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At London University's SOAS last Friday, the Middle East Monitor and the Jasmine Foundation had the honour of welcoming three MPs from post-revolutionary Tunisia, who brought with them a sense of the excitement and inspiration of the new politics and democracy in the post-Ben Ali era that the Arab Spring has ushered into their country. Tunisia being the birth-place of the Arab Spring with the tragic loss of young life in Sidi Bouzid, it was perhaps inevitable that the victors of the revolution would have much to share about life in politics in Tunisia, in a country free of repression. Perhaps the most inspiring factor of the evening was the all-female panel; all three of the Al-Nahda Party MPs are women, and included the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, Mehrezia Labidi, who has managed to attain the highest political office of any woman across the Arab world.

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Wadah Khanfar, the former Director General of Al-Jazeera, was the guest speaker for the Middle East Monitor's first public event of 2012. The topic he was invited to speak on was "Securing the Arab Revolutions: Opportunities and Dangers", and who better to talk about such an issue than him? Named as one of the most 'Powerful People in the World' by Forbes Magazine and ranked number one by Fast Company's "Most Creative People" list in 2011, Khanfar is leading the way among his contemporaries in every respect. He has been lauded as Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum (Davos) and was recognised as the 3rd most influential Arab in the world by Arabian Business as well as one of the most influential Muslims in the world (Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre). He certainly did not disappoint and he delivered a passionate and motivational talk to a packed audience at the Brunei Gallery in SOAS about the current and future status of the Arab World. Expertly chaired by Mehdi Hasan - senior political editor for the New Statesman - the evening was both informative and inspiring.

MEMO Summary

The Russell Tribunal on Palestine (RToP) is an international people's tribunal set up with the intention of seeking justice for the Palestinian people where governments and international institutions have failed to do so. By raising global levels of awareness it is hoped to put pressure on decision-makers to look at the facts surrounding Israel's oppression of Palestinians. Following two successful sessions in Barcelona and London, the third session was held in Cape Town. The tribunal considered the question, "Are Israel's practices against the Palestinian people in breach of the prohibition on Apartheid under International Law?"

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On Tuesday 11th October, the Middle East Monitor (MEMO) and the Cordoba Foundation (TCF) co-hosted the authors of the recent SpinWatch report on the spread of Islamophobia in the UK. The event took place in the House of Parliament and was sponsored by Simon Danczuk, MP for Rochdale, and chaired by the former foreign affairs editor for the Guardian, Victoria Brittain. The report entitled 'Cold War on British Muslims: An Examination of Policy Exchange and Centre of Social Cohesion' was presented by the co-authors Professor David Miller, Tom Griffin and Tom Mills, who briefly described their findings and their analyses. They were joined on the panel by Dr Robert Lambert, former head of the Muslim Contact Unit and co-director of the European Muslim Research Centre (EMRC) at the University of Exeter and a part time lecturer at the Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence (CSTPV) at the University of St Andrews.

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IslamExpo has held a dinner in honour of the ex-Director General of the Al-Jazeera Network at which Wadah Khanfar was congratulated for his impressive tenure at the Doha-based station. Hosting the event, Anas al-Tikriti of IslamExpo welcomed Mr Khanfar and thanked him for the work that he had done during his time at Al-Jazeera, reflecting on the development of the network under his influence. The host then invited a number of high-profile guests to share their appreciation of Wadah Khanfar's work at Al-Jazeera and his influence on the world of journalism.

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Last night the Middle East Monitor (MEMO) hosted Shaykh Rashid Ghanoushi – the previously exiled leader of Al-Nahda Party in Tunisia - for a roundtable meeting in the Houses of Parliament. Due to his political activities and involvement with the Nahda party, Ghanoushi, along with thousands of his compatriots, had been forced into political exile for over two decades but now, following the incredible public uprising in Tunisia which has inspired a rash of revolutions across the Arab world, Ghanoushi has finally returned to his Tunisian homeland.

MEMO/PSC event opens debate despite attempts at censorship

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The concerted Zionist campaign to smear the Middle East Monitor (MEMO) and the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) failed dismally last night as the two groups co-hosted one of their most successful public events to date. The topic up for discussion was "Complicity in Oppression - Does the Media Aid Israel?" The panellists consisted of Prof. Greg Philo who discussed his new book "More Bad News from Israel" (an excellent academic analysis of the media's skewed coverage of news coming out of Palestine-Israel); Tim Llewellyn, former BBC Middle East correspondent, and Abdel Barri Atwan, expert Palestinian commentator on the Middle East. The discussion was chaired by Victoria Brittain, former associate foreign editor of the Guardian.