Usna center for middle east and islamic studies, spring 2013

town New York without per-mission from the U.S. govern-

ment. Khaza’i rarely ap-pears at public events and,

until this session, has pre-

ferred private meetings with small groups of Americans

interested in Iranian affairs.

Because there are no diplo-matic relations between

Washington and Tehran,

Khaza’i is the highest-ranking Iranian official resi-

dent on U.S. soil.

The students immediately understood the symbolism of

the occasion. Why, they

asked, is an official from one side talking to a retired

official (and private citizen) (Continued on page 9)

On February 20, 2013 thirty

-five midshipmen from clas-

ses in political science (FP 462, The U.S. and Iran) and

history (HH367B, the History

and Culture of Iran) had a rare first-hand look into the

complex world of American-

Iranian relations. They trav-

eled to the Asia Society in New York to hear a public

exchange between Ambas-sador Thomas Pickering, for-

mer U.S. Undersecretary of

State for Political Affairs, and Ambassador Moham-

mad Khaza’i, current perma-

nent representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran to

the United Nations. David

Ignatius, author and senior reporter for the Washington

Post, moderated the discus-

sion. The very setting of the ex-

change was unusual. Am-

bassador Khaza’i, like all members of the Iranian UN

Mission, cannot travel outside

a 25-mile radius from down-

“Witnessing Diplomacy.” by Ambassador John Limbert

Midshipmen Participate in “Roads of Arabia” Tour

ogy and History of the King-

dom of Saudi Arabia” exhib-

it. Considered by many crit-

ics as the most comprehen-

sive collection of Saudi Ara-

bian artifacts to be dis-

played at an international

venue, the exhibit features

320 artifacts that trace the

Arabian Peninsula’s rich her-

itage from the Paleolithic

period to the formation of

the Kingdom of Saudi Ara-

bia in 1932.

Most interesting to the mid-

shipmen was the rich, multi-

(Continued on page 6)

Kylan Jones-Huffman Memorial Lectures

DR. FRED DONNER—

“HOW ISLAM BEGAN.”

H.E. AMBASSADOR HOU-

DA NONOO—“BAHRAINI-US RELATIONS.”

SAID SAYRAFIEZADEH—

“REFLECTIONS ON IRANIAN

-AMERICAN LITERATURE.”

“WITNESSING DIPLOMACY” 1

ROADS OF ARABIA 1

PROF. WHEELER SABBATICAL 2

PROF. BURT SABBATICAL 3

INTERFAITH DIALOGUE 4

WHEELER FULBRIGHT 5

DR. DANIEL ZISENWIINE 6

DR. FRED DONNER 7

H.E. AMB HOUDA NONOO 7

SAID SAYRAFIEZADEH 8

MEIR LITVAK 8

UPCOMING EVENTS 10

AFFILIATED FACULTY 11

JOIN US ON TWITTER! 12

Inside this issue:

Spring 2013 Volume 3, Issue 2

U . S . N A V A L A C A D E M Y

Newsletter of the Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies

Through the gracious invita-

tion of Saudi-Aramco and

the Sackler Gallery, midship-

men and faculty were able

to participate in a docent-

led tour of the joint-

sponsored Kingdom of Saudi

Arabia and SAUDI-ARAMCO

“Roads of Arabia: Archaeol-

Sacrifice in Islam, pilgrimage and state power in Middle East and South Asia.

Page 2


During January Brannon

Wheeler as part of his re-search sabbatical in the Mid-

dle East and South Asia

made a brief trip to the Hijaz region of Saudi Arabia. The

trip allowed him to visit a

number of sites closely linked to current research on places

of pilgrimage in Arabia be-

fore Islam.

One of the most significant

sites is called today Mada’in Salih. In the Islamic period the

site was called al-Hijr and was reportedly visited by the

prophet Muhammad on his

way to the northern city of Tabuk. The classical name

was Hegre. Mada’in Salih is

a Nabataean necropolis simi-lar to the well-known site of

Petra in Jordan. While Petra

served as the Nabataean capital, Mada’in Salih is

equally impressive with more

than 100 monumental tombs cut out of the surrounding

mountains.

