1. Conferences and debates

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Syria: Prospects ten years after the outbreak of revolution

Published at 10 11,,, 21 2021

On Tuesday, March 16, we will be showing the eleventh conference in our event series Aula Árabe Universitaria 2, given by the director of the Arab Center for Political Research and Studies of Paris (CAREP), Salam Kawakibi, on our YouTube channel. The war against Syria’s civilian population has been ongoing since 2011, and its impact is profound. Although it is impossible to provide exact figures, the toll has been devastating: it has caused the death of half a million human beings, the destruction of 60% of all infrastructures and the disability of 1.5 million people, with another 200 thousand people in jails and arbitrary detention centers, the internal displacement of half of the country’s inhabitants and the exile of more than six million to different countries in the neighboring region. Although the violence has decreased over the last two years, the situation persists. However, neither the humanitarian catastrophe nor the Syrian people’s demands appear in the headlines anymore. The consequences of this conflict are enormous in terms of international security, and the role of regional and international role-players is undeniable in the Syrian disaster. Within this context, what prospects are there for a potential solution? Casa Árabe has organized this conference given by Salam Kawakibi, a researcher in Political Science and International Relations. It is the eleventh session in the Aula Árabe Universitaria 2 (AAU2) program, offered with the cooperation of the Master’s degree program in International Relations and African Studies at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM). The session will be introduced by Itziar Ruiz-Giménez Arrieta, coordinator of the Master’s Degree program in International Relations and African Studies at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, and is moderated by Karim Hauser, Casa Árabe’s International Relations Coordinator. Salam Kawakibi co-founded the organization The Day After: Supporting a Democratic Transition in Syria (www.tda-sy.org). He is a senior researcher at the University of Saint Andrews’ Centre for Syrian Studies, a co-founder and member of the advisory board of the Mediterranean Citizens Assembly Foundation (MCAF) (www.fundacionacm.org), a member of the board of the Institute for Research and Studies on the Arab World and Mediterranean in Paris, and a member of the scientific committee of Confluences, a Parisian journal which focuses on the Mediterranean region. From 2009 to 2011, Kawakibi was the head researcher at the University of Amsterdam’s Department of Political Science. Prior to that, from 2000 to 2006, he was director of the Institut Français du Proche-Orient in Aleppo. He earned his Advanced Studies Diploma (DEA) in Political Science from the Aix-En-Provence Institute of Political Studies and another in International Relations from the University of Aleppo, as well as his bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Aleppo. He has had numerous articles and essays published in specialized journals and various works in Arabic, French, Spanish, German and Turkish. More info: https://en.casaarabe.es/event/syria-prospects-ten-years-after-the-outbreak-of-revolution Photo: Anthony Gale on Flickr

ALL VIDEOS IN THIS CATEGORY

IV Arab-Christian Day: Christian archeology on the Arabian Peninsula

Conference given on April, 13th at Casa Árabe in Madrid, by Julie Bonnéric, a researcher at the French Near East Institute (IFPO)

Published at 53 19,,, 16 2016
IV Arab-Christian Day: Christian tradition in the Gulf countries. Conference on "Christianity today"

Conference given on April, 13th at Casa Árabe in Madrid, by Michael O’Sullivan, Financial Administrator at the Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia on "Christianity today"

Published at 48 18,,, 16 2016
Islam and Politics: Mythological constructs, past customs and current practices (French)

Casa Árabe and Casa de Velázquez have organized this conference with a view to analyzing the political changes in the Middle East since the Arab Springs. Both directors, Pedro Villena, the General Director of Casa Árabe and Michel Bertrand, the director of the Casa de Velázquez participated in this round table along with Makram Abbes, a professor of political philosophy at the École Normale Supérieure de Lyon; Nabil Mouline, a professor and researcher at the Institut d'Études Politiques in Paris; Karima Dirèche, director of the Institut de Recherche sur le Maghreb Contemporain (IRMC) in Tunisia, and Éric Gobe, a researcher with the Institut de Recherche sur le Maghreb Contemporain (IRMC). More info: http://en.casaarabe.es/event/islam-and-politics-mythological-constructs-past-customs-and-current-practices

Published at 47 14,,, 16 2016
Arts and Culture: shelter or reflection? (SP/ENG/FR)

Casa Árabe hosted a round table on the role of artists and cultural producers from the Arab world with regards to the current affairs affecting the region. With the participation of Zineb Sedira, artist and founder of ARIA (Artist Residency in Algiers); Ammer Abo Bakr, street artist; Rachida Triki, art critic, curator and Professor specialized in Aesthetics and Philosophy of Art; and Nuria Medina, coordinator of Culture at Casa Árabe. This round table frocused on the role of artists and cultural producers from the Arab world with regards to the current affairs and uncertainties that are affecting the region. We tryed to seek answers to questions such as: where do we stand today, after five years of Arab uprising?; what are the most important issues affecting cultural institutions and artists across the region?; which are the perspectives for the youth, and among them, many artists? Although obstacles, extremism and censorship are increasing and affecting many critical intellectuals and artists in some countries, are there signals of a cultural revolution happening behind the headlines? In this regard, how determinant is being the technological change and global connection? In this context of change and instability, how artists and cultural producers deal with the tradition and memory of their cultures? More information: http://en.casaarabe.es/event/arts-and-culture-shelter-or-reflection

Published at 40 25,,, 16 2016
Arab Dawn: Arab youth and the demographic dividend they will bring

Conference given by Bessma Momani, associate professor of the Political Science Department at the University of Waterloo. During the event, Momani was accompanied by Haizam Amirah Fernández, main researcher for the Mediterranean and Arab World at the Real Instituto Elcano, and Leila Nachawati, a professor of Communication at the Universidad Carlos III of Madrid and co-founder of the portal Syria Untold. The event was presented by Karim Hauser, who is responsible for the Governance Area at Casa Árabe. Though it may seem implausible to some readers, despite the wave of negative news reaching us from the Middle East and North Africa, many youths who went out in the streets to demonstrate in 2011 continue to campaign for change. Their efforts seldom make it into the Western news, but there are stories which demonstrate the will of these generations to continue transforming the societies in which they live, from Saudi women publishing YouTube videos of themselves driving in Riyadh to an Egyptian television star exposing cultural hypocrisy by using hidden cameras. They are much less dramatic stories than the downfall of a dictator at the hands of the raging masses, but they may end up having a greater social impact. Though the wars in Syria, Yemen, Libya and Iraq lead some to see nothing but a lost generation, the Arab world today is an undeniable source of creativity. In her book Arab Dawn, Momani challenges negative stereotypes of the region and proposes a series of positive changes, as well as discussing the hidden potential of Arab youths. More info: http://en.casaarabe.es/event/arab-dawn-arab-youth-and-the-demographic-dividend-they-will-bring

Published at 26 28,,, 16 2016