SOAS Middle East Institute names new Director

SOAS is pleased to announce Adam Hanieh, Professor of Political Economy and Global Development, as the new Director of the SOAS Middle East Institute.

Professor Hanieh will be joining from the Institute of Arab & Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter. He is also the Joint Chair in Middle East Studies at the Institute of International and Area Studies (IIAS) at Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.

The SOAS Middle East Institute (SMEI) brings together leading experts in the worlds of scholarship, practice, and policy to foster meaningful exchanges among diverse stakeholders and craft creative solutions to global challenges.

Professor Adam Hanieh said: “I am thrilled to be joining SOAS as Director of the SOAS Middle East Institute. At a time of such profound global challenges, I look forward to working with colleagues at SOAS and beyond to position SMEI at the forefront of scholarly debate and public engagement on the region.”

Professor Laura Hammond, Deputy Vice Chancellor Research & Knowledge Exchange, said: “Our expertise on the Middle East has a critical role to play in the current global climate. We are very pleased to be welcoming Adam back to SOAS to lead the SOAS Middle East Institute and look forward to seeing the Institute further strengthen its impact under his leadership.”

Prior to joining Exeter, Professor Hanieh was a Professor of Development Studies at SOAS for 10 years and was a founding member of the Centre for Palestine Studies and active in the London Middle East Institute. His current research focuses on oil and capitalism, energy transitions, and the political economy of the Middle East. Professor Hanieh’s most recent book is Crude Capitalism: Oil, Corporate Power, and the Making of the World Market (Verso Books 2024).

Professor Hanieh will be in post from February 2026.

Image by Kenneth Coffie via Unsplash