Middle East Studies Association

Uzbekistan

May 02, 2018
Committee on Academic Freedom

Acquisition and Unethical Use of Documents Removed from Iraq by New York Times Journalist Rukmini Callimachi

Letter to the New York Times concerning Rukmini Callimachi’s series “The ISIS Files” that employs nearly 16,000 documents removed from Iraq by her and her team without permission of the relevant Iraqi authorities. In addition to the complete disregard for the myriad legal, professional, ethical, and moral issues involved, including endangering individuals by the reckless publication of unredacted documents, their removal from Iraq is a violation of a number of international customary laws.

April 30, 2018
Committee on Academic Freedom

Israel’s Administrative Detention of Birzeit University Student

Letter to Israeli state authorities expressing alarm about Israel’s mistreatment and administrative detention of Omar al-Kiswani, president of the Birzeit University student council. CAF deplores Israel’s practice of administrative detention as well as the conditions under which al-Kiswani is being held. They violate international humanitarian law, al-Kiswani's right to education, and they disrupt the university’s learning environment.

April 18, 2018
Committee on Academic Freedom

Exposing Canary Mission

MESA’s Committee on Academic Freedom has issued a resource guide for college and university leaders on actions they can take to counteract a secretive, political organization called Canary Mission that uses its website to engage in defamatory attacks against college students and faculty who engage in advocacy for Palestinian rights and academic inquiry about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

April 06, 2018
Committee on Academic Freedom

Continuing detention without trial of Ahmed Mansoor

Letter to UAE authorities regarding the one-year anniversary of the detention of Ahmed Mansoor, an internationally-acclaimed human rights activist and recipient of the 2015 Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, and drawing attention to the imprisonment of dozens of other academics, lawyers, opposition figures, and human rights activists in the UAE.

April 05, 2018
Committee on Academic Freedom

Protesting the sentencing of Professor Sadegh Zibakalam

Letter to Iranian authorities expressing concern regarding the sentencing of Professor Sadegh Zibakalam for his interview with Deutsche Welle Persian Service on the December 2017 protests in Iran.

April 04, 2018
Committee on Academic Freedom

Students detained and arrested over antiwar protest at Boğaziçi University

Letter to PM Yıldırım concerning the Boğaziçi University students who were detained and arrested over their peaceful antiwar protests.

March 21, 2018
Committee on Academic Freedom

Dismay over Cairo University’s Dismissal of Amr Hamzawy

Letter to Egyptian authorities and the president of Cairo University protesting the termination of the appointment of Dr. Amr Hamzawy of the Faculty of Economics and Political Science (FEPS).

March 13, 2018
Committee on Academic Freedom

Israel’s recent kidnapping of Birzeit University Student

Letter to Israeli authorities decrying their recent violent incursion onto Birzeit University and the arrest of Omar al-Kiswani, Palestinian, elected student council president.

March 01, 2018
Committee on Academic Freedom

Sentencing of human rights activist Nabeel Rajab to five years’ imprisonment

Letter to the King of Bahrain to protest sentencing of human rights activist Nabeel Rajab, about whom CAF has written several times, to five years’ imprisonment, as well as the multiple cases and charges he still faces.

February 28, 2018
Committee on Academic Freedom

Questionable death of Professor Kavous Seyyed Emami while in detention

Letter to Iranian authorities protesting the suspicious death in detention of Professor Kavous Seyyed Emami, and our calling upon their undertaking of a complete and thorough investigation of the circumstances of his untimely death.

February 16, 2018
Committee on Academic Freedom

New emergency decrees (KHK) 695 and 696

Letter to PM Yıldırım and President Erdoğan concerning the two new emergency decrees (KHK) 695 and 696 issued on 24 December 2017 in the Official Gazette, the first of which terminates the positions of 105 academic personnel from 36 universities and the second of which provides legal immunity to civilians who engage in violence under certain circumstances.Başbakan Yıldırım ve Cumhurbaşkanı Erdoğan'a hitaben, 24 Aralık 2017'de Resmi Gazete'de yayınlanarak 36 üniversitede 105 akademisyenin görevine son veren 694 sayılı Kanun Hükmünde Kararname (KHK) ve bazı eylemlere şiddet yoluyla müdahale eden sivillerin cezai sorumluluğunun kaldırılmasını öngören 696 sayılı KHK hakkında yazılmış mektup.

February 08, 2018
Committee on Academic Freedom

Fourth Letter on behalf of Dr. Ahmadreza Djalali, charged with crimes against state security

Latest letter on behalf of Dr. Ahmadreza Djalali, charged with crimes against state security, urging Iranian authorities to repeal his death sentence.

December 21, 2017
Committee on Academic Freedom

Alarm over Iranian Supreme Court upholding capital sentence of Dr. Ahmadreza Djalali on charges of espionage

Letter to Iranian authorities expressing alarm over the Supreme Court’s upholding of the capital sentence of Dr. Ahmadreza Djalali on charges of espionage.

December 13, 2017
Committee on Academic Freedom

Issuance of an arrest warrant against Professor Henri Barkey

Letter to PM Yıldırım concerning the issuance of an arrest warrant against Professor Henri Barkey.Başbakan Yıldırım'a hitaben, Henri Barkey hakkında çıkan yakalama kararı hakkında yazılmış mektup.

November 13, 2017
Committee on Academic Freedom

Attacks on academic advisors of Giulio Regeni

Letter regarding attacks in the Italian press on Prof. Maha Abdelrahman related to the death of PhD student Giulio Regeni.

November 08, 2017
Committee on Academic Freedom

Letter to Senators Lamar Alexander and Patty Murray

Letter to Senators Lamar Alexander and Patty Murray questioning Kenneth L. Marcus' fitness to serve as Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Education

November 02, 2017
Committee on Academic Freedom

New York University Response to Oct 27 Letter

NYU responds to letter sent to President Andrew Hamilton asking that the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) not be permitted to participate in the Naturejobs Career Expo sponsored by NYU because of its role in the repression of Turkish academics.

October 27, 2017
Committee on Academic Freedom

Urging NYU to not allow TUBITAK to participate in Naturejobs Career Expo

Please see our letter to NYU President Andrew Hamilton asking that the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) not be permitted to participate in the Naturejobs Career Expo sponsored by NYU because of its role in the repression of Turkish academics.

October 25, 2017
Committee on Academic Freedom

Urgent appeal to overturn conviction of Dr. Ahmadreza Djalali

Letter to Iranian authorities expressing alarm over the capital sentence of Dr. Ahmadreza Djalali on charges of espionage.

October 19, 2017
Committee on Academic Freedom

Recent conviction and sentence of Ismail Serageldin

Letter to Egyptian authorities expressing dismay over the recent conviction and sentence of Ismail Serageldin, Librarian Emeritus of the Library of Alexandria.

October 17, 2017
Committee on Academic Freedom

New indictment issued against Peace Petition Signatories

Letter to PM Yıldırım and President Erdoğan concerning a new indictment issued against Peace Petition signatories at Istanbul universities who now face 7.5 years in prison, if convicted.

October 16, 2017
Committee on Academic Freedom

Posters on UC Irvine campus accusing faculty and students

Letter calling on the chancellor of the University of California, Irvine, to take action in response to the posters put up on campus accusing certain faculty and students of being "terrorist supporters”.