle East Centre
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The Middle East Centre, founded in 1957 at St Antony’s College is the centre for the interdisciplinary study of the modern Middle East in the University of Oxford. Centre Fellows teach and conduct research in the humanities and social sciences with direct reference to the Arab world, Iran, Israel and Turkey, with particular emphasis on the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. However, during our regular Friday seminar series, attracting a wide audience, our distinguished speakers bring topics to light that touch on contemporary issues.
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| # | Episode Title | Description | People | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Women's Rights Research Seminar; Between Conservatism and Pragmatism: Crafting a human rights-based approach to HIV/AIDS related services for women in the Middle East | Dr Kamiar Alaei (Co-president, Institute for International Health and Education), gives a talk for the Middle East Studies Centre. | Kamiar Alaei | 26 Nov 2018 | |
| 2 | Reconsidering Marshall Hodgson | Professor Edmund Burke III (UC Santa Cruz) gives a talk for the Middle East Studies Centre. | Edmund Burke III | 26 Nov 2018 | |
| 3 | Book Launch: Christian Martyrs under Islam | Dr Christian C Sahner (Associate Professor of Islamic History, Faculty of Oriental Studies), talks about his new book, the discussants are Phil Booth (Faculty of Theology) and Professor Julia Bray (Oriental Institute). | Christian C Sahner, Phil Booth, Julia Bray | 26 Nov 2018 | |
| 4 | Preventing Palestine: A Political History from Camp David to Oslo | Dr Seth Anziska (Mohamed S. Farsi-Polonsky Lecturer in Jewish-Muslim Relations, University College London), gives a talk for the Middle East Studies Centre. | Seth Anziska | 26 Nov 2018 | |
| 5 | Women's Rights Research Seminar- Between Love and Lineage: Elopement, Rights and Violence in an Afghan Valley | Dr Naysan Adlparvar (Yale University), gives a talk for the Middle East Studies Centre. | Naysan Adlparvar | 26 Nov 2018 | |
| 6 | Book launch: Khalil Maleki -The Human Face of Iranian Socialism | Dr Homa Katouzian (Iran Heritage Foundation Research Fellow, St Antony's) gives a talk for the Middle East Centre. Chaired by Stephanie Cronin (St Antony's College). | Homa Katouzian | 13 Nov 2018 | |
| 7 | A Rope from the Sky: The Making and Unmaking of the World's Newest State (South Sudan) | Zach Vertin (Princeton University) on a joint event with Sudanese Programme, African Studies Centre and the Centre for International Studies. Chaired by Dr Ahmed Al-Shahi (Sudanese Programme). | Zach Vertin | 13 Nov 2018 | |
| 8 | Lords of the Desert: Britain’s struggle with America to dominate the Middle East | James Barr (King's College London) gives a talk for the Middle East Centre, chaired by Eugene Rogan (St Antony's College). | James Barr | 13 Nov 2018 | |
| 9 | Book Event: On the Arab Jew, Palestine, and Other Displacements | Jacqueline Rose (Birkbeck), Kfir Cohen (Van Leer Jerusalem Institute), Moshe Behar (The University of Manchester), Hakem Al-Rustom (Michigan), Ella Shohat (New York University) discuss at the book event. Chaired by Eugene Rogan (St Antony's College). | Jacqueline Rose, Kfir Cohen, Moshe Behar, Hakem Al-Rustom | 28 Aug 2018 | |
| 10 | Workshop: Memory, Memoirs, and History part 2 | Ella Shohat (New York University) and Avi Shlaim (St Antony's College) give the second of two workshops for the middle east centre. | Ella Shohat, Avi Shlaim | 28 Aug 2018 | |
