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Experts on countries of origin by country

Abbas, Dr. Ahmed

Dr. Ahmed is often called upon to provide advisory services for international organizations, governments, and corporations navigating legal issues in the Middle East. His reputation for accuracy, sensitivity, and integrity is well-established, and he remains a trusted voice in both the legal and academic communities.

Occupation: Dr. Ahmed Abbas is a trusted expert in Middle Eastern law, politics,
and culture, with two decades of experience providing expert witness
testimony, consulting, and analysis for governments, multinational
corporations, international NGOs, and legal teams. With a deep
understanding of the region's complex legal systems and sociopolitical structures, Dr. Al-Fahad has earned a reputation for his
reliable, nuanced, and clear assessments in cases involving
geopolitical conflicts, family law, and cross-border legal disputes.
His career has spanned a wide array of sectors, including international
arbitration, human rights, political risk analysis, and Islamic
jurisprudence. Known for his meticulous approach to research and an
ability to convey complex concepts to diverse audiences, Dr. Ahmed
has successfully assisted clients in navigating both the legal and
cultural intricacies of the Middle East. Fluent in Arabic and English,
he’s also worked extensively across North Africa, the Levant, and the
Gulf region, advising clients on both regional affairs and international
litigation.
Dr. Ahmed career is defined by his strong professional ethics,
empathetic understanding of the region's challenges, and a
commitment to helping clients achieve fair and informed outcomes.
Countries of expertise: Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Occupied Palestinian Territories, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen

al Khouri, Riad

A Middle East specialist, Riad trains, advises, lectures, and researches such topics as Business, Politics, and Migration, inter alia, publishing on them and others, as well as making media contributions. He holds a High School Diploma from l’École internationale de Genève; a BA from the American University of Beirut, Faculty of Arts and Sciences; and an MLitt from the University of Oxford, Faculty of Social Studies. Among other present positions he is Country of Origin Information expert for the Fahamu Refugee Program, Oxford; Special Advisor to the Global Challenges Forum, Geneva; and board associate, SUNSGLOW Global Training in the Rule of Law, New York City. He is fluent in Arabic and English, with a strong knowledge of French. 

Occupation: Researcher
Countries of expertise: Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Cyprus, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, West Bank, Yemen

Alghizzi, Hamid Jumaa Hassan

• The Expert was exposed to the Kuwaiti culture and dialect from his childhood all the way to adulthood
• Is familiar with Bidoon areas in Kuwait as he previously visited them.
• Has an in-depth knowledge of the Bidoon’s history, activities and longstanding problems.
• Has had contacts with hundreds of Bidoons including some known political activists.
• Has issued reports that have been influential in the court’s decision process.
• Uses a thorough and a detailed method of assessment.
The Expert was born in 1973 in Iraq, Basra city which is adjacent to the Kuwaiti border. In addition to having Kuwaiti relatives, the geographical proximity of Kuwait to the city of Basra enhanced his exposure to the Kuwaiti culture and dialect from his childhood all the way to adulthood. For instance, interacting with Kuwait nationals who used to cross the borders freely during the eighties during which and the Kuwaiti TV channels where mainstream TV in every Iraqi household in Basra.
The exposure to Bidoons was enhanced following the Iraqi invasion to Kuwait in 1990 as many of them were deported by the Kuwaiti authorities and the majority of them lived in the Iraqi cities of Basra and Thi Qar.
In 1994 he completed his Bachelor Degree in Petroleum… Read more

Occupation: Bidoon Expert
Countries of expertise: Kuwait

Anderson, Danica

Dr. Danica Anderson is a US-based international social scientist, researcher, and forensic counselor (criminal justice specialist) with a doctorate in clinical psychology. Dr. Anderson is a member of the UNESCO scientific and education CID council and of the International Criminal Court, a Psycho-social Victim Gender Expert for trauma with war crimes and war crimes survivors. She is a trauma clinician who has traveled the world bearing witness to―and researching how to heal transgenerational trauma and continues to make crisis responses while addressing the needs of immigrants and refugees during and in the aftermath of natural disasters and wars. Trauma response and social science and research fieldwork occurred in Afghanistan, Haiti, India, Sri Lanka, and many conflict-ridden regions and war regions.

