Books & Ideas - كتب وأفكار

I have 15 years experience in senior advisory for multilateral development organisations and financial institutions on geopolitics, political economy, geoeconomics, risk assessments and foresight exercises. I am the senior political counsellor for the Arab world and Türkiye at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). As the author of two critically acclaimed books — the internationally bestselling “”Egypt on the Brink” (Yale, 2010), published just three months before Egypt’s January 2011 uprising, and “Islamism: A History of Political Islam” (Yale, 2017) — I delve into transformative moments and ideologies shaping the Arab world and the wider Middle East. My documentary work includes acclaimed series for BBC Radio 4, such as “The Making of the Modern Arab World”, and a 12-episode programme for CNN Arabic on international affairs. I wrote a chapter in the European Commission’s Second Strategic Plan (2025-2027), and contributed to the foresight report of the EU’s Strategy and Policy Analysis System. My articles appeared in newspapers and magazines worldwide, including Foreign Affairs, Times, Le Figaro, The Japan Times, Singapore Straits, De Volksgrant, Ahram Weekly, and Cairo Review. Before focusing on writing and advisory work, I spent 12 years in strategy consulting and investment banking.