| 11 | Workshop: Memory, Memoirs, and History Part 1 | Ella Shohat (New York University) and Avi Shlaim (St Antony's College) give the first of two workshops for the middle east centre. | Ella Shohat, Avi Shlaim | 28 Aug 2018 | |
| 12 | The Question of Judeo-Arabic: Nation, Partition, and the Linguistic Imaginary | Ella Shohat (New York University) gives a lecture for the middle east centre, chaired by Yaacov Yadgar (Stanley Lewis Professor of Israel Studies, St Anne's). Comments by Yuval Evri (SOAS). | Ella Shohat, Yaacov Yadgar, Yuval Evri | 28 Aug 2018 | |
| 13 | Annual George Antonius Memorial Lecture - The Tunisian Revolution: Achievements and disillusions | Moncef Marzouki (Former President of the Republic of Tunisia, 2011-2014) gives the annual George Antonius Memorial Lecture. | Moncef Marzouki | 28 Aug 2018 | |
| 14 | Women's Rights Research Seminar: Tale of two Omani women | Deena Al Asfoor (St Catherine's College) gives a talk for the Middle East Centre. Chaired by Nazila Ghanea (Kellogg College). | Deena Al Asfoor, Nazila Ghanea | 28 Aug 2018 | |
| 15 | Arab Media in the New Age | George Hawatmeh (Jordan Radio and Television Corporation) gives a public lecture on Arab media in the new age. Chaired buy Philip Robins (St Antony's College). | George Hawatmeh | 01 Jun 2018 | |
| 16 | Israel and Palestine: Why Britain Should Recognize the Second State | Sir Vincent Fean KCVO, gives a talk for the Middle East Studies seminar series. | Sir Vincent Fean | 03 Apr 2018 | |
| 17 | Religious Freedom in Turkey | Alexandre Toumarkine (INALCO, Paris) talks about religious freedom in Turkey. | Alexandre Toumarkine | 03 Apr 2018 | |
| 18 | The challenges of healthcare in Gaza | Richard Guy (Consultant Surgeon), Omar Abdel-Mannan (Paediatrician), and Debbie Harrington (Consultant Obstetrician) talk about the challenges of healthcare in Gaza. | Richard Guy, Omar Abdel-Mannan, Debbie Harrington | 03 Apr 2018 | |
| 19 | Gaza: Martyrdom and Betrayal | Norman G Finkelstein gives a talk for the Middle East Studies seminar series. | Norman Finkelstein | 03 Apr 2018 | |
| 20 | Women's Rights Research Seminar: Women and the Struggle for Democracy in Iran | Mariam Memarsadeghi (Tavaana) gives a talk for the Middle East Centre seminar series. | Mariam Memarsadeghi | 03 Apr 2018 | |
| 21 | De Gaulle in Beirut- The Chehab Experiment, 1958-1964 | Anne Sa'adah (Dartmouth College) gives a talk for the Middle East Centre Seminar series. | Anne Sa'adah | 03 Apr 2018 | |
| 22 | Women's Rights Research Seminar- A Global History of the Struggle for Women’s Rights: The Women’s Movement in Istanbul in the Context of International Feminism in the Early 20th Century | Dr Elife Bicer-Deveci, postdoctoral fellow of Swiss National Science Foundation and academic visitor at the Middle East Centre, St. Antony’s College, gives a talk for the Middle East Centre seminar series. | Elife Bicer-Deveci | 03 Apr 2018 | |
| 23 | Creative Commons | The Gulf Crisis | Madawi al-Rasheed (LSE) and Courtney Freer (LSE), give a talk for the Middle East Centre Seminar Series at St Anthony's College Oxford, chaired by Toby Matthiesen (St Anthony's College). | Madawi al-Rasheed, Courtney Freer, Toby Matthiesen | 29 Jan 2018 |
| 24 | War crimes, crimes against humanity and territorial fragmentation: are peace and reconstruction possible in Syria? | Ziad Majed discusses his research on the political situation in Syria, which is the focus of his latest publication. | Dr Ziad Majed | 22 Dec 2017 | |
| 25 | A View of Globalisation from its Margin: Searching for Karate’s Budo Roots in Contemporary Egypt | Dr Hatsuki Aishima (National Museum of Ethnology, Osaka) gives a talk for the Middle East Studies Centre seminar series. | Hatsuki Aishima | 11 Dec 2017 | |
