AGSI Welcomes New Non-Resident Fellows

WASHINGTON, October 26, 2026 – The Arab Gulf States Institute is pleased to announce that Hatem Alzahrani, Nour Eid, and Jesse Marks have joined the institute as non-resident fellows. 

Hatem Alzahrani is a Saudi scholar and cultural advisor. His work explores Saudi Arabia’s cultural transformations within the wider history and cultures of the Arabian Peninsula, with particular attention to identity, cultural policy, and international cultural relations. A writer and literary critic, Alzahrani publishes in Arabic and English on literature, culture, and international affairs. His long-standing engagements with Aramco’s King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) include supervising content and international engagement for the bilingual “The Mu’allaqat for Millennials” project, bringing Arabic literary heritage to new generations and global audiences. His scholarship examines the role of literature and cultural narratives in shaping modern Saudi identity and includes a contribution to The Routledge Handbook of Arabic Poetry (2024). His poetry has been translated into other languages, and his collection “Celebrating the Dual at Yale” explores belonging and encounters between Arabic and American cultural worlds. He holds an MA from Yale and a PhD from Georgetown and has completed executive education at the Harvard Business School.  

Alzahrani said, “My connection with AGSI goes back to an open house I attended in its early days while pursuing my PhD at Georgetown. I have stayed connected ever since, drawn especially to the institute’s commitment to broadening Washington’s conversation about the Gulf beyond the familiar concerns of oil and security. Over the years, the institute’s analyses and my conversations with its scholars have enriched my perspective and informed my work. 

I particularly value AGSI’s thoughtful engagement with cultural questions and their wider significance for policy and international relations. I’m grateful to the AGSI team for welcoming me, to Kristin Smith Diwan for our conversations about Saudi Arabia’s cultural transformations, and to Mary Casey-Baker for her editorial care. 

Joining as a non-resident fellow builds on my past contributions to AGSI and marks a meaningful next step in a long-standing friendship. I look forward to working with my colleagues and contributing to a fuller understanding of Saudi Arabia and the wider Gulf.” 

AGSI Executive Vice President William Roebuck said, “We’re delighted to welcome Hatem as a non-resident fellow. He’s maintained a sustained relationship with AGSI since his student days. Most recently, through an interview with fellow Non-Resident Fellow Sean Foley, he contributed a fascinating assessment of the connections and migrations between classic literary works like ‘The Odyssey’ and ‘The Mu’allaqat’ using a discussion of the recent Christopher Nolan film as a starting point. The conversation ranged from the Saudi audience reaction to the film and the structure of classical odes in pre-Islamic poetry to T.S. Eliot and video games. It constituted a distinguished example of AGSI’s mission to build bridges of understanding between the peoples and policymakers of the Gulf Arab states and their counterparts in the United States.“  

Nour Eid is a senior consultant in business intelligence based in Paris. Her research focuses on strategic competition in the Gulf region, with a focus on the nexus between nuclear energy and proliferation. She is involved in Track 1.5 and Track 2 discussions on issues revolving around arms control and energy security in the Middle East, and her work is featured by various think tanks and media outlets, including the French Institute of International Relations, the Stimson Center, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, and L’Orient-Le Jour. She holds a master’s in international security from Sciences Po Paris and a bachelor’s in political studies and international law from the American University of Beirut. 

Eid said, “I am very excited to be joining AGSI as a non-resident fellow, particularly at a time when the entire region is undergoing profound changes. As the regional security architecture is being redrawn and energy and economic diversification plans are facing new challenges, the need for dialogue and new approaches is more urgent than ever. 

AGSI has long played a valuable role in fostering these conversations, offering nuanced insights into the diverse perspectives of Gulf states to a wider audience while helping bridge divides both within the region and between regional and international actors. I look forward to contributing to these important discussions and to engaging with the AGSI community.” 

Roebuck said, “Nour’s appointment as a non-resident fellow is perfectly timed: Her analysis of the region’s evolving security architecture, as it is stress tested by the current conflict with Iran, alongside her work on the shaping nexus of nuclear energy, proliferation, and strategic competition offer avenues of rich insight into a region undergoing profound change. We are delighted to welcome Nour and the accomplishment and promise she brings to AGSI.” 

Jesse Marks is the founder of Rihla Research & Advisory LLC, an international consulting firm focused on the Middle East and Asia. He is also a PhD student at the Australian National University. He previously served as a Middle East policy advisor at the U.S. Department of Defense. 

Marks said, “I am thrilled to join the Arab Gulf States Institute as a non-resident fellow at a pivotal moment for the Gulf’s technology and future economic development. As global demand for computing power and energy to support AI continues to grow, the Gulf states are positioned to play an increasingly important role in the future of AI. At the same time, the ongoing war with Iran has raised important questions about the resilience, security, and long-term sustainability of the region’s technological ambitions. 

AGSI has established itself as an important hub for policy-relevant research on the Gulf’s evolving role in the global economy, including its emerging AI ecosystems. I am particularly excited to build on this work and explore how Gulf states are developing their AI capabilities, navigating technological dependencies, and positioning themselves within an increasingly competitive global AI landscape. I look forward to working with Mary Casey-Baker, Ambassador Roebuck, Robert Mogielnicki, and the broader AGSI team to contribute to the institute’s work on one of the most consequential developments shaping the Gulf’s future.”  

Roebuck said, “We have been privileged to benefit from Jesse’s scholarship at this still early stage in his career. Jesse has brought fresh insight to cutting-edge technological issues, including AI development in the region, data center offshoring, and the ways Gulf states’ distinct structural advantages – from sovereign capital and accelerated permitting to land availability – shape their respective approaches to AI buildout. We look forward to continuing to draw on his expertise – now as a non-resident fellow – as he explores the regional dimensions of these and other frontier technologies.”  

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The Arab Gulf States Institute is an independent, nonprofit institution dedicated to highlighting the importance of the relationship between the United States and the Gulf region through free and open exchange of multiple points of view on issues that concern the Gulf.  

AGSI strives to support this goal by:  

• Providing expert analysis and thoughtful debate on the economic, energy, environmental, security, social, cultural, and political dimensions of the Gulf Arab states as well as their relations with the United States and other countries.  

• Informing a global audience of policymakers, legislators, businesspeople, academics, media, youth, and others as the foundation for strategic decisions regarding this important region.  

• Employing multiple avenues to inform public understanding of the importance of the relationship between the United States and the Gulf Arab states.  

• Encouraging strong academic coverage by developing scholars who concentrate on the study of the region.