In the center of Mada’in Salih

is Jabal Ithlib, the ceremonial

sanctuary where visitors to the city of the dead would

perform sacrifices. Jabal Ith-

lib contains a number of shrines and overlooks the

entire site. The deserts sur-

rounding Mada’in Salih are a beautiful example of the sort

of environment common to this

particular region of the Arabi-

an Peninsula.

In addition to his primary work

in the Middle East, during the first week of April, Prof. Bran-

non Wheeler made a research

trip to the South Asian Island of Sri Lanka supported by the

Center's funds for professional

development. The research focused on the role of pil-

grimage and state support

for pilgrimage in the devel-opment of social and politi-

cal structures.

Among the sites visited by

Prof. Wheeler were the Temple of the Sacred Tooth

in Kandy and Adam's Peak

(otherwise known as Sri Pa-da). The Temple of the Sa-

cred Tooth is a Buddhist shrine

housing a tooth of the Buddha. This relic was used, and contin-

ues to be used, as a means for

the state to assert its authority vis-a-vis the religious elite and

the rest of society. The temple

and its relic have been the subject of a number of studies

but only a few in Western lan-

guages.

Adam's Peak is one of the

highest mountains in Sri Lanka. To reach the summit requires

an arduous climb of more than

8000 steps. The climb takes an average of 4 hours and the

descent about 3 hours. Most of

the climbers are Buddhist, Hin-

du, and Muslim pilgrims. At the

top of the mountain is a shrine housing a footprint. Buddhists

claim the footprint is from the

Buddha. Hindus claim it is from an Indian deity. Muslims claim

it is the footprint left by Adam

after he was cast out of the Garden of Eden before he

traveled to Mecca to establish

the Muslim pilgrimage (Hajj).

While in Sri Lanka, Prof.

Wheeler was able to visit a

number of mosques in Columbo

and in Kandy. There is a size-

able Muslim community in Sri

Lanka. Muslims in Sri Lanka

belong to the minority Tamil

group which also includes Hin-

dus. Sri Lanka also has a

Christian minority dating pri-

marily from the time of the

Portuguese and British periods.

Of interest to midshipmen who take Prof. Burt’s Arabic Language and Literature courses is her inci-sive observation: “This [the devel-opment of national literatures] is especially interesting as Oman and the Gulf countries begin to assert themselves literarily, pro-ducing new literature far from the traditional centers of literary pro-duction, and articulating ideas, feelings, and aspirations which are distinct from those which have come out of the cultural capitals that have been historically central to Arabic literary institutions.“ With her background in compara-tive Semitic studies, Prof. Burt was also able to study ancient inscrip-tional material related to South Arabian languages. These include languages threatened with extinc-tion and only available for study in the mountainous Omani region of Salalah such as Mehri, Shahri, Jibbali, Harsusi, Hobyot, and Bathari form micro communities that are intent on preserving their language and way of life.

Prof. Burt was able to collect sam-ples and materials written in these languages some of which are compromised of only 200 hun-dred speakers. This novel and

Prof. Burt of Languages and Cultures: Paths on Mountains and the Shore- Omani Poetry and South Arabian Folklore

Page 3

Volume 3, Issue 2

In September 2011, while in Oman to set up an Arabic language program for her students, Prof. Clarissa Burt of the United States Naval Acad-emy’s Department of Lan-guages and Cultures was able to make contacts and lay the groundwork for research pro-jects related to Oman. She contacted several well-known Omani writers and established the basis for sabbatical work in this strategically important and culturally diverse Gulf state. Her subsequent research took place over a several month period from 2012 to 2013 with extensive field work in Oman. She was able to collect published works of contemporary Omani writers, and discover literary salons which demanded further in-vestigation. Among the nota-ble contacts made by Prof. Burt was Mr. Sayf al-Rahbi, a well-known poet and writer, and the editor-in-chief of Nizwa , an internationally known journal of literature and culture in the Arab World. Through Mr. Rahbi’s deep cultural insight and guidance Prof. Burt was introduced to several poets and authors in the Omani literary field who hail from all strata of society. Prof. Burt, during her time in Oman, was able to “read a broad selection of Omani po-etic texts, select from them, translate some, and analyze the Arabic texts in the context of the broader sweep of con-temporary Arabic poetry and literature today.”

nuanced approach to the study of micro-linguistic communities promises to be a major boon to midshipmen who study standard-ized Arabic with little under-standing of the complex mélange of linguistic influences that help create regional dialects.

In March, Sean Baggott and

Nancy Walbridge Collins of

Joint Special Operations Uni-

versity [JSOU] visited the

Academy to receive a brief

on the Center’s activities.

JSOU, located in Tampa,

Florida, will undergo a series

of renovations and curriculum

development activities to

bring a fresh perspective and

institutional knowledge to our

SOF war-fighter. The Center

offers a world-class array of

affiliated faculty members

and lectures series that would

be of great strategic re-

source for the new JSOU

initiative.

Through a creation of a sym-

biotic relationship between

the service academies and

JSOU, midshipmen will be

able to gain insight into the

demands of future SOF ca-

reer paths and better devel-

op themselves for those op-

portunities.

Joint Special Operations University visits the Center

TOLERANCE AND INTERFAITH DIALOGUE IN THE U.S. Delegation Visits the United States Naval Academy

Page 4


The Center briefed nine Afri-

can delegates from countries

ranging from Burkino Faso to

Niger on CMEIS activities and

mission on January 31. The

guests were religious leaders,

NGO directors, and heads of

educational departments invit-

ed to the United States under

the auspices of the Depart-

ment of State's International

Visitor Leadership Program.

The project provides an over-

view of religious freedom and

tolerance amid diverse popu-

lations in the U.S., as well as

the role of religious and faith-

based organizations in various

arenas including community

service, education, and

electoral politics. The partic-

ipants also have the oppor-

tunity to learn about the

role of faith in American

secular society and inter-

faith programs that contrib-

ute to social cohesion. The

project is designed for cler-

gy, educators, and lay

leaders of national or local

religious groups of all

faiths.

The delegates were inter-

ested in how the United

States Naval Academy in-

corporates Islamic studies

into its course material as

well as how we instill toler-

ance and understanding of

other cultures into future na-

val officers.

Page 5

Volume 3, Issue 2

Deborah Wheeler on Sabbatical Research

Professor Deborah L. Wheeler received a Fulbright Multi Country Middle East and North Africa research grant to study “Food Security Strategies in the Arabian Gulf: A View from Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Qatar.” She is the only Senior Fulbright schol-ar in the United States to re-ceive a grant to Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates for the 2012-2013 year. She left Annapolis in December, and will return to USNA in August. Her research will contribute to our understanding of interna-tional politics and the Middle East on a number of levels.

First of all, food security is a growing topic of concern glob-ally due to climate change, population growth, a rising middle class demanding more meat and dairy, more energy to run electronics and cars, shrinking fresh water supplies, rising sea levels, reduced yield from field crops due to atypi-cal weather patterns, volatile prices and supplies of food, bio-fuels diverting crops to energy rather than human nourishment, and the need to produce 70% more food by 2050 just to meet growing global demand. All of these variables—climate, population, food, energy, water, environ-ment—are linked, and disen-tangling how states should re-spond to secure their food and water supplies within this con-text of complexity (especially for water poor countries like those in the Arabian Gulf) is one of the most significant 21st

century challenges exam-ined by Prof. Wheeler’s research.

In the Middle East more than anywhere else, food security is national security at its most fundamental level. The Middle East is one of the most food import dependent regions in the world. The region’s population growth is among the highest in the world, resulting in an ever-widening food gap, estimat-ed to cost $89 billion by 2020. A recent study by NASA shows that water re-sources in the region are shrinking faster than ever due to unsustainable agricul-tural practices. More than 70% of the region’s water is used on agriculture. The region, while the most water poor globally, ironically has the highest water use rate per capita, mostly due to an overexploitation of water resources to grow food.

Taken together the lack of sustainable water access and arable land, harsh weather conditions, poor soil, intense strain on existing resources because of popu-lation growth and rising in-comes, the partial break down of government subsidy regimes for providing low cost food to foster citizen loyalty and poverty allevia-tion, matched with global food inflation and supply shocks, make the issue of food security a matter of much greater concern in the

Middle East than ever be-fore.

Prof. Wheeler is finding that even in oil exporting coun-tries—despite being rated as relatively food secure today based upon the low ratio of food import costs to GDP—food security is a regular topic in the press, in policy circles, and on the street. Billions of dollars are being invested in strategies to grow, import, secure, and store food to feed growing populations at stable prices. Strikes, riots across the region(even in the Gulf) linked with food inflation suggest that no country in the region is im-mune. While oil wealth ena-bles some countries in the Middle East to buy them-selves short-term solutions to food security challenges, long term sustainability questions loom and form the core of Prof. Wheeler’s research agenda.

Professor Wheeler has used the data and insights she has gained during her sabbatical to develop a new senior Po-litical Science Capstone course called “Natural Secu-rity” which will be offered for the first time in the Fall 2013-2014 academic year. In this seminar, students will exam-ine the ways in which abun-dance and scarcity of natural resources like food, water, arable land, precious metals, and energy will increasingly shape the future of power and purpose in the global commons.

layered cultural milieu of the

Arabian Peninsula demon-

strated through the items on

display—a fact formerly

incongruent with their under-

standing of the region. Mov-

ing past traditional compart-

mentalization of epochs, the

tour revealed to guests how

pre-Islamic cultures, such as

the Greek and the Roman,

intermingled with indigenous

societies thus informing one

another through trade, edu-

cation, and statecraft. The

visit coincided with Dr. Fred

Donner’s visit to the USNA on

January 24. His lecture, “How

“Roads”, from Page One

Daniel Zisenwine, Tel Aviv University Visiting Scholar

Page 6


During the 2012-2013 Aca-

demic Year the Center for

Middle East and Islamic Stud-

ies is hosting a visiting Israeli

scholar, Professor Daniel Zis-

enwine.

His regular position is at the

University of Tel Aviv. Prof.

Zisenwine is a specialist in

North African history and

politics whose most recent

publications focus on contem-

porary Morocco. While at the

Center, Prof. Zisenwine is

teaching two courses in Mid-

dle East politics for the Politi-

cal Science department and

two courses in the history of

the Arab-Israeli Conflict for

the History department. This

appointment is made possible

by a grant from the American-

Israeli Cooperative Enterprise

(AICE) and a generous gift

from the Naval Academy’s

Friends of the Jewish Chapel.

AICE implements the Schuster-

man Visiting Israel Professors

program that places approxi-

mately 20 scholars annually at

various U.S. universities with

the goal of presenting Ameri-

can students with a broad un-

derstanding of Israel’s history,

society, politics, cultures, and

relations with its neighbors and

the broader international com-

munity.

Prof. Zisenwine’s most recent

publication Contemporary

Morocco: State, Politics, and

Society under Mohammed VI is

available through Routledge

Press.

Islam Began” was also pre-

sented at the Sackler Gallery

on January 26.

If interested in further infor-

mation on the exhibit please

follow the below link:

http://

www.saudiaramcoworld.com/

issue/201102/

roads.of.arabia.htm

Dr. Fred M. Donner visited

the United States Naval

Academy as the first install-

ment of the spring semester’s

Kylan Jones Huffman Memo-

rial Lecture series. Consid-

ered one of the world's fore-

most experts on Islam, Dr.

Donner recently published

Muhammad and the Believers

(Belknap, 2012), a book that

has helped redefine our un-

derstanding of the early

Muslim community during the

time of the prophet Muham-

mad. During his lecture “How

Islam Began” Dr. Donner un-

derscored for midshipmen

that little evidence exists to

support the widely accepted

claims represented in an ar-

ray of seemingly omnipresent

and hackneyed opinions

about the history of early

Islam. Dr. Donner proposed

that the community that arose

around the prophet Muham-

mad was ecumenical in na-

ture and primarily concerned

with accepting monotheists

who were prepared to live

piously. The image we have

of an Islamic past was not

widely promulgated until a

hundred years after the

death of the Prophet.

In Memoriam: LT Kylan Jones-Huffman, USNR, died 21 Aug., 2003, in Al Hillah, Iraq while o voluntary TAD from US Naval Forces Central Command in Bahrain to brief the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force. He was 31 years old.

LT Jones-Huffman was born 20 April, 1972 in Santa Cruz, CA, the son of James and Dagmar Huffman. In 1990 he graduated from the York School in Monterey, CA, and entered the Naval Academy. He was 26th Co. and graduated in 1994, having already begun work on his MA in History at the University of Maryland. He was an honors graduate in History from USNA, and one of his undergrad-uate papers won the Phi Alpha Theta prize for the regional and an Honorable Mention in national competition.

After LT Jones-Huffman’s graduation from USNA he returned to California to marry his high school sweetheart, Heidi Jones. After com-pleting his MA at Maryland, he reported to the USS Ingham out of Everett, WA. In 1997, he joined the pre-commissioning crew of the USS Raven inspired some his best Haiku. He returned to USNA in 1999 for two years as an instructor in the History Dept. He taught a course on the Persian Wars, and worked on preparing his prize winning Phi Alpha Theta paper and his Haiku for publication. His po-etry reached print in two prominent Haiku journals and a number of on-line collections. It has since inspired a suite by a Romanian composer.

LT Jones-Huffman was broadly interested in cultures around the world and had a spectacular ability to learn languages. He spoke fluent German, Persian, and Arabic, along with some Turkish and Japanese. He had been admitted to George Washington Universi-ty’s Ph.D. program in Near Eastern Studies, where he planned to study Turkish history, shortly before his death.

KJH Lecture: Dr. Fred Donner

KJH Lecture: H.E. AMB Houda Nonoo

Page 7

Volume 3, Issue 2

On March 21 the Center host-

ed H.E. Ambassador Houda

Nonoo, the Kingdom of Bah-

rain’s Ambassador to the Unit-

ed States. During her visit she

toured the Levy Center, ate

dinner with the Commandant’s

staff and midshipmen, and

delivered an excellent lecture

on the security concerns that

Bahrain holds—primarily from

Iran. The lecture was attend-

ed by members of the An-

napolis Jewish community as

well as Retired Rear Admiral

Katz and USNA Superinten-

dent Vice Admiral Miller.

Her Excellency was appoint-

ed Ambassador of the King-

dom of Bahrain to the United

States by His Majesty the

King of Bahrain, Shaikh

Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa in

July 2008. H.E. is also Ambas-

sador of the Kingdom of Bah-

rain to Canada (non-resident).

She holds the distinction as the first person of Jewish origin

and the third woman to be appointed Ambassador of

Bahrain. Prior to her appoint-

ment she was president of the Bahrain Human Rights Watch

Society and she held a posi- Continued on page 10

KJH Lecture: Said Sayrafiezadeh

Dr. Meir Litvak

Page 8


were able to see that we

make many assumptions re-garding Iran and Iranians

which often do not hold up to

the reality of life. Through Mr. Sayrafiezadeh’s literature,

readers can see how he has

confronted his past and the individual characters that rep-

resent the different influences

in his life. Mr. Sayrafiezadeh is an

award-winning fiction writer,

memoirist, and playwright. He is the recipient of a 2012-

2013 fiction fellowship from the Cullman Center for Schol-

ars and Writers, and the au-

thor of the critically acclaimed

memoir When Skate Boards Will Be Free (Dial Press,

2010) for which he re-

ceived a Whiting Writer’s Award. It was selected as one

of the ten best books of the

year by Dwight Garner of the New York Times.

