Month: April 2025

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News

Conference on ‘Communication in a world in conflict: narratives and resistance’

This seminar, in which Isabel Pérez Pérez, head of Communication for International Projects at the Euro-Arab Foundation, took part, brought together some 300 people, including students, teachers and professionals from the world of communication, to reflect on the role of journalism in the face of today’s global challenges.

In her speech, Isabel Pérez, an expert on the Palestine/Israel conflict, warned that ‘when you are outside the truth, you are in danger’, and described the pressures and limitations suffered by journalists in areas of serious conflict. His intervention took place in the dialogue ‘Protection of journalists at risk’ which, moderated by Lluís Caelles, head of the International section of TV3, also included interventions by Alfonso Bauluz, president of Reporters Without Borders Spain, and Mónica Cerbón, a Mexican journalist specialising in politics, human rights and the environment.

The event, presented by Anna Fajula Payet, Vice-Dean of the Faculty, Andrea Costafreda, Director General of Cooperation of the Generalitat de Catalunya, and Esther Zapater, Secretary General of the UAB, highlighted the need for critical education and the importance of building new narratives in the face of the invisibilisation of feminist and global justice agendas.

Various dialogues took place throughout the day, such as the one entitled ‘Journalism of peace and struggle’, moderated by Mònica Figueras, lecturer in the Department of Communication at the UPF, which brought together Xavier Giró, journalist and expert in conflict coverage, and journalist Patricia Simón, reporter and researcher specialising in human rights.

This was followed by ‘Narratives for a decolonial and feminist communication’, with the participation of Florencia González Brizuela, researcher in interculturality and feminisms, and Santiago Giraldo, expert in communication on conflicts in Latin America, under the moderation of Montse Santolino, journalist and communicator of Lafede.cat.

There was also a debate on ‘Hate speeches, disinformation and power’ with interventions by Nereida Carrillo, expert in disinformation, David Bou, journalist at La Directa and Carles Pont, specialist in risk and crisis communication, moderated by Sonia Herrera, expert in feminist studies.

More information on this conference at: 
https://www.uab.cat/web/sala-de-prensa/detalle-noticia/reflexion-y-transformacion-desde-el-relato-para-la-comunicacion-en-un-mundo-en-conflicto-1345830290069.html?detid=1345952450909
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News

International experts seek joint strategies against Islamophobia and Anti-Semitism

This week, the New Ground Research Foundation convened at the headquarters of the Euro-Arab Foundation a high-level reflection and debate on an urgent global challenge: the coordinated fight against Islamophobia and anti-Semitism.

During two intense days, a group of prominent experts from different nationalities and creeds met in Granada to analyze the convergences and divergences of these forms of racism, their political instrumentalization, explore innovative solutions and define strategies to fight them jointly and effectively.

The meeting held this week in Granada, culminated with a public session where the conclusions of the two days of debate held behind closed doors were presented, in which the need to build just societies free of hatred was highlighted.

This initiative of the New Ground Research Foundation is part of the agreement signed between the Executive Secretary of the Euro-Arab Foundation, Antonio Sanchez Ortega, and the President of the foundation, Khalid F. Al Khater, an agreement aimed at promoting and developing joint academic and research activities of international relevance.

The importance of this meeting is underlined in a context marked by increasing polarization, especially after the events of October 7, 2023. A scenario in which islamophobia and anti-Semitism have emerged as two of the most worrying and interconnected forms of racism, with significant repercussions in both the cultural and political spheres.

Debate with the public: a call for unity

The meeting culminated with a day open to the public, held at the Euro-Arab headquarters. Participants included Khalid F. Al Khater (president and founder of New Ground Research), Professor John L. Espósito (Georgetown University), Professor José Miguel Puerta Vílchez (University of Granada), Professor Dalia Fahmy (Long Island University) and Professor Dov Waxman (UCLA). The round table was moderated by Barbara Boloix, Deputy Secretary of the Euro-Arab Foundation.

During this public session, the results of the debate and analysis developed by experts during the previous days were presented. The repercussions of Islamophobia and anti-Semitism in both the cultural and political spheres were highlighted, as well as the use of conspiracy theories to mobilize audiences predisposed to social fracture. As the main avenue of solution, the participants proposed the reengagement of the Jewish and Muslim communities, and the alignment of strategies to build a future and just societies, free of stereotypes, racism and hate speech.

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IN2PREV-en News

Human Rights and Refuge: Essential Training for Frontline Professionals

From March 25 to 27, a training seminar took place in Bratislava, Slovakia, framed within the European project IN2PREV, of which the Euro-Arab Foundation is a part. This initiative supports the improvement of the skills of security forces and non-governmental organizations working on the frontlines with refugees and asylum seekers, in the prevention of radicalization. The Euro-Arab Foundation researcher, Lucía Alonso Pérez, participated with a presentation that delved into the practices of preventing violent extremism to ensure their compliance with fundamental rights and ethical principles. In her speech, she addressed issues such as respect for human dignity, the right to non-discrimination and privacy, and the importance of ensuring access to international protection. Furthermore, she highlighted the need to implement action protocols that prioritize the protection of the rights of refugees, especially those in vulnerable situations.

Lucía Alonso Pérez, Euro-Arab Foundation’s researcher, during her intervention in the training

The event served to exchange experiences and improve the capacity to prevent and identify the factors of vulnerability to radicalization in refugees and asylum seekers, to transform these vulnerabilities into protection factors.

