The Gulf and Arabian Peninsula Studies Unit is a specialized unit in the humanities and social sciences, focusing on both theoretical and applied research. It aims to produce objective knowledge about the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula region and its societies, address topics that are connected to the region, and track regional and international networks of relationships in this area. It organizes an annual Gulf Studies Forum, providing an open and academic environment for scholars and decision-makers to discuss the most pressing issues in the region through a research-driven lens informed by the region’s landscape and the needs of its societies. The unit also welcomes research papers and studies, in addition to hosting seminars and discussion panels that address relevant issues from academic and intellectual perspectives.

Members of the Unit

	Haider Saeed \| Unit Director Editor-in-Chief of Siyasat Arabiya, published by the ACRPS. He holds a PhD in Linguistics from Baghdad’s Al Mustansiriya University (2001). His research interests focus on Iraq, divided societies, and critical analysis of political discourse. He published a book with the ACRPS titled Arab Shiites: Identity and Citizenship (2019), as well as other publications such as The Politics of the Symbol and the End to National Culture of Iraq (2009) and The Status of Social Sciences in Iraqi Universities (2008). He contributed three chapters to the ACRPS book The Islamic State Organization, 'ISIS' (2018), and supervised the completion of a study on "Islamic Civil Society in Iraq" (2010) with a research team. He contributed to writing the "National Report on Human Development in Iraq" for the years 2009 and 2014.
	Said al-Hashimi \| Visiting Researcher PhD researcher at the Center for Arab Studies of the University of Houston. He holds a master’s in Strategic Studies from the University of Aberdeen, (2006) and a bachelor's in Political Science and Economics from Kuwait University (1999). He is a human rights and social justice activist whose research interests include anti-colonialism, anti-imperialism, and revolution and resistance in Oman and the Arabian Peninsula. His publications include Oman: The People and the State (2024); Oman: Man and Power, An Explanatory Introduction to the Contemporary Omani Political Scene (2014); The Omani Spring: Significance and Context (2013). He has also published novels.
	Abdulrahman Alebrahim \| Researcher Assistant Professor in the Department of History at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies. He earned his PhD from the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter (2017). He specializes in the modern history of the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula and related studies, with a special focus on the northern regions – Kuwait, Najd, and Al-Zubayr – examining the historical sources of the sheikhdoms in the 19th and 20th centuries through a critical lens. His research interests include the marginalized in the history of the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula including the history of slavery, cultural and religious thought history, and social history. He has published many research papers, including “Kuwait’s Politics Before Independence” (2019); “The Neglected Sheikhdom at the Frontier of Empires: An Introduction to al-Zubayr” (2020); and “History Is Not Written Once” (2022).
	Abdulrahman Albaker\| Collaborating Researcher Faculty member in the College of Law at Qatar University. He holds a master’s in history from the School of Social Sciences and Humanities at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies. He worked as a researcher in the Committee for Recording National History in Qatar. His research interests focus on the legal and social history of the Arab Gulf states, in addition to collecting and classifying local oral memory.
	Alanoud Al-Khalifa\| Researcher ACRPS Researcher with a PhD in Gulf Studies from Qatar University. In 2023, she was honoured as one of the distinguished researchers at Qatar University in recognition of her academic achievements and research contributions. Her research aims to clarify the vital role played by museums in creating and shaping narratives related to national identity and belonging in Gulf societies, to examine shifts related to national identities and the new contexts that affect them at the local, regional, and international levels, and to explore political and economic issues in the region and their impact on the societal environment.
	Yara Nassar \| Unit Rapporteur ACRPS Researcher and Editorial Secretary of Al-Muntaqa. She holds a master’s in Political Science and International Relations from the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies and a bachelor’s in International Relations from Qatar University. Her research interests focus on the intersection of Palestinian Studies and Gulf Studies through examining the history of Palestinian political movements and the formation of the Palestinian diaspora in Arab Gulf countries and exploring Palestinian-Gulf relations.