Dr. Anderson's international trauma work occurred in Sub-Saharan Africa for the International Criminal Court and the United Nations World Food Program in Sudan. In former Yugoslavia, Bosnia Herzegovina, her study and clinically informed trauma for over two decades provided an archive of information on women's transgenerational trauma for war and war crimes survivors involving asylum and visas. Dr. Anderson worked with Mexico's National Human Rights, Mexico City, and the… Read more

Occupation: Social Scientist - Researcher-Trauma Expert
Countries of expertise: Afghanistan, Austria, Benin, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo (Republic of), Costa Rica, Cuba, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Denmark, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Kuwait, Malta, Mexico, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, Slovenia, South Korea, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Uganda, United States of America

Gabbay, Shaul

Dr. Shaul Gabbay completed a BA at Bar Ilan University and an MA at Tel-Aviv University. In 1991 he received a Presidential Fellowship from the U.S. to continue his studies. In 1995 he completed the PhD program at Columbia University in New York and received an invitation from the University of Chicago for a Post Doctoral program. In 1998 Dr. Gabbay returned to Israel to join the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. Professor Gabbay joined the University of Denver as the Director of the Institute for the Study of Israel in the Middle East at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies in 2001- 2010.  He continued his research at DU as a Senior Scholar until 2015 when he was appointed Director of the Global Research Institute.

His areas of expertise include Middle East cultures and societal norms,   Middle East conflicts, and human rights issues existing in Muslim societies.  He is regularly cited and acts as a commentator in national and international media such as the Associated Press, CBS, NBC, FOX and MSNBC.

Occupation: Muslim World Expert
Countries of expertise: Afghanistan, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Djibouti, Egypt, Gaza Strip, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Mauritania, Mongolia, Morocco, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, West Bank, Yemen

George, Alan

Academic with expertise on many countries in the Middle East; has extensive experience providing expert reports, including nationality assessment and document authentication reports.

Occupation: Consultant, writer, journalist. Former Senior Associate Member, St Antony’s College, Oxford University and former Senior Visiting Research Fellow in the Institute of Middle Eastern Studies at London University’s King’s College.
Countries of expertise: Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Occupied Palestinian Territories, Syria, Yemen

Hafidh, Dr Hasan

The Expert is a Lecturer in Comparative Politics and International Relations of the Middle East. 

Occupation: Lecturer in Comparative Politics of the Middle East (Gulf Specialism), Expert of Islamic Countries
Countries of expertise: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Occupied Palestinian Territories, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Yemen

Jaber (Benswait), Ahmad

I am a UCL social science researcher in the field of Applied and Socio-linguistics, focusing on how experiences and claims of people seeking asylum in the UK and Europe as stateless people of Kuwait (i.e., Bidoon Kuwaitis) are communicated and disputed. My research is (in)formed by my training in refugee and forced migration studies at the University of Oxford’s Refugee Studies Centre and my lived experiences as a Bidoon Kuwaiti person going through the UK asylum system and eventually being recognised as a refugee following a successful appeal in which I was found to be a witness of truth.

Occupation: Researcher
Countries of expertise: Kuwait

Mehmood, Dr Maryyum

The Expert is an internationally renowned and award-winning academic and consultant specialising in violence against women and minorities, and racial and religious persecution in the South Asia and Muslim majority countries.

Occupation: Academic expert on gender-based violence, racial injustice, sectarian violence and religious persecution.
Countries of expertise: Afghanistan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, France, Germany, India, Kuwait, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America

Miles, Hugh

Hugh Miles is an Arabic and French speaking journalist who has been living in Cairo for most of the past 20 years researching and writing about all aspects of Arab society and culture. Since 2004 Miles has covered news in North Africa and the Middle East region professionally for diverse international media including the BBC, Al Jazeera, New York Times, Telegraph, Guardian, London Review of Books, Mirror, Mail, Sun and many others. He is a contributor to the Global Organized Crime Index designed to assess levels of organised crime in 193 UN member states and gives regular, ongoing training sessions to the UK FCDO about organised crime in the Middle East as well as, separately, the media environment in the Middle East.

