Experts on countries of origin by country

The Expert is a North Africa and Middle East specialist and has produced over 400 expert witness reports for the UK courts across a range of countries including Libya, Iraq (including KRI), Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria. The Expert has also served as an expert witness in several terrorism related cases in the UK, US and Ireland; as an expert witness in a Libyan case at the Commercial Division of the UK’s High Court; and as a country guidance expert on Libya in the UK courts (2017). The Expert has also carried out numerous linguistic and nationality assessments and provides translation services (Arabic-English). 

The Expert is a Gender & Social Inclusion International Development specialist across multiple global south countries - She holds a Ph.D. in Gender & Postcolonial Studies, University of Sydney, Australia, 2005.

The Expert is an experienced senior consultant and academic with 15+ years in educational program design and management across humanitarian and development sectors, including democracy, education, civil society, and government collaboration in diverse global regions. Her expertise in creating effective development programs with a focus on inclusion and sustainable livelihoods.

I am an expert witness on Syria & Iraq, and Mozambique & Tanzania, with a decade of experience as an Army intelligence officer and as a senior political and security risk analyst. My work has been requested by The Economist and a US embassy, cited in reports by the government of Spain, the Counter-Terrorism Centre of Excellence (funded by Germany and the UNODC), Voice of America, and others. My reports are recognised for being clear, concise and evidence based. I also produce bespoke maps that illustrate armed group activity and risk zones, making complex dynamics readily accessible.

I earned my PhD in Kurdish Studies, University of Exeter this April. I awarded Mphil in Iranian Studies (2019) and MSc in Middle East Politics (2017). With the support of some friends, I have established an institute focusing on democratic developments in the Middle East.

Our main services will be to provide professional advice and reports to the courts, solicitors, and the Home Office case workers. I can offer impartial, evidence-based, and fresh analysis of the socio-political situations in Iran, Turkey, Syria, and Iraq, including the governments and societies within these countries. I am in contact with people from these countries, ranging from ordinary individuals to lecturers, journalists, and lawyers. I am also in partnership with universities, institutions, and research centres within the region and globally, which work on Middle Eastern politics and its social changes.

Alongside my research and academic activities, I am active on social media, with 21,000 followers on Facebook, 63,000 on Instagram, and 89,000 on X (formerly Twitter), mainly from Iran and Iraq. The reason for this influence is that I have been a public figure on Farsi and Kurdish TV Channels (based in London) since 2010.

BBC journalist, film-maker and broadcaster with extensive experience of travelling to and investigating human rights abuses in Russia, including Chechnya, Belarus and other parts of the former USSR. Also considerable experience working with victims of human rights abuses in location in countries such as Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Israel / Palestine, China, Turkey and Cuba.

Associate Professor, PhD in Modern History and Political Thought, Lecturer in University, Mentor, Dean Of college.

Dr Omer Tekdemir is an expert on the Middle Eastern region and an analyst of its legal, social, political, and cultural dynamics, providing consultancy on economic and governmental affairs. He is an Associate Professor in Interdisciplinary Studies and Associate Head of School at the School of Law. He holds a PhD from the Institute for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, School of Government and International Affairs, Durham University (2013), and an MA in Contemporary Political Theory and International Relations from the Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Westminster, London.

Dr Tekdemir is the Managing Editor of the open-access journal New Middle Eastern Studies and has previously held the role of convener of the British International Studies Association (BISA) working group on Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and Asian Studies. His research interest lies in violence, terrorism, security, conflict resolution, peacebuilding, post-conflict societies, nationalism, identity, democratization, populism, migration, diaspora, stateless peoples, and transnational justice, with a particular focus on the Kurds and Middle East. He is the author of a book on the Kurds and has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals and edited volumes.

The Expert is a Barrister-at-Law of England and Wales. The Expert is a practicing Advocate of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh. He holds the position of Head of Chambers at "LexAria and Jurists" (link : https://lexariaandjurists.com/) , and President at "Justice for All', with nearly a decade's experience in legal practice. The expert regularly moves before the Supreme Court of Bangladesh for various matters including Writ (Judicial Review), Criminal and Civil Appeal and Revision, Bail Petition, Intellectual Property, Company Matter, Inheritance, Public Interest Litigation, Muslim Personal Law, Succession Law, Hindu Law, etc.

As a practicing Advocate of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh, the expert is legally qualified to verify any legal documents including case, GD, judgments and other relevant documents, and check records from the government office of Bangladesh including Courts and Tribunals unless restricted by the law or relevant office. 

Parallel to his legal pursuits, the expert is the Legal Affairs and Political Editor of The Daily Campus and columnist. Accumulatively, he possesses over 18 years of sustained experience as a Journalist in Bangladesh, having written extensively on a broad range of issues, including human rights, the criminal justice… Read more

Dr Zagud holds an intensive research experience on international public law, international human rights law, international relations and immigration law. 

Dr Zagud takes instructions on all Arab cases from: Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.

He maintains his expertise in all legal matters related to Arab nationals including cases pertaining to asylum, immigration, family and crime. Dr Zagud writes expert reports on all legal matters as well as nationality matters, languages, blood feuds, honour killing, domestic violence, risk of return and Islamic law.

His expertise centres around the people with whom he shares cultural understanding, languages, religious beliefs, and numerous national characteristics.

Cases undertaken

The Expert has experience in providing Country of Origin reports and analyses, he also provides documents authentication reports on various legal proceedings for clients in the UK and internationally. he is mostly instructed in following cases:

Dr. Maggie Zraly is a medical and psychological anthropologist with extensive training in public health and mental health. Her research and practice have focused on conflict-affected populations, including survivors of conflict-related sexual violence/genocide-rape and GBV, youth heads of household, and children associated with armed forces and armed groups. Dr. Zraly conducted five years of in-depth fieldwork on the ground in Rwanda between 2003 and 2024. In 2016, she conducted short-term research in Afghanistan on human trafficking, and in 2017, she directed a center for mental health in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. She has completed short deployments for child protection and mental health support in emergency response, the longest of which was for 3 weeks in 2016 across Turkey, Greece, Macedonia, and Serbia to assess the protection situation of forcibly displaced Syrian, Afghan, and Iraqi children seeking asylum.