| 26 | Are Algerian politics exhausted? | Dr Hugh Roberts gives a talk for the middle east studies centre seminar series. | Hugh Roberts | 08 Dec 2017 | |
| 27 | What challenges does Israel face in the world today? | Noa Landau (Editor-in-Chief at Haaretz English Edition) gives a talk for the middle east studies centre seminar series. | Noa Landau | 08 Dec 2017 | |
| 28 | Governing Divided Egypt | Professor Robert Springborg (Italian Institute of International Affairs, Rome), gives a talk for the Middle East Centre seminar series. | Robert Springborg | 17 Nov 2017 | |
| 29 | WRRS: Dancing with Words: Subverting the Master Narrative in Saudi Women’s Literature | Dr Basma Al Mutlaq (School of Oriental and African Studies) gives a talk for the Middle East Centre seminar series called Women's Rights Research Seminars. | Basma Al Mutlaq | 13 Nov 2017 | |
| 30 | Adventures in Field-Building: On the History of Area Studies/Middle East Studies in the United States | Zachary Lockman has taught modern Middle Eastern history at New York University since 1995. His most recent book is Field Notes: The Making of Middle East Studies in the United States (2016). | Zachary Lockman | 11 Jul 2017 | |
| 31 | George Antonius Memorial Lecture: The Iraq Invasion and Aftermath: Lessons for Arab World Reform | Jeremy Greenstock is the Chairman of the strategic advisory company, Gatehouse Advisory Partners, established in September 2010, and Chairman of Lambert Energy Advisory, the oil and gas specialists, since January 2012. | Sir Jeremy Greenstock | 11 Jul 2017 | |
| 32 | Book Launch: Islam: The Essentials | Professor Tariq Ramadan (St Antony's College) launches his new book; Islam: The Essentials on May 9th 2017. | Tariq Ramadan | 12 Jun 2017 | |
| 33 | The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism: Race and the Politics of Dislocation | Dr Reza Zia-Ebrahimi (King's College London) gives a lecture on Iranian nationalis, this is a joint event with the Oxford University Iranian Society. | Reza Zia-Ebrahimi | 30 May 2017 | |
| 34 | Panel Discussion: Prospects of Iraqi Kurdistan's Independence Amid Regional Turbulences | Hemin Hawrami (Senior Adviser to President Masoud Barzani) and Ceng Sagnic (Moshe Dayan Centre, Israel), discuss the prospect of Kurdistan independence. Chaired by Eugene Rogan (St Antony’s College). | Hemin Hawrami, Ceng Sagnic, Eugene Rogan, Ari Aziz Mamshae | 16 May 2017 | |
| 35 | Writing an Arab Officer into the 1948 War for Palestine | Professor Laila Parsons (McGill University), gives a talk for the Middle East seminar series. Chaired by Eugene Rogan (St Antony's College, Oxford). | Laila Parsons, Eugene Rogan | 09 May 2017 | |
| 36 | Tunisia | Rory McCarthy (Magdalen College, Oxford) and Fabio Merone (Ghent University) give a talk for the Middle East Centre seminar series. Chaired by Michael Willis (St Antony's College). | Rory McCarthy, Fabio Merone, Michael Willis | 27 Mar 2017 | |
| 37 | Free Expression in the Gulf | Maryam al-Khawaja and Nicholas McGeehan (Middle East Researcher, Human Rights Watch) give a seminar for the MIddle East Centre. The discussant is Toby Matthiesen (St Antony's College). Chaired bt Timothy Garton Ash (St Antony's College). | Maryam al-Khawaja, Nicholas McGeehan, Toby Matthiesen, Timothy Garton Ash | 27 Mar 2017 | |
| 38 | Jews, Muslims, and Law in Nineteenth-Century Morocco | Jessica Maya Marglin (University of Southern California) gives a talk for the Middle East Centre on 2nd March 2017. | Jessica Maya Marglin | 10 Mar 2017 | |
