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Call for "Historical Truth" in Our Narrative of Nazi Defeat

News

On April 23, Jochen Hellbeck, Distinguished Professor of History at Rutgers University, delivered the 2026 Hilda B. Silverman Memorial Lecture at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies. In a revisionist history of WWII, Hellbeck argues that it was not the...

Remembering Baber Johansen, Renowned Scholar of Islamic Law at Harvard Divinity School

News

Baber Johansen, Professor of Islamic Studies Emeritus at Harvard Divinity School (HDS) and former Director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, passed away in late January 2026. Johansen’s scholarship transformed the study of Islamic jurisprudence...

In Memoriam: Roy Mottahedeh (Contributions by Arafat Razzaque, Han Hsien Liew, Sumaiya Hamdani)

News

Editors at Maydan, an online publication of the AbuSulayman Center for Global Islamic Studies at George Mason University, asked former students of the late Islamic and Iranian historian Roy Mottahedeh to reflect on his scholarship, personality, and impact...

Middle East Seminar

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The Weatherhead Center for International Affairs (WCFIA)/CMES joint seminar brings ambassadors, dignitaries, journalists and scholars to lecture on topics in modern Middle East politics. Chairs: Lenore G. Martin, Sara Roy

Teaching to Entrench: Education, Fragmentation, and Yemen’s Next Decade

Events

The WCFIA/CMES Middle East Seminar presents Stacey Philbrick Yadav The Joseph P. DiGangi Professor of International Relations, Hobart and William Smith Colleges Co-sponsors: Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Center for Middle Eastern Studies...

Ambassadors of a Lost Homeland: The Diplomacy of Survival in the Andalusian–Morisco Experience (13th–17th Centuries)

Events

The Alwaleed Islamic Studies Program presents Houssem Eddine Chachia Shawwaf Visiting Associate Professor, Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Harvard University RSVP here Co-sponsor: Center for Middle Eastern Studies Contact: Liz...

HMECA Book Sale

Events

Join us on Thursday, October 9, 2025, 1-4 p.m., for the annual HMECA book sale at CMES 102. The titles are priced at $3 or $5. Proceeds support the Harvard Middle Eastern Cultural Association (HMECA). The book sale is open to everyone. Cash and Venmo will...

Deeper Trouble in the Tribe: The American Jewish Conflict over Israel Today

Events

The WCFIA/CMES Middle East Seminar presents Dov Waxman Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation Professor of Israel Studies, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Co-Sponsors: Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Center for Middle Eastern...

Human Rights Claims, Denial, and the Challenge of Conspiracism: Insights from Israel and Northern Ireland

Events

The WCFIA/CMES Middle East Seminar presents Ron Dudai Associate Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Ben Gurion University and Visiting Fellow, Mitchell Institute for Global Peace, Security and Justice, Queen’s University Belfast Co...

After the Last Sky: Edward Said and the Politics of an Oppositional Intellectual

Events

The CMES Middle East Forum presents Nubar Hovsepian Associate Professor Emeritus, Chapman University Nubar Hovsepian is associate professor emeritus of political science at Chapman University in Orange, CA. He is the author of "Palestinian State Formation...

"Hot Maroc": From Arabic to English: Yassin Adnan (author) and Alexander Elinson (translator) in discussion

Events

The Mahindra Humanities Center and the Department of Comparative Literature present Yassin Adnan (author) and Alex Elinson (translator, CUNY) discuss Hot Maroc, Adnan’s novelistic portrait of the challenges Moroccans, young and old face today. Moderator...

China and the Asymmetric Great Power Competition in the Middle East

Events

The WCFIA/CMES Middle East Seminar presents Gangzheng She Visiting Scholar, Weatherhead Center for International Affairs; Director, Center for Overseas Security and Associate Professor Department of International Relations, Tsinghua University, China...