January 31, 2011 — The fast-moving political events in Tunisia and Egypt will be the topic of a panel discussion at the University of Virginia on Thursday from 5 to 7 p.m. in the auditorium of the South Lawn Commons Building.

Tunisian President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali was ousted Jan. 14 by a popular revolt. Egypt erupted in anti-government protests Jan. 25 over the 30-year rule of President Hosni Mubarak, who responded by dissolving his government and swearing in a new cabinet. Protestors want Mubarak to step down.
The Center for International Studies is sponsoring "Revolution in Tunisia, Egypt and Beyond: Democracy on the Horizon?" The event is free and open to the public and media.
Speakers include:
•    Middle East expert William Quandt, Edward R. Stettinius Jr. Professor of Government and Foreign Affairs in the College of Arts & Sciences;
•    Nejib Ayachi, president of the Washington, D.C.-based Maghreb Center, a non-profit organization formed to increase understanding of the North Africa in the United States;
•    Tunisian poet Miled Faiza, a U.Va. lecturer in Middle Eastern and South Asian Languages and Cultures;
•    and a panel of U.Va. students from Tunisia and Egypt.