Dr. Mokhtar Benabdallaoui

Dr. Mokhtar Benabdallaoui is professor of Islamic studies and director of the Doctoral Center for Studies in Politics and Religion at Hasan II University, in Casablanca. He is also founding director of the Center for Humanities Studies and Research, a Casablanca-based nongovernmental organization that carries out a broad range of activities under the auspices of the Forum Civil (Civic Forum), including civic education workshops, publication of Rihanat, a quarterly journal, and conferences on democratic reform. Dr. Benabdallaoui also sits on the board of directors of the Network of Democrats in the Arab World, a nonprofit organization registered in the United Kingdom in 2007. He has authored numerous articles and book chapters, including Contemprary Islam, which won a Moroccan Book Award in 2011, and he most recently supervised and edited a collective volume entitled Maghrebian Elites. During his fellowship, Dr. Benabdallaoui is studying the evolution, activities, and impact of Islamist parties in the Arab world and intends to publish his findings in the form of a book.

Presentations:

"Democratic Transition in the Middle East: Between Authoritarianism and Islamism," National Endowment for Democracy, July 12, 2012.

Publications:

"How To Stop Syria’s Warring Factions Tearing the Country Apart," The Guardian, April 24, 2012.