UA Experts Available to Comment on Threat of Terrorism

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Arabic news agency Al Jazeera aired an audiotape Thursday, Jan. 19, in which Osama bin Laden threatened more terrorist attacks in the United States. Bin Laden also offered the possibility of a long-term, conditional truce between Al-Qaeda, the terrorist organization he leads, and the U.S. government.

The University of Arkansas offers several experts on issues related to terrorism and events and politics in the Middle East:

Professor Brent L. Smith directs the Terrorism Research Center at the University of Arkansas and administers the nation’s most comprehensive database on terrorism in America, going back more than 20 years. The UA center is the only institution in the country to receive the FBI database of those indicted on charges related to terrorism, and research using the database has yielded information about the activities of terrorists and effective legal responses. Smith is available to comment on the threat of terrorism in the United States. Contact info: (479) 575-3401, bls@uark.edu 

Najib Ghadbian, associate professor of political science, provides political commentary for Al Jazeera on a regular basis. His area of expertise is the Middle East and U.S.-Mideast relations. Contact info: (479) 575-3860, ghadbian@uark.edu

Joel Gordon, associate professor of history, can speak on politics, religion and modern Islamic thought. In his most recent book, Revolutionary Melodrama in Egyptian Cinema, he explores the creation of revolutionary civic identity. Contact info: (479) 575-3001, joelg@uark.edu

Ted Swedenburg, professor of anthropology, is co-editor of the recently released Palestine, Israel, and the Politics of Popular Culture and studies popular culture in the Middle East, particularly in Israel and Palestine. Contact info: (479) 575-6624, tsweden@uark.edu

Ghadbian, Gordon and Swedenburg host a bi-weekly informal forum on the UA campus to discuss current issues and address questions about the Middle East.