Miles is the founder of Arab Digest, an independent UK ltd. media company specialising in Arab affairs. Arab Digest is an online private members club where business leaders and regional experts discuss the latest developments in the Middle East and North Africa each day. Paying members include the United Nations, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, The Economist, Oxford University, King’s College London University, Princeton University, BAE, Chevron and many more. 

Occupation: Author, Journalist and Consultant
Countries of expertise: Algeria, Egypt, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates

Nasr, Hatem

CEO and founder at Xsolutions Ltd, is an experienced advocate in the appellate court of Egypt. With over 12 years of practice, they specialize in various legal areas, including Egyptian Civil Law, human rights, domestic abuse, trade regulations, criminal law, and Sharea (Islamic Law). They collaborate closely with lawyers, judges, and the Ministry of Interior on national security and civil registration cases. Additionally, they provide reports related to human rights, asylum, gender violence, and political persecution.

Occupation: CEO and founder at Xsolutions Ltd
Countries of expertise: Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Occupied Palestinian Territories, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates

Roberts, David

Dr David B Roberts is a Reader at King’s College London where he leads the twin-track Arabic and English Master of Research (MRes) programme in the School of Security Studies. Additionally, Dr Roberts is Adjunct Faculty at Science Po’s Paris School of International Affairs (PSIA), a Non-Resident Fellow at the Arab Gulf States Institute Washington and at the Middle East Policy Council (Washington DC), and the founder and commissioning editor for Cambridge University Press’s book series Elements in Middle East Politics. Previously, David taught for King’s at the Qatar Defence Academy, and he was the Director of the Gulf office of the Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security studies think-tank (RUSI Qatar). He obtained his PhD from Durham University.

Occupation:
Countries of expertise: Kuwait, Oman, Qatar

Sultan Qader, Dr. Amer

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

Occupation: DIRECTOR OF THE EDUCATION CONSULTANCY COMPANY
Countries of expertise: Iraq, Kuwait

Tushar, Md Solaiman

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 "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.

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 system, politics, education, health, mental health, and international laws.

The Expert is an academic specialist in the politics and international relations of South Asia, & the Middle East with almost two decades of experience studying the region. The Expert has conducted research, advisory, and consultancy work in Bangladesh on the formal and informal justice systems, freedom of speech and… Read more

Occupation: Barrister-at-Law, Advocate, Supreme Court of Bangladesh, Researcher, Journalist, and Columnist.
Countries of expertise: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Egypt, India, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Occupied Palestinian Territories, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Yemen

Vora, Neha

Neha Vora is Associate Professor of Anthropology in the Department of Anthropology & Sociology at Lafayette College. She received her PhD in anthropology from the University of California, Irvine. Her areas of expertise include migration, citizenship, higher education, South Asian and Muslim diasporas, gender, labor, race, liberalism, political economy, and the state, in the Arabian Peninsula region and in the United States. She is the author of Impossible Citizens: Dubai’s Indian Diaspora (Duke University Press, 2013) and Teach for Arabia: American Universities, Liberalism, and Transnational Qatar (Stanford University Press, 2018). She has also published a co-authored book with Ahmed Kanna and Amelie Le Renard, Beyond Exception: New Interpretations of the Arabian Peninsula (Cornell University Press, 2020).

Occupation: Associate Professor of Anthropology
Countries of expertise: Kuwait, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, United States of America

Zagud, Dr. Abduslam

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:

Arab legal and judicial systems. Socio-culture norms. Tribal dynamic. Blood Feuds Internal… Read more
Occupation: Expert with legal and interpreting/translation expertise attained in the United Kingdom
Countries of expertise: Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Occupied Palestinian Territories, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen