Two representatives of the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces will visit campus for a Wednesday evening discussion about the Syrian uprising. Their visit is sponsored by Elon's Center for the Study of Religion, Culture, and Society.
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Time: 5:30 p.m.
Room: Lakeside Meeting Rooms
Speakers:
Oubab Khalil, Chief of Staff for the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces’ Representative in Washington, D.C.
Bassel Korkor, U.S. Counsel to the Syrian Coalition’s Washington and United Nations Offices
The Syrian uprising erupted almost four years ago, with a full-throated scream for freedom and dignity after over 40 years of oppression. The Assad regime responded with shelling and destroying entire cities such as Homs and Aleppo. As a result of the power vacuum, a wave of islamists and jihadists entered Northern Syria to take control of the destroyed areas and to establish the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. The Islamic State controls its territory by creating fear and killing anyone that opposes it. More recently, the United States with its allies started fighting ISIL in Syria and Iraq. Sadly and despite the international intervention, the future for Syria is unclear and generations of children are lost. Since the uprising started, over 250,000 people have died, half of the population of Syria has been forced to abandon homes, and 3.8 million people are residing in refugee camps having to endure hunger and cold. The United Nations declared the Syrian crisis as the “Biggest Humanitarian Emergency of Our Era.” Our visiting experts will help us take a closer look at the current crisis in Syria.
This event is sponsored by the Center for the Study of Religion, Culture, and Society.
About the speakers:
Oubab Khalil is the Chief of Staff for the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces’ Representative Office in Washington, D.C. A Syrian attorney and businessman, Khalil has a degree in law and business administration from the Beirut Arabic University. He was active in the Day After Project, a cooperative movement by members of the Syrian opposition to outline a plan to rebuild the country and end the Syrian conflict once Bashar al-Assad is ousted from power. Khalil was elected and served on the boards of the Syrian Expatriates Organization and the Syrian Support Group. He recently participated in the “We Are All Syrians” Conference in Cairo and Geneva peace conference on Syria.
BASSEL KORKOR, Legal Director
Bassel Korkor is a Syrian-American attorney and serves as U.S. Counsel to the Syrian Coalition’s Washington and United Nations offices. He advises the Coalition on various legal and policy issues, including sanctions compliance, economic development and diplomatic matters. Korkor has been advising Syrian opposition groups, businesses, and humanitarian aid organizations throughout the course of the revolution. He is a partner at ZKT Law in Washington, D.C., and previously practiced in the National Security and Political Law group at Arnold & Porter and Corporate Litigation at Jones Day. He majored in international studies with a focus on Middle East at Northwestern University, and he studied lLaw and Arabic at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, where he served as an editor on the law review and graduated cum laude.