Bashir Zain AlAbdin is a Senior Fellow with Derasat. He was previously Assistant Director at the Center for Historical Studies and Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Sciences at the University of Bahrain. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in History specializing in the Near and Middle East and a Doctorate in Political History, both from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, UK. He is a Member of the Arab Historian’s Union in Egypt, the Royal Asiatic Society and the Institute of Historical Research in London. He has published several papers and authored and coauthored a number of books.