| 39 | Creative Commons | Islam in Europe | Part of the Middle East Centre Seminar Series, with Nilüfer Göle, Tariq Modood and Tariq Ramadan (chair). Held on 17th February 2017. | Nilüfer Göle, Tariq Modood, Tariq Ramadan | 28 Feb 2017 |
| 40 | The Conflict in Libya | Lydia Sizer (Libya Analyst MENAS), Mary Fitzgerald (Journalist and Author) and John Hamilton (Cross Border Information) discuss the conflict in Libya on 27th January 2017. | Lydia Sizer, Mary Fitzgerald, John Hamilton | 01 Feb 2017 | |
| 41 | The Syrian Conflict | Raphael Lefevre (New College, Oxford) and Kevin Mazur (Nuffield College, Oxford) discuss the ongoing Syrian conflict on 20th January 2017. | Raphael Lefevre, Kevin Mazur | 01 Feb 2017 | |
| 42 | Book launch: Public Culture and Islam in Modern Egypt | Roundtable Discussion and Launch of Public Culture and Islam in Modern Egypt by Hatsuki Aishima (National Museum of Ethnology, Osaka) with Morgan Clarke (University of Oxford). The event will be chaired by Laurent Mignon (University of Oxford). | Hatsuki Aishima | 09 Jan 2017 | |
| 43 | Creative Commons | Contemporary Challenges for Political Islam | Lecture delivered by Professor Tariq Ramadan (Professor of Contemporary Islamic Studies, Middle East Centre) on 4th March 2016 at the Middle East Centre. | Tariq Ramadan | 07 Mar 2016 |
| 44 | How Syria was destroyed: The dynamics of a civil war | Seminar on the civil war in Syria, with Dr Gilles Dorronsoro (Panthéon-Sorbonne University), Arthur Quesnay (Panthéon-Sorbonne University), Adam Baczko (Panthéon-Sorbonne University) on Monday 22nd February 2016 at the Middle East Centre. | Gilles Dorronsoro, Arthur Quesnay, Adam Baczko | 04 Mar 2016 | |
| 45 | Women and the 19th Century Emergence of the Arabic Novel | Seminar presented by Professor Marilyn Booth at the Middle East Centre on 26th February 2016. | Marilyn Booth | 04 Mar 2016 | |
| 46 | Britain and Palestine: Balfour to Blair | Lecture presented by Professor Avi Shlaim (Middle East Centre) and Richard Makepeace (Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies) at the Middle East Centre, St Antony's College on 19th February 2016. | Avi Shlaim, Richard Makepeace | 22 Feb 2016 | |
| 47 | Creative Commons | The Political Economy of Violence in the Middle East: What Questions Should the Social Scientist Ask? | Seminar by Dr Adeel Malik (Globe Fellow, Islamic Centre Lecturer in the Economies of Muslim Societies) at the Middle East Centre, 12th February 2016. | Adeel Malik | 19 Feb 2016 |
| 48 | Creative Commons | Activism and Accountability in Contemporary Lebanon: A Quiet Revolt? | Seminar by Habib Battah (Research fellow at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism) at The Middle East Centre, St Antony's College, 10th February 2016. | Habib Battah | 15 Feb 2016 |
| 49 | Creative Commons | The Limits of Refusal: Israel, Lebanon, and the Shadow of 1982 | Lecture given by Dr Seth Anziska (Department of Hebrew and Jewish Studies, UCL) at the Middle East Centre, St Antony's College, 9th February 2016. This event was co-sponsored by the MEC and the School of Interdisciplinary Area Studies. | Seth Anziska | 10 Feb 2016 |
| 50 | Creative Commons | Accounts of madrassahs post-9/11: Bearings of Recent History | Lecture given by Dr Mohammad Talib (Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies) on "Accounts of madrassahs post-9/11: Bearings of Recent History" at St Antony's College Middle East Centre on 29th January 2016. | Mohammad Talib | 01 Feb 2016 |
| 51 | Creative Commons | Beyond Uprising: Inside Egypt's Unfinished Revolution | Lecture given by Dr HA Hellyer on "Beyond Uprising: Inside Egypt's Unfinished Revolution" at Middle East Centre, St Antony's College on 25th January 2016. | HA Hellyer | 01 Feb 2016 |