Members of the Advisory Board

	Abdullah Baabood Omani Researcher. He holds the Chair of the State of Qatar for Islamic Area Studies at Waseda University, Tokyo. He has previously served as Director of the Gulf Studies Center at Qatar University and as Director of the University of Cambridge Gulf Research Centre. He holds a PhD in International Political Economy from the same university and a master’s in Business Administration and International Relations. His research interests include international relations and international political economy, especially Gulf economic, social, and political developments and foreign relations. He has taught and conducted research at several universities and institutes in Europe and has published books, articles, and research papers in his field.
	Alanoud Alsharekh Director of Ibtkar Strategic Consultancy and Associate Fellow in the Chatham House MENA Program and the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. She holds a PhD and a master’s from SOAS and a bachelor’s from King’s College London. She held senior research and teaching positions at Kuwait University, Gulf University for Science and Technology, and Arab Open University. She was a Visiting Lecturer at Uppsala University, a Fulbright Scholar on Women and Islam at Whittier College, a Senior Fellow at the International Institute of Strategic Studies, and a Consultant Researcher at the Supreme Council of Development and Planning in Kuwait. Her publications include Tribalism and Political Power in the Gulf (2022); Popular Culture and Political Identity in the Arab Gulf States (2008); The Gulf Family: Kinship Policies and Modernity (2007).
	Amal Ghazal Professor of History and Dean of the School of Social Sciences and Humanities at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies. She received her BA from the American University of Beirut and her MA and PhD in History from the University of Alberta. She was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Toronto and a faculty member at Dalhousie University in Halifax, and at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver where she also directed the Centre for Comparative Muslim Studies. She has received several grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Gerda Henkel Foundation Research Scholarship, and the Institut d’Etudes Avancées de Nantes Fellowship. She specializes in modern Arab intellectual history and has published on many topics including Arab nationalism, conservative religious thought, Islamist reform, Ibadism, and slavery, encompassing a wide geography from the Arabian Peninsula to East Africa, from the Levant to North Africa.
	Baqer Al Najjar Member of the Advisory Board of the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula Studies Unit at the ACRPS. He holds a PhD in Sociology from Durham University, United Kingdom (1983), a postgraduate diploma from Alexandria University (1978), and a BA from Kuwait University (1976). He has worked as a visiting professor at Kuwait University, Qatar University, and at the University of Exeter’s Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, and as a visiting researcher at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Harvard University. He was a member of the Bahraini Shura Council (2000-2002) and has held several other positions. His published works include Contemporary Religious Movements in the Arabian Gulf (2019); The Inhibited Modernity in the Arabian Gulf (2018); and The Stubborn Democracy in the Arabian Gulf (2008), among others.
	Faisal Abu Sulaib Professor of Political Science at the College of Social Sciences of Kuwait University. He received a PhD in Political Science from Manchester University in 2009. He previously served as the Director of the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula Studies Center and the Head of the American Studies Unit at the College of Social Sciences of Kuwait University. He has published studies and books on US foreign policy in the Gulf.
	Kaltham Al-Ghanem Professor of Sociology in the Department of Social Sciences at Qatar University and Director of the Social and Economic Survey Research Institute (SESRI). She has conducted research on social change, family, identity, urbanization, human development, cultural phenomena, political participation, women and youth studies, attitudes and values, and kinship and social problems. She has received numerous grants to conduct research related to social issues and has led many research projects funded by various national and international institutions. She has published many academic articles and books. She is a member of the independent team that prepared the second international Sustainable Development Report. She is a member of the editorial board of three scientific journals.
	Khalid Almezaini Associate Professor of Political Science and International Relations at Zayed University. He holds a PhD from the University of Exeter, UK (2009). He has previously taught at several universities, including the University of Cambridge, the University of Exeter, the University of Edinburgh, Qatar University, and Sciences Po in Paris. He was a visiting researcher at the London School of Economics and Political Science. His teaching and research interests include political science and international relations, with a focus on the Middle East and particularly the Gulf region. Additionally, he is interested in Gulf politics, foreign policy, foreign aid, and development in the Middle East.
	Khalid bin Ghanim Al-Ali Qatari researcher with a master’s in Modern History from the Doha Institute (2023). He has been an elected member of the Shura Council of Qatar since 2021. He holds a bachelor’s and master’s in Atmospheric Sciences from Saint Louis University (1991) and has professionally specialized in this field. He also held senior leadership positions related to this field in the Ministries of Transport, Municipality, and Agriculture (1986-2000). He has served as Secretary-General of the Supreme Council for Environment and Natural Reserves (2000-2008) and Director of the Personal Representative’s Office of the Emir of the State of Qatar (2009-2018) and has held various responsibilities within the Qatari Ministry of Culture. Among his publications are “Qatari Camels” and “The Campaign of Faisal bin Turki on Qatar Between British Documents and Local Narratives”. He has several other works in progress related to the political history of Qatar.
	Muhammad Al-Musfir Retired professor at Qatar University. He obtained his PhD in Political Science from the State University of New York in 1984. He previously served in the diplomatic corps of the State of Qatar. He has published many research papers in Arabic journals as well as books, most recently International Organizations: History, Politics, Economics, Law, and Administration (2021) and Gulf-Gulf Relations: The Problem of Strategic Vacuum and Partition, 1971-2018 (2018). He is a frequent contributor to the Qatari and Arab press.
	Saad Albazei Saudi researcher, critic, and translator, and a member of the Advisory Board of the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula Studies Unit at the ACRPS. He holds a PhD in Anglo-American Literature. He has served as the editor-in-chief of the second edition of the Encyclopedia of the Arab World and as a member of the Saudi Shura Council, as well as a member of the International Fund for the Support of Culture at UNESCO. He also chaired the Booker Prize committee in 2014. He has received several awards, including the Sultan Qaboos Prize for Literary Criticism (2017) and the Doha Arabic Book Award (2024). His works include The Crises of Culture; Criticism and Resistance; The Culture of the Desert: Studies in Contemporary Arabian Literature; The Jewish Component in Western Civilization; and Encounters with Power: The Anxiety of Hegemony Across Cultures.
	Talal Abdulla Al-Emadi Dean and founding faculty member of the College of Law at Qatar University and founder of Qatar University Press. He is also a judge in the Qatar International Court (QICDRC). He holds a doctorate in Law (DPhil) from the University of Oxford and a master’s in law (LLM) from Harvard University, where he also worked as Visiting Scholar. He was among the first QU Law graduating class to receive the bachelor’s in law (LLB) after which he was the first TA who joined the then Department of Law. He is also an alumnus of the Georgetown Leadership Seminar (Washington DC) and the Cornell University Public Sector Leadership Program, in the first Arabic cohort via the UN ESCWA. He was seconded from Qatar University to the Amiri Diwan as a legal counselor for the Minister of State for Council of Ministers Affairs. He is also a registered lawyer in the Qatari Bar. He has published Joint Venture Agreements in the Qatari Gas Industry: Theoretical and Empirical Analysis (2019).

