Trump and Palestine: Renowned Historian to Talk at Georgetown Qatar

Press release

Published January 14th, 2018 - 12:58 GMT

The lecture is free and open to the public and will be held at Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q) on Tuesday 16 January at 6:30pm.

At an upcoming talk at Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q), historian, social activist, and author Professor Ilan Pappé will discuss the opportunities and challenges facing Palestine during the term of President Donald Trump. The lecture, which is free and open to the public, will be held on Tuesday 16 January at 6:30 p.m. at GU-Q’s Education City campus.

Pappé is a professor of history and director of the European Center for Palestine Studies at the University of Exeter and an internationally recognized researcher focusing on the modern Middle East and Arab-Israeli conflict. His lecture aims to offer insight into the current and future impact of the Trump presidency, including opportunities that may arise from the recent controversial decision to move the location of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem.

“The talk will explain why the Trump decision was not all bad news, as it will force anyone involved in the Palestine question to rethink the peace process and the basic ideas underlining it, as Trump is taking out the U.S. from any mediating and meaningful role in the so-called peace process,” explained Pappé. “I hope the audience would open up after the talk for new thinking on the origins, essence, and possible future of the Palestine question.”

Pappé holds a Ph.D. from the University of Oxford and previously taught at Haifa University before joining the faculty at the University of Exeter in 2008. He is the author of more than 20 books on Palestine and the Middle East, with titles including The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine (which has been translated into 15 languages), A History of Modern Palestine, and On Palestine (with Noam Chomsky). His last book is The Biggest Prison on Earth: A History of the Israeli Occupation.

Background Information

Georgetown University in Qatar

Established in 1789 in Washington, DC, Georgetown University is one of the world’s leading academic and research institutions. Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q), founded in 2005 in partnership with Qatar Foundation, seeks to build upon the world-class reputation of the university through education, research, and service. Inspired by the university’s mission of promoting intellectual, ethical, and spiritual understanding, GU-Q aims to advance knowledge and provide students and the community with a holistic educational experience that produces global citizens committed to the service of humankind.

Located in Doha’s Education City, GU-Q offers the same internationally recognized Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service degree as Georgetown’s Capitol Campus in Washington, DC. This unique, interdisciplinary program prepares students to tackle the most important and pressing global issues by helping them develop critical thinking, analytic, and communication skills within an international context. GU-Q alumni work in leading local and international organizations across industries ranging from finance to energy, education, and media. The Qatar campus also serves as a residency and delivery location for the Executive Master’s in Emergency and Disaster Management along with the Executive Master’s in Leadership.