Brief Encounters with the Enemy

will be published by The Dial Press in August 2013. Mr.

Sayrafiezadeh lives on New

York City’s Lower East Side with his wife, the artist and

designer Karen Mainenti, and teaches creative writing at

New York University.

Dr. Meir Litvak of Tel Aviv

University visited USNA to

lecture on Iran and the Arab

Spring on February 11. Dr.

Litvak currently serves as an

associate professor in the De-

partment of Middle Eastern

History and as the director of

the Alliance Center for Iranian

Studies. Dr. Litvak has written

numerous articles and books

on modern Shi‘i and Iranian

history, as well as on modern

Islamic movements. He is the

author of Shi'a Scholars of

Nineteenth Century Iraq: The

‘Ulama’ of Najaf and Karba-

la’ (Cambridge University

Press, 1998); co-author

of From Empathy to Denial:

Arab Responses to the Holo-

caust (Columbia University

Press, 2009) and of the forth-

coming book Iran: from a Per-

sian Empire to an Islamic Repub-

lic (Open University of Israel

Press). In addition, he is the co-

editor of Religious Fanati-

cism (Zalman Shazar Center,

2007); Palestinian Collective

Memory and National Identi-

ty (Palgrave-McMillan);

and The Sunna and Shi‘a in

History Division and Ecumenism

in Islam (Palgrave-McMillan,

2011). Dr. Litvak received his

doctorate from Harvard

University in 1991.

Said Sayrafiezadeh visited

the Academy on April 18 de-livering a lecture on the multi-

ple layers of identity that are

often at odds with common stereotypes we hold regard-

ing those of Iranian origin.

Born in Brooklyn in 1968 to an Iranian father and a Jewish

American mother he grew up

most of his life in Pittsburgh and in New York City. Both of

parents were active members

of the Socialist Workers Party and his father holds the dis-

tinction of having run for Presi-dent of Iran not long after the

Iranian Revolution. Midshipmen

AMB Limbert from Page One

Page 9

Volume 3, Issue 2

mention of the U.S. Embassy

takeover and detention of American diplomatic personnel

several months before that had

led to those events.

Although Pickering did not chal-

lenge Khaza’i directly on his omission, he gently reminded the

Iranian representative that recit-

ing lists of historical grievances was not necessarily the most

productive way to deal with the

present impasse. In these ex-changes, the students saw for

themselves just how difficult the relationship has become and

how each side appears to in-

habit a separate universe in which the concerns of the other

are of no importance.

Here are some selected student comments:

“It seemed that according to Khaza’I, while Iran keeps saying

it wants to negotiate, Iran at the

same time is refusing to negoti-ate under the pretense that the

U.S. is pressuring them.”

“..the ambiguousness of

Khaza’i’s answers and his inabil-

ity to answer some questions directly allowed me to truly

understand the predicament that

Iran is currently in. While this talk did not make me more

hopeful of future U.S.-Iran rela-

tions, it allowed me an oppor-tunity to see bilateral relations

in Iran’s perspective.”

“This discussion was an eye-

opening experience in for-eign relations for me. It was

quite interesting to see how

Iran thinks of the U.S. and how they believe that things

should be in the world. It

seemed as though the two countries are a long way

from solving any issues.”

“The Asia Society forum was

my first taste of live diplo-

macy. I expected it to be congenial meeting between

two diplomats who spoke with political correctness and

tried their best to avoid any

controversy. This, however, was not the case. The

discussion was at times

intense and demonstrat-ed to the audience the

hostility and lack of

understanding that ex-ists between the United

States and Iran.”

