RAND Experts to Discuss Libya, Egypt, Iran, Bahrain, Yemen—and What's Next for the Middle East

RAND Corporation experts on the Middle East and North Africa will hold a media conference call at 10:30 a.m. ET Thursday, Feb. 24, to discuss the latest events in the region.

*** Call-in numbers:
  Domestic calls (including Canada): (877) 833-9514
  International calls: +1 (970) 315-0921

WHO:

Amb. Charlie Ries is director of the Center for Middle East Public Policy at RAND.

Fred Wehrey is a senior policy analyst focusing on the Middle East and on Friday returned from an assignment in Libya. He has conducted research in Bahrain, and is the author of "In Bahrain, Democracy in Action or Just Divide and Rule?"

Alireza Nader is an international policy analyst who focuses on Iran and is the author of the just-released study, "The Next Supreme Leader: Succession in the Islamic Republic of Iran."

Audra Grant is a political scientist focusing on North Africa and the dynamics of political Islam, democratization and reform, Muslim public opinion and post-conflict societies/societies in transition. She has lived in Tunisia and Morocco. She is co-author of "More Freedom, Less Terror? Liberalization and Political Violence in the Arab World."

Julie Taylor is a political scientist focusing on Egypt and the Middle East. Taylor lived in Egypt for five years. She formerly taught courses on political development in the Middle East at Princeton University and has written about regime stability in Egypt and Iran.

Lorenzo Vidino is a visiting fellow and an academic and security expert specializing in Islamism and political violence in Europe and North America. His latest book, The New Muslim Brotherhood in the West, was published by Columbia University Press in 2010.

Jeffrey Martini is a project associate specializing in Middle East political and security issues. He lived in Cairo from 2007 to 2008.