Iranians in Malaysia: Artist Asghar Yaghoubi and His "Journey Within"
Artist Asghar Yaghoubi, who was born in Shiraz, Iran, moved to Malaysia in 2008. An accomplished painter and sculptor, he also teaches art at the Cube Gallery, of which he is the founder and director. The gallery is the first and only art gallery in Southeast Asia owned by an Iranian.
Iranians in Malaysia: Batik Artist Pegah Jahangiri
Artist Pegah Jahangiri hails from Tehran, but is currently a doctoral student in visual arts at the University of Malaya, Malaysia. She recently spoke to MEI about her work with batik, strikingly dyed cloth found all over the world, but particularly popular and refined in Southeast Asia.
The Iranian Diaspora in Malaysia: Emergent Pluralism
The Iranian diaspora in Malaysia is incredibly diverse. Supporters of the Green Movement, students, individuals who fast and pray and those who do not know the direction of the qibla, clerics who promote secularism and those who promote the authority of the vilayat-i faqih, Iranian Kurds, Turks, and Arabs, journalists, artists, and environmentalists: all these—and more—constitute the community of Iranians who have fled or quietly moved to Malaysia.
In a speech on 23 May 2013, President Obama declared the war on terror over. “We must define our effort not as a boundless ‘global war on terror,’” he said, “but rather as a series of persistent, targeted efforts to dismantle specific networks of violent extremists that threaten America.”[1] He argued that al-Qa`ida is on the run in Afghanistan and Pakistan and no longer threatens the U.S. homeland.
Oman is strategically positioned across the Gulf of Oman from Iran, north of Yemen, and east of Saudi Arabia. It has arguably been able to secure its rapid economic growth—spurred by oil riches—by maintaining neutral, if not friendly, relations with these neighbors, including Iran. Yet while Oman has successfully kept itself neutral, it still inhabits a precarious location. It shares with Iran the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway that Iran has threatened to close due to its charged relations with the GCC countries and the United States, who rely on the Strait to transport oil to world markets.
The Middle East Institute Center for Turkish Studies’ Fourth Annual Conference on TurkeyPanel 4: The Turkey-Iran-Iraq NexusHenri J. Barkey, Lehigh UniversityAlireza Nader, RAND CorporationDenise Natali, National Defense UniversityModerator: Phebe Marr, Author and HistorianJune 14, 2013 3:30pm-5:00 pm
The Middle East Institute Center for Turkish Studies’ Fourth Annual Conference on TurkeyPanel 4: The Turkey-Iran-Iraq NexusHenri J. Barkey, Lehigh UniversityAlireza Nader, RAND CorporationDenise Natali, National Defense UniversityModerator: Phebe Marr, Author and HistorianJune 14, 2013 3:30pm-5:00 pm
The Middle East Institute Center for Turkish Studies’ Fourth Annual Conference on TurkeyPanel 4: The Turkey-Iran-Iraq NexusHenri J. Barkey, Lehigh UniversityAlireza Nader, RAND CorporationDenise Natali, National Defense UniversityModerator: Phebe Marr, Author and HistorianJune 14, 2013 3:30pm-5:00 pm
The Middle East Institute Center for Turkish Studies’ Fourth Annual Conference on TurkeyPanel 4: The Turkey-Iran-Iraq NexusHenri J. Barkey, Lehigh UniversityAlireza Nader, RAND CorporationDenise Natali, National Defense UniversityModerator: Phebe Marr, Author and HistorianJune 14, 2013 3:30pm-5:00 pm
The Middle East Institute Center for Turkish Studies’ Fourth Annual Conference on TurkeyPanel 4: The Turkey-Iran-Iraq NexusHenri J. Barkey, Lehigh UniversityAlireza Nader, RAND CorporationDenise Natali, National Defense UniversityModerator: Phebe Marr, Author and HistorianJune 14, 2013 3:30pm-5:00 pm
Interview with Indian Ambassador (ret.) Ranjit Gupta: Cairo, Egypt — The First Posting (1965-1968)
Even before I left India for Cairo, I had the impression that there was a special relationship between India and Egypt. Indeed, within a few weeks of my arrival in Cairo, I found tangible manifestations that it was indeed so and discovered many more in due course.
The Middle East Institute is proud to host MEI Scholar Dr. Charles Schmitz for a discussion about Yemen’s political future. Two years after the start of anti-government protests in Yemen, the country remains torn by political divisions and rivalries. Schmitz will examine the political challenges ahead and whether or not the country’s upcoming National Dialogue holds the key to stabilizing Yemen.
The Middle East Institute is proud to host MEI Scholar Dr. Charles Schmitz for a discussion about Yemen’s political future. Two years after the start of anti-government protests in Yemen, the country remains torn by political divisions and rivalries. Schmitz will examine the political challenges ahead and whether or not the country’s upcoming National Dialogue holds the key to stabilizing Yemen.
The Middle East Institute is proud to host MEI Scholar Dr. Charles Schmitz for a discussion about Yemen’s political future. Two years after the start of anti-government protests in Yemen, the country remains torn by political divisions and rivalries. Schmitz will examine the political challenges ahead and whether or not the country’s upcoming National Dialogue holds the key to stabilizing Yemen.