| 52 | Creative Commons | The Automobile Club of Egypt | A Conversation with Alaa Al Aswany with Eugene Rogan at the Middle East Centre, St Antony's College on 19th January 2016. | Alaa Al Aswany, Eugene Rogan | 01 Feb 2016 |
| 53 | Creative Commons | The Gulf and the Arabian Peninsula in the Global Cold War | Dr Toby Matthiesen, Senior Research Fellow in International Relations of the Middle East, Middle East Centre, gives lecture at Middle East Centre, St Antony's College on 22nd January 2016. | Toby Matthiesen | 26 Jan 2016 |
| 54 | Creative Commons | The Islamic State, the Kurdistan Region, and the Future of Iraq | Professor Gareth Stansfield (University of Exeter) gives a talk on Iraq, ISIS, and the Kurdish region as part ofte Middle East Centre Seminar series. | Gareth Stansfield | 11 Dec 2015 |
| 55 | Is Religion Really Violent? | Lecture given by Karen Armstrong (author of 'Fields of Blood: Religion and the History of Violence') at St Antony's Middle East Centre on 13th November 2015. | Karen Armstrong | 03 Dec 2015 | |
| 56 | The creation of governments-in-waiting: the Arab Uprisings and legitimacy in the international system | Lecture given at St Antony's Middle East Centre on Friday 20th November 2015 by Dr Glen Rangwala (Trinity College, University of Cambridge). | Glen Rangwala | 24 Nov 2015 | |
| 57 | Speaking Truth to Power: The BBC and the Middle East | Lecture given at St Antony's Middle East Centre on Tuesday 17th November 2015 by Roger Hardy (former Middle East and Islamic affairs analyst with the BBC World Service). | Roger Hardy | 24 Nov 2015 | |
| 58 | Turkey’s Kurdish Predicament | Lecture given at St. Antony’s Middle East Centre on Wednesday 28th October 2015, with Cengiz Candar. | Cengiz Candar | 20 Nov 2015 | |
| 59 | ISIS: Between Fragmentation and Unity | Lecture given at St Antony’s Middle East Centre on Friday 6th November 2015, with Dr Alia Brahimi. | Alia Brahimi | 20 Nov 2015 | |
| 60 | Creative Commons | From periphery to IRCAM: how Morocco's Berbers have come in from the cold | Dr. Michael Peyron (Grenoble University, Retired) gives a talk for the Middle East Studies Centre. Please note; the recoridng is cut short due to an equipment failure. | Michael Peyron | 11 Aug 2015 |
| 61 | Creative Commons | “Bled ma-fihash Yahud ma-fihash Ta'arikh" Researching and Narrating Morocco's Jewish Community | Dr Orit Ouaknine-Yekutieli (Ben Gurion University and Academic Visitor at St Antony’s gives a talk for the Middle East Studies Centre. | Orit Ouaknine-Yekutieli | 11 Aug 2015 |
| 62 | Creative Commons | The Water Crisis in Yemen: Managing Extreme Water Scarcity in the Middle East. Book Launch | Christopher Ward (University of Exeter) gives a talk for the Asian Studies Centre. | Christopher Ward | 11 Aug 2015 |
| 63 | Creative Commons | Which way forward? | A talk as part of the Middle East Centre Friday Seminar Series | Afif Safieh | 27 Mar 2015 |
| 64 | Creative Commons | Israel - Palestine: Can Europe Save the Two-State Idea | A talk as part of the Middle East Centre Friday Seminar Series | Alon Liel | 27 Mar 2015 |
| 65 | Creative Commons | How European Governments subcontract policy on Israel/Palestine to parliamentarians,civil society and businesses | A talk as part of the Middle East Centre Friday Seminar Series | Phyllis Starkey | 27 Mar 2015 |
| 66 | Creative Commons | Title: Why Egypt’s 2011 Uprising Has Failed to deliver on its Promise? | A talk given as part of the Middle East Centre Friday Seminar Series | Tarek Osman | 27 Mar 2015 |