“I thought that

[Khaza’I’s] ‘gun to the head’

analogy was very interest-ing…I can understand how

any nation would view one

or more U.S. aircraft carriers sitting near their coast at all

times as a ‘gun to the head.’

I don’t think we need to stop, but it would help if we didn’t

get offended when another

nation calls it what it is.”

“Thus we are at a stalemate. Should the U.S. remove its

from the other? Why are

officials from the two coun-tries not speaking to each

other? And why have Irani-

an and American officials been unable to converse—

except on the rarest of occa-

sions—for over thirty years?

Both the tone and content of

the presentations gave the students insight into the com-

plex world of Iranian-

American relations. Picker-ing— the United States’ most

experienced and respected professional diplomat—

made some brief suggestions

for a path forward on U.S.-Iranian relations in general

and on the difficult issue of

Iran’s nuclear program. He spoke without blaming any-

one and with obvious respect

for his Iranian counterpart. Khaza’I —while returning

Pickering’s respect and cour-

tesy—recited a list of Iran’s grievances against the Unit-

ed States going back to the

CIA-sponsored coup against Prime Minister Mohammad

Mosaddegh in 1953.

Khaza’i’s list was a long one, and in addition to the usual

complaints included some

oddities, such as the state-ment that “the United States

unilaterally broke diplomatic

relations in April 1980 and a few days later violated Ira-

nian sovereignty with its mili-tary forces.” There was no

H.E. Houda Nonoo KJH Lecture Continued from Page 7

Academic Year, 2013-2014: Fall Events

Page 10


lated into practice at various times and places. The book is intended as an introduction to the subject both for peo-ple interested in Middle Eastern and Islamic history, and for those interested in the study of charity and phi-lanthropy who wish to broaden their understanding of their different expressions in human societies. Dr. Amir Hussain: Prof. Amir Hussain’s areas of scholarly interest include the study of Islam and compara-tive religions. He is the au-thor of Oil and Water: Two Faiths, One God (Wood Lake Books). He is editor of the third edition of the textbook World Religions: Western Traditions (Oxford University Press), and coeditor-in-chief (along with Rick Talbott) of Cascade's History of Reli-gions Series (Wipf and Stock). He also serves on the editorial boards of the Springer book series Global Networks: Contemporary

Studies in Muslim Communities and of three journals: Com-parative Islamic Studies, the Journal of Religion, Conflict, and Peace, and Contemporary Islam: Dynamics of Muslim Life. Professor Hussain has been an active member of the AAR, having served on the Research Grants Jury and the Centennial Advisory Com-mittee.

was officially welcomed as an honorary member of the Board of Directors of the U.S.-Bahrain Business Council.

Throughout her career she has worked to improve work-ing conditions in factories, raise awareness of the rights of women and children, cam-paigned for family and do-mestic law, and raised awareness of the plight of domestic workers.

During Fall semester Academ-ic Year 2013, the Center for Middle East and Islamic Stud-ies will continue its Kylan Jones Huffman Memorial Lec-ture Series. While still under development we hope to have the following world-renowned academics visit during the months of August and September: Dr. Amy Singer: Prof. Singer hails from the Department of Middle Eastern and African History, Tel Aviv University and is a well-regarded specialist on Otto-man Studies. Currently she is writing a book on charity in Islamic societies, which is in-tended as an introduction to the subject. It includes discus-sions of the religious basis and textual discussions of charity, particularly as they appear in the Qur’an and the hadith, the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad, together with historical examples of how these ideas were trans-

tion within the Kingdom’s

Shura council appointed by His Majesty the King, Shaikh

Hamad Bin Salman Al Khalifa

in 2006.

