ANU represented at Melbourne Writers Festival

Professor Amin Saikal, Director of the Centre of Arab and Islamic Studies (the Middle East and Central Asia) is speaking at the Melbourne Writers Festival on 3 September. 

He will be joined by Mona Eltahawy and Joseph Braude and will explain the circumstances surrounding the uprisings in the Middle East in 2011. A week before Egypt's historic post-Mubarak election, with the Middle East in an unprecedented state of flux, this discussion will look at the events of the past year. 

Professor Saikal is considered an expert in the Middle East and has authored many works including The Rise and Fall of the Shah: Iran - from autocracy to religious rule; Modern Afghanistan: A History of Struggle and Survival; Islam and the West: Conflict or Co-operation?; (co-editor) Democratization in the Middle East: Experiences, Struggles, Challenges; The Rise and Fall of the Shah; and (editor), The Afghanistan Conflict: Australia's Role. He was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for service to the international community and to education, and as an author and adviser.

The discussion will take place at 2:30pm. For further information visit the Melbourne Writers Festival website.