Release date: Oct. 31, 2006
Contact: Elaine Justice at 404-727-0643 or elaine.justice@emory.edu

Emory Holds Public Conference on War in Iraq, Relation to Wider Middle East Conflict

What
"The War in Iraq—and the Wider Conflict." Sponsored by Emory's Institute for Comparative and International Studies

When
12:30-6 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2006

Where
Jones Room, Woodruff Library, 540 Asbury Circle, Emory.

Admission
Free and open to the public.

Parking
Fishburne Parking Deck, 1672 N. Decatur Rd., Emory.

Information
404-727-4663 or clopezg@emory.edu

One day after the midterm elections, internationally recognized speakers and scholars from Emory University will consider the ongoing implications of the war in Iraq at this public symposium. Speakers will address the historical, political and human aspects of the war, the ways it relates to the wider conflict in the Middle East and what the struggle portends for the future.

Presenters include:

• Ray Hinnebush and Rick Fawn, The University of St. Andrews, co-editors of "The Iraq War: Causes and Consequences"

• Juan R. I. Cole, University of Michigan, author of "Sacred Space and Holy War: the Politics, Culture and History of Shi'ite Islam" and the blog "Informed Comment" on issues of history, the Middle East and religion

• Nadje Al-Ali, University of Exeter, specialist on women and gender issues in the Middle East, especially Iraq and Iraqi women in the disaspora

• Julie Peteet, University of Louisville, author of "Landscapes of Hope, Landscapes of Despair: Place and Identity in Palestinian Camp"

• Augustus Richard Norton, Boston University, author of "Amal and the Shi'a: Struggle for the Soul of Lebanon"

• David Tal, Syracuse University, author of War in Palestine, 1948: Strategy and Diplomacy" and "Israel's Conception of Current Security—Origins and Development"

• Sasson Somekh, Emeritus Distinguished Professor of Arabic Literature, Tel-Aviv University, visiting scholar, Vanderbilt University, author of 14 books in English, Arabic and Hebrew, including "Baghdad, Yesterday" (English translation forthcoming) and "Genre and Language in Modern Arabic Literature"

• Emory faculty will serve as respondents.

Speakers will address the conflict across national and religious contexts, discuss historical parallels and contrasts, and consider the human experience of war and associated violence, including for women, children and the wider civilian population. The goal of the symposium, says Bruce Knauft, executive director of Emory's Institute for International and Comparative Studies, is to engage fresh scholarship and critical new insight concerning the war and its wider context, and to promote greater public awareness and understanding.

Emory University is known for its demanding academics, outstanding undergraduate college of arts and sciences, highly ranked professional schools and state-of-the-art research facilities. For nearly two decades Emory has been named one of the country's top 25 national universities by U.S. News & World Report. In addition to its nine schools, the university encompasses The Carter Center, Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Emory Healthcare, the state's largest and most comprehensive health care system.

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