Event on Iraq @ The Washington Institute

Thursday, Jan 18, 2007 at 5:30 PM

Event Name: The Oberlin Club of Washington, D.C.: Winter Term Panel

City/State: Washington, D.C.

Description: A Winter Term Panel
"Iraq: Where are we? Where are we going?"

Thursday, January 18, 2007 from 5:30-7:00 p.m.

The Washington Institute
for Near East Policy
1828 L Street, NW Suite 1050
Washington, DC
*Two blocks west of Farragut North on the Red Line
*Two blocks north of Farragut West on the Blue Line

The news headlines each day center on Iraq. Coverage focuses on Iraq's uncertain political future, American military casualties, and speculation that instability and terrorism will spread should the US mission "fail."

The Oberlin Club of Washington, DC has organized a panel to help us better understand the political, military, and regional implications that are unfolding in Iraq.

The panelists are:
--Bilal Wahab, who will offer his perspective on the internal political situation inside Iraq. Bilal is a Fulbright Scholar and an MA candidate at the American University. He is from the Kurdish region of Iraq. He has worked for news organizations, the UN, and election-monitoring groups in Iraq.

--MG Mike Pfister'57 (ret. US Army), who will offer his perspective on the military situation. He has been a consultant to various defense industries since his retirement from the Army in 1993. General Pfister served as: the Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, Headquarters, Department of the Army; Assistant Chief of Staff Intelligence, U.S. Army Europe and Seventh Army; and, Director of Intelligence for U.S. Central Command. He also held Politico-Military policy positions on the Middle East and Africa in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense and on the Army Staff. "Mike" was a philosophy major at Oberlin and edited the yearbook. His late wife Gail was his classmate.

--Tamara Cofman Wittes'91, who will offer her perspective on what developments in Iraq may portend for the region. Tamara is a research fellow at the Brookings Institutions, Saban Center for Middle East Policy. She has been a Middle East Specialist at the United States Institute of Peace, Director of Programs at the Middle East Institute, and an Adjunct Professor of National Security Studies at Georgetown University.

--Benjamin Shaw '96, who will provide a perspective on Congressional views. Ben works for Capitol News Connection covering Capitol Hill. He follows Congressional news for nearly 200 public radio stations around the country. He reports on military and veterans issues among other beats.

The moderator and host for the program is Patrick Clawson '73. Pat is Deputy Director for Research at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. His previous positions include five years as senior research professor at the National Defense University's Institute for National Strategic Studies and four years each as senior economist at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund.

Alumni and friends are invited to visit over wine and cheese.

To RSVP, please send an email to Clyde Owan'79 at: oclydeo@world.oberlin.edu

Location: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
1828 L Street, NW Suite 1050
Washington, DC