Sami Moubayed

Sami Moubayed is a Syrian political analyst and author. He studied political science at the American University of Beirut (AUB) and obtained a PhD in Middle East Politics from the University of Exeter in Great Britain. While a student in college he authored his first book "The Politics of Damascus 1920-1946" and published it in 1997. It was a history book challenging the established norm since 1963, which said that independence was achieved through the armed revolts of the 1920s. Moubayed showed that the revolts had no effect on the independence of 1946 and it was the diplomatic struggle conducted by the urban statesmen, and the backing of Great Britain, that led to the French evacuation in 1946.

Moubayed specialized in modern Syrian affairs under the guidance of Munir al-Ajlani, a Syrian parliamentarian, minister, and scholar from the pre-Baath Era. Moubayed is the author of Damascus Between Democracy and Dictatorship (2000) and Steel & Silk: Men and Women Who Shaped Syria 1900-2000 (2005). He is an expert on Syria's former president Shukri al-Quwatli and wrote his thesis on Quwatli called "The George Washington of Syria: the rise and fall of Shukri al-Quwatli."

An advocate of the Palestinian Cause, he has written many articles on Palestinian affairs and was a strong supporter of former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. Moubayed’s articles have appeared in several regional and international newspapers including The Daily Star in Beirut, al-Ahram in Cairo, Gulf News in Dubai, Asia Times in Hong Kong, and The Washington Report in Washington DC. He has written a number of academic articles including: "Syria: back to the future?," "King Talal: the Tragic Hero of Arabia" and "Shukri al-Quwatli 1892-1967." He has been outspoken in his calls for political reform in Syria, saying that Syria should return to the healthy, multi-party system that existed before the Baathists came to power in 1963.

In 2001, he co-founded the Syrian Young Entrepreneur Association (SYEA) and served for two tenures as a Member of the Board. In 2004, he created Syrianhistory.com, the first and online museum of Syrian history. It contains over 2,000 photographs, documents, and rare audiovisual material on Syria during the years 1900-2000.