Ambassador Nonoo is one of the founding members of Bah-rain Human Rights Watch So-ciety (BHRWS) established in November, 2004, elected General Secretary in Septem-ber 2005. On October 10, 2008 Ambassador Nonoo

Affiliated Faculty

۞Dr. Hayden Bellenoit, History South Asia

۞Dr. Hezi Brosh, Language Studies Arabic and Hebrew Language

۞Dr. Thomas Burgess, History Africa

۞Dr. Clarissa Burt, Language Studies Arabic Language and Literature

۞Dr. Salwa Elgebaly, Language Studies Arabic Language

۞CAPT Mark Hagerott, History South Asia

۞Dr. Wayne Hsieh, History Military History

۞Dr. Gabriel N. Karpouzian, Aerospace Eng Contemporary Middle East

۞Dr. Elizabeth Knutson, Language Studies Franco-Arab Studies

۞AMB John Limbert, Class of 1955 Chair Iran and Middle East

۞CAPT Jeff Macris, History Gulf and Middle East

۞LTJG Ayman, Mottaleb, Language Studies Arabic Language

۞Ms. Jocelyn Owens, Language Studies Arabic Language

۞Dr. Helen Purkitt, Political Science Africa Studies

۞Mr. Mark Reese, DepDir, CMEIS Central Asia

۞CDR Thomas Robertson, History COIN, Irregular Warfare

۞Dr. Sanaa Sadek, Language Studies Arabic Language

۞Dr. Thomas Sanders, History Russia and Central Asia

۞Dr. Ermin Sinanovic, Political Science Southeast Asia and Islam

۞Dr. Joseph Thomas, Leadership Military Ethics

۞Dr. Ernest Tucker, History Islamic Civilization and History

۞Dr. Brian VanDeMark US Diplomatic and Political History

۞Mr. Steve Ward, Leadership Contemporary Middle East

۞Dr. Brannon Wheeler, Director, CMEIS Islam and History of Religions

۞Dr. Deborah Wheeler, Political Science Contemporary Middle East

Faculty Affiliated with CMEIS

Page 11

Volume 3, Issue 2

۞Mark Reese– Currently developing course material on the Caucuses and Central Asia

۞Ernie Tucker– Middle East History textbook

۞Brian VanDeMark– Recent publication of American Sheikhs

۞Deborah Wheeler– Continues research on Food Security issues through a Fulbright in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE

۞Ermin Sinanovic– Turkish and Israeli investment in Bosnia, and Islamist politics in Malaysia

۞Clarissa Burt– Research on pre-Islamic Arabic in Oman

۞Brannon Wheeler– Buddhism in Russia and History of Judaism course in Korea, Cambodia and China

Recent Faculty Curriculum Development

106 Maryland Avenue Annapolis, MD 21402

Phone 410-293-2993 Fax 410-293-2994 Email: [email protected]

In its seventh year the Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies con nues to enhance the educa-onal opportuni es of midshipmen through suppor ng interna onal and regional study, curricular

innova on, fleet ac vi es, and as a center for resources on all aspects of the Middle East and the cultures historically related to the region. Since its incep on, the Center has hosted close to 150 lec-tures reaching an es mated 25,000 midshipmen. Faculty affilia on with the Center has grown to more than 24, from six academic departments, who have developed more than 50 new courses and traveled to dozens of countries in the region and around the world in support of their teaching.

Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies

U . S . N A V A L A C A D E M Y

boot from the snake’s neck and risk it turning around and biting us? Should Iran trust that if it gives way

in even the slightest, the U.S. simply won’t use its boot to squash it completely?”

What the students heard from the Iranian side they did not always like or accept. But they received a

new appreciation that international relations often involves contradictory views of the world – views that we need to understand even if we do not agree with them.

AMB Limbert, from Page 9

CENTER FOR MIDDLE

EAST AND ISLAMIC

STUDIES

Director Brannon Wheeler 410-293-6307

[email protected]

Deputy Director

Mark Reese 410-293-2990 [email protected]

Administrative Manager

Christopher Simpson 410-293-2993

[email protected]

www.usna.edu/MiddleEast

Documents

Usna center for middle east and islamic studies, spring 2013