I study the institutions, discourses, and technologies through which states project and legitimise power — and bring that research to classrooms, governments, and millions of viewers across the Arab world.
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I am an Assistant Professor of International Politics and Security at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies and a researcher at the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies (ACRPS). I also hold an Honorary Research Fellowship at the University of Exeter's Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies.
My scholarship operates at the intersection of intelligence studies, security governance, and the geopolitics of technology. I examine how states construct, deploy, and legitimise covert power — and how emerging technologies are reshaping that landscape particularly for small and medium states.
Before academia, I served in practitioner roles with the U.S. Department of State, the UK Ministry of Defence, and other governmental bodies — experience that grounds my research in the operational realities of security institutions and informs a distinctive bridging of theory and practice.
As a trilingual scholar (Arabic, English, Kurdish), I bring research to diverse publics through regular commentary on Al Jazeera, CNN, BBC, and Arabic-language television, reaching millions of viewers.
Historical and institutional analysis of intelligence apparatuses, with emphasis on under-explored entities in the Middle East and North Africa. My forthcoming Cambridge University Press monograph traces the covert history of Iraq's intelligence system.
How states deploy security labels — particularly the "terrorist" designation — to define legitimacy, suppress dissent, and shape conflict dynamics. My Routledge monograph examines this through the PKK case in Türkiye.
Governance of AI, cyber power, and digital sovereignty — with particular focus on how small and medium states develop digital offset strategies. Exploring algorithmic warfare, surveillance capitalism, and tech-enabled state control.
Inside Story, news analysis, and opinion pieces on Middle East security, intelligence dynamics, Iran-US tensions, and the Syria transition.
View contributions →Interviewed by Richard Quest on regional security developments including Israeli strikes and Gulf security architecture.
"In the Frame — Intelligence in International Politics" (2026) and regular appearances reaching 2M+ Arabic-speaking viewers on intelligence, security, and geopolitics.
Documentaries, long-form interviews, and live analysis. Featured on the Albasheer Show (2024) and Al-Sharq Podcast on Iraqi militias. Op-eds in Al Jazeera English and multiple policy outlets.
Writing-intensive, methods-forward courses that foreground both theory and practice. Student evaluations consistently rated 4.7–4.9/5, with teaching validated by QAA and FIBAA accreditation reviews.
I design open-source, browser-based simulations that put students in decision-making roles within complex geopolitical scenarios. My "Digital Deterrence" framework, demonstrated at Georgetown University Qatar, allows students to engage with cyber conflict, escalation dynamics, and intelligence analysis through interactive scenarios.
Simulations include UN debates on lethal autonomous weapons, crisis negotiations, intelligence failure analysis, and policy-memo exercises. I also integrate an "AI ledger" approach where students disclose and critically evaluate their use of generative AI — transforming it into a learning object rather than a policing problem.
Designing and delivering applied courses for U.S. diplomats at the Department of State, executive training for Qatar's National Cyber Security Agency (cyber diplomacy, AI ethics, international law), and instructing at the Qatar Police Academy and Ministry of Interior.
Research and teaching in intelligence, security governance, and emerging technologies. Core member of the design committee for the Executive Master in Security and Strategic Studies (launching September 2026).
Designing and delivering applied courses for U.S. diplomats on Iraqi politics, security institutions, and intelligence dynamics.
Cyber diplomacy, AI ethics, and international law for mid- and senior-level professionals.
Postgraduate teaching in criminal sciences.
International law, human rights, cybersecurity governance, and intelligence-led policing.
Undergraduate teaching: The History and Political Development of Iraq; Armed Islamist Movements: Jihadism and Beyond.
Security advisory, interagency coordination, and decision-support analysis during post-conflict operations in Iraq.
I welcome enquiries about research collaboration, media commentary, speaking engagements, and graduate supervision in intelligence studies, security, and technology politics.