	Haider Saeed \| Unit Director Editor-in-Chief of Siyasat Arabiya, published by the ACRPS. He holds a PhD in Linguistics from Baghdad’s Al Mustansiriya University (2001). His research interests focus on Iraq, divided societies, and critical analysis of political discourse. He published a book with the ACRPS titled Arab Shiites: Identity and Citizenship (2019), as well as other publications such as The Politics of the Symbol and the End to National Culture of Iraq (2009) and The Status of Social Sciences in Iraqi Universities (2008). He contributed three chapters to the ACRPS book The Islamic State Organization, 'ISIS' (2018), and supervised the completion of a study on "Islamic Civil Society in Iraq" (2010) with a research team. He contributed to writing the "National Report on Human Development in Iraq" for the years 2009 and 2014.
	Said al-Hashimi \| Visiting Researcher PhD researcher at the Center for Arab Studies of the University of Houston. He holds a master’s in Strategic Studies from the University of Aberdeen, (2006) and a bachelor's in Political Science and Economics from Kuwait University (1999). He is a human rights and social justice activist whose research interests include anti-colonialism, anti-imperialism, and revolution and resistance in Oman and the Arabian Peninsula. His publications include Oman: The People and the State (2024); Oman: Man and Power, An Explanatory Introduction to the Contemporary Omani Political Scene (2014); The Omani Spring: Significance and Context (2013). He has also published novels.
	Abdulrahman Alebrahim \| Researcher Assistant Professor in the Department of History at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies. He earned his PhD from the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter (2017). He specializes in the modern history of the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula and related studies, with a special focus on the northern regions – Kuwait, Najd, and Al-Zubayr – examining the historical sources of the sheikhdoms in the 19th and 20th centuries through a critical lens. His research interests include the marginalized in the history of the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula including the history of slavery, cultural and religious thought history, and social history. He has published many research papers, including “Kuwait’s Politics Before Independence” (2019); “The Neglected Sheikhdom at the Frontier of Empires: An Introduction to al-Zubayr” (2020); and “History Is Not Written Once” (2022).
	Abdulrahman Albaker\| Collaborating Researcher Faculty member in the College of Law at Qatar University. He holds a master’s in history from the School of Social Sciences and Humanities at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies. He worked as a researcher in the Committee for Recording National History in Qatar. His research interests focus on the legal and social history of the Arab Gulf states, in addition to collecting and classifying local oral memory.
	Alanoud Al-Khalifa\| Researcher ACRPS Researcher with a PhD in Gulf Studies from Qatar University. In 2023, she was honoured as one of the distinguished researchers at Qatar University in recognition of her academic achievements and research contributions. Her research aims to clarify the vital role played by museums in creating and shaping narratives related to national identity and belonging in Gulf societies, to examine shifts related to national identities and the new contexts that affect them at the local, regional, and international levels, and to explore political and economic issues in the region and their impact on the societal environment.
	Yara Nassar \| Unit Rapporteur ACRPS Researcher and Editorial Secretary of Al-Muntaqa. She holds a master’s in Political Science and International Relations from the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies and a bachelor’s in International Relations from Qatar University. Her research interests focus on the intersection of Palestinian Studies and Gulf Studies through examining the history of Palestinian political movements and the formation of the Palestinian diaspora in Arab Gulf countries and exploring Palestinian-Gulf relations.

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