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Tarek Masoud.

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Campus & Community

Engaging in the heated core

Liz Mineo

Harvard Staff Writer


5 min read

Tarek Masoud’s ‘Middle East Dialogues’ ignited numerous discussions — particularly on the significance of having them

A segment of a series focusing on community-driven initiatives to encourage dialogue across the campus.

One week following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led incursions into Israel, Middle East authority Tarek Masoud orchestrated a well-attended discussion with decision-makers and academics regarding the roots of the warfare and the potential future of the conflict-stricken area.

Masoud, who serves as the faculty director of the Middle East Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School, thought he was fulfilling his role in enlightening and fostering civil discourse on a polarizing subject. However, a few weeks later, an HKS student lamented in a Boston Globe opinion piece that Harvard should enhance its efforts to educate her about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Masoud began to receive similar grievances across the campus and felt surprised.

“Initially, I felt a strong anger because I had been diligently striving to create educational opportunities for our community on this matter,” Masoud, Ford Foundation Professor of Democracy and Governance, remarked. “But I ultimately realized there was a more profound truth in the student’s perspective, acknowledging that we hadn’t genuinely engaged in a meaningful discussion about this exceedingly intricate issue.”

To address this, Masoud initiated the “Middle East Dialogues” series last spring to facilitate discussions among individuals spanning the political spectrum of the Israel-Palestine issue. Masoud’s aim was to delve into the historical, political, religious, and cultural intricacies of the situation. Additionally, he sought to demonstrate how to conduct tough discussions about challenging subjects within the campus.

“Every single one of these speakers was invited not to be, quote-unquote, spotlighted or lauded, but to be scrutinized.”

“What students truly crave is to understand the most pivotal arguments on either side,” Masoud stated. “Rather than placing the speakers on panels, I intended to engage with them individually and deeply explore their viewpoints. I aspired to create a forum for us to express the debate freely.”

There was indeed debate. The dialogues garnered both praise and condemnation, with some of the fiercest criticisms aimed at Masoud for inviting Jared Kushner ’03, President Trump’s son-in-law and former Middle East advisor, along with Dalal Saeb Iriqat, Arab American University Palestine’s professor of diplomacy and conflict resolution, as guest speakers. Certain attendees objected to Kushner’s qualifications, while others rebuked Iriqat for her contentious remarks on X, which labeled the Oct. 7 terrorist act as a “normal fight for freedom.”

Looking back, Masoud noted that had he been aware of Iriqat’s posts in advance, he might have reconsidered her invitation. The backlash against her presence included hate mail directed at him and demands to cancel the event. Nevertheless, he ultimately chose to proceed, emphasizing that her opinions reflect a substantial faction of others globally and thus should be presented and thoroughly scrutinized.

“All of these speakers were brought here not to be, quote-unquote, platformed or praised, but to be questioned,” he stressed. “We routinely welcome various dignitaries and influential figures to Harvard, and often we simply celebrate them and our closeness to them. That’s never our objective. We should remain civil and courteous and even amicable, but also relentless in holding their feet to the fire.”

The whole Dialogues initiative served as a testament to Masoud’s commitment to free inquiry and diverse intellectual perspectives, as noted by Derek Penslar, William Lee Frost Professor of Jewish History and director of the Center for Jewish Studies.

“Tarek’s speaker series concerning Israel/Palestine has accomplished precisely what Harvard requires at this moment — assembling public figures and experts representing varied viewpoints, encouraging vibrant exchanges and respectful disagreements, and not evading challenging matters,” Penslar articulated in an email. “Tarek’s intellect, vigor, and compassion are inspiring.”

Students are eager to discover alternative perspectives, and faculty alongside administrators must furnish them opportunities to encounter a range of viewpoints, according to Masoud.

“Most of our students are earnest truth seekers,” Masoud reflected. “The reality is that it’s our obligation to our students to refrain from taking the simple route, which is to suppress anything that’s contentious. There exists an old American adage suggesting one should avoid discussing politics or religion at the dinner table. Well, if one asserts we shouldn’t address politics or religion at Harvard, they might as well shut down Harvard.”

Masoud intends to persist with the Dialogues in the spring, but he’s expanding its scope to encompass other pressing subjects, such as the rivalry among various Arab nations and Iran, the power struggle between the U.S. and China, and U.S. foreign strategy in the Middle East.

“In an intellectual setting like this, brimming with highly capable and intelligent individuals endeavoring to effect change in the world, you will encounter a plethora of contentious concepts, a wealth of debate, and numerous arguments,” Masoud observed. “Discussing such matters may not bring us joy, yet these challenging conversations possess the potential to enhance human happiness if they guide us nearer to the truth and closer to resolutions of these very complex issues.”

Highlights from Middle East Dialogues series

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