About IN2PREV

The European project IN2PREV, with the participation of the Euro-Arab Foundation and partners from various countries, seeks to prevent the radicalization of refugees and asylum seekers by facilitating their integration and early detection of risk factors. Faced with the growing refugee crisis in Europe, aggravated by conflicts and the pandemic, the project focuses on improving cooperation between security forces and NGOs, developing tools to assess vulnerability, implementing mentoring programs, and training frontline professionals.

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EN Conflicto armado EN Derechos de la mujer EN Diversidad cultural EN Efectos politicos y socioculturales EN Multiculturalidad News

Intervention by Jusaima Moaid-azm, member of the Anna Lindh Foundation and researcher at the Euro-Arab Foundation, at the Forum on the Future of the Mediterranean

In her intervention, part of the second session dedicated to “Specific Challenges Posed by Migratory Flows in the Mediterranean Region,” Jusaima Moaid-Azm Peregrina, Euro-Arab Foundation researcher and member of the Spanish networkf of Anna Lindh, addressed migratory challenges in the Mediterranean from a human rights and regional co-responsibility perspective, emphasizing the need to move towards fairer, more inclusive, and sustainable migration policies.

This session, held on April 3rd, was moderated by the Vice-President of the Egyptian House of Representatives, Mohamed Aboueleneen, and featured the notable participation of the Secretary of State for Migration, Pilar Cancela Rodríguez.

The sessions of the Forum on the Future of the Mediterranean, held from April 2nd to 4th in Granada, were opened by King Felipe VI and included the participation of high-ranking representatives from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean (PA-UfM).

This forum, organized under the Spanish presidency of the Assembly, serves as a key platform to address issues such as migration, climate change, youth employment, and gender equality.

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News Projects VANGUARD

Euro-Arab Foundation at EU Agency for Law Enforcement Training Scientific Conference

The CEPOL (The EU Agency for Law Enforcement Training) Scientific Conference, a crucial platform for disseminating cutting-edge research and fostering collaboration among key stakeholders in the European security landscape, took place in Ostia, Rome, from March 25th to 27th.

The conference attracted a distinguished audience comprising prominent figures from law enforcement agencies, academic institutions, and international organizations. Notably, the event witnessed the participation of Julia Viedma, the Head of the Operational and Analysis Centre at Europol, who demonstrated a keen interest in the project’s practical applications for enhancing operational effectiveness. Magnus Brunner, the Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration at the European Commission, also attended, underscoring the project’s strategic importance in shaping EU policy on migration and security.

Karen Hough, a researcher at the Euro-Arab Foundation for Higher Studies presented the results of the Horizon Europe VANGUARD, a project which aims to enhance the understanding and response to the complex challenges posed by human trafficking networks. With a Consortium of seven Police and Border Guard Authorities (including from countries of origin and transit of THB networks and countries neighbouring Ukraine), one Police Academy, eight research/academic institutions, four industry partners (including two SMEs), two CSOs, and one International Organisation, VANGUARD delivers a strong representation of the challenges, requirements, and tools to meet its objectives.

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EUKH EN News RADICALIZACION EN

The Yearbook of Jihadist Terrorism and the Struggle for the Dignity of Victims

On March 25th, the presentation of the 2024 Yearbook of Jihadist Terrorism of the International Observatory for Terrorism Studies (OIET) took place at the Ateneo de Madrid, a report that serves to understand the evolution that jihadism is having, as well as its most prominent trends and dynamics. This year, this yearbook is nourished by seven chapters that shed light on global jihadist terrorism, jihadist activity in the Maghreb and West Africa and Southeast Asia, the fight against jihadism in Spain and Europe, or justice focused on the victims and survivors of the Yazidi genocide and experiences of restorative justice in countries such as the Philippines, Spain, Colombia, or Nigeria, potentially applicable to societies impacted by jihadist terrorism.

A Decade of Yazidi Genocide

The researcher from the Euro-Arab Foundation for Higher Studies, Daniel F. Pérez García, is the author of chapter 6 dedicated to the analysis of the Yazidi genocide a decade after it occurred to explore how to implement victim-centered justice, addressing its lasting effects with a future vision of protecting the fundamental rights and needs of the Yazidi people.

In this chapter, the Foundation researcher exposes the crimes perpetrated by the self-proclaimed Islamic State against the Yazidi people in Iraq and Syria, examining the psychosocial impact on the victims and the community and their demands for holistic reparation. The approach to the traumatic impact of these events on the Yazidi community is particularly unique, especially aggravated in women survivors of sexual violence during the conflict. Furthermore, Pérez García explores the fundamental principles for a transitional justice response focused on Yazidi victims and survivors, which involves the comprehensive management of displaced persons and the disappeared, socio-health care, the construction of memory, and the participation of victims and survivors in accountability. To do this, he enriches his analysis with interviews with specialists in International Law, mental health, and armed conflicts, such as Amnesty International, the Institute of Forensic Psychology, Human Rights Watch in Iraq, and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on counter-terrorism and human rights. These multidisciplinary perspectives – the author defends – allow reinforcing justice mechanisms and preventing the repetition of these crimes.

Likewise, this chapter seeks to raise awareness in the international community about the seriousness of these crimes, reflecting on a decalogue of priority areas to achieve effective justice focused on Yazidi victims and survivors.