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The team

Scientific Supervisor

Sotiris Roussos

Professor of International Relations and Religion in the Middle East and the Mediterranean at the Department of Political Science and International Relations of the University of Peloponnese and scientific director of the Centre for Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies (KEMMIS) at the same University. In 1997-2003 he was an Expert on the Middle East at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was a member of the Task Force for Water Issues and the Palestinian Refugees of the EU Special Envoy for the Middle East and of the Informal International Group on Jerusalem. In 2009 he was appointed OSCE Chairmanship’s Representative for the Mediterranean Partners. In 2012 he was a Visiting Scholar at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). From 2015 to 2018 he was the Coordinator of the Center for Religious Pluralism in the Middle East (CRPME). He has authored and edited books and articles on Revolution and Insurgency in the Middle East, regional security, political Islam and Christians in the Middle East.

Research Director

Marina Eleftheriadou

Marina Eleftheriadou is Assistant Professor of International Relations and Contemporary International Politics at the School of Political Sciences at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. She has served as a Research Associate at the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies at the European University Institute (EUI) and as a Research Expert at the Centre for Religious Pluralism in the Middle East (CRPME), part of the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ initiative on religious pluralism in the Middle East. Her research focuses on the role of violent non-state actors in international politics.

Editor-in-Chief

Stavros Drakoularakos

Stavros Drakoularakos (PhD Political Science and History, Panteion University of Athens) is Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Nicosia (Dep. Political Science and International Relations) and Academic Teaching Personnel at the University Neapolis Pafos (Dep. History, Politics and International Studies). He taught as Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Macedonia (Dep. of International and European Relations) and the University of the Peloponnese (Dep. of Political Science and International Relations), as well as Lecturer at the Hellenic National Defence College. He held the positions of Post-Doctoral Researcher at the University of the Peloponnese, Research Expert at the Centre for Religious Pluralism in the Middle East and Freelance Researcher at the European Council for Foreign Relations MENA Programme. His research focuses on Turkish-Israeli relations, Middle Eastern foreign policy and religious pluralism issues in the MENA and Mediterranean regions.

Editor-in-Chief

Zakia Aqra

Zakia Aqra (Ph.D. in Political Science and International Relations at the University of the Peloponnese) serves as Editor-in-Chief at the Centre for Mediterranean, Middle East and Islamic Studies (CEMMIS). She is a lecturer of International Relations and Security at the Department of History, Politics and International Studies at Neapolis University Pafos. During 2024-2025, she taught at the Department of Languages and Intercultural Studies at the University of Thessaly. She was a Research Fellow in the Department of Political Science and International Relations at the University of the Peloponnese. She has conducted her post-doctoral research in “Diversity and Inclusivity in Security Studies”, a project funded by the European Union. She was a researcher in Christianity in the Middle East (CME), a project funded by the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation between 2020 and 2023. She has been awarded with many scholarships, such as the Greek State Scholarships Foundation (IKY) for her PhD research (2018-2022) and Onassis Foundation (2014-2015) for her MSc in International Political Economy at Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences, Athens (2015). She has also obtained a second MSc in Middle East Politics at SOAS, London (2014). Her research interests focus on foreign policy, security and armed non-state actors. She has also worked as an intercultural mediator and interpreter, given her language skills and expertise on cultural, religious, social, and political issues in the Middle East.

Senior Editor

Alexandra Nikopoulou

Alexandra Nikopoulou holds a PhD in Political Science and International Relations from the University of the Peloponnese. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in International and European Studies from the University of Piraeus and a Master’s degree in Mediterranean Studies from the University of the Peloponnese.
Since 2017, she has been affiliated with the Center for Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies (CEMMIS), where she now serves as Editor-in-Chief. At the same time, she is a project manager and researcher in the China Program of the Institute of International Relations (IIR) at Panteion University. She has also worked as an editor at the international think tank Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies.
Her research focuses on proxy wars, non-state actors, and regional power, with an emphasis on the Arabian Peninsula, particularly Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen.

Publications

Senior Editor

Ilias Tasopoulos

He holds a BA in International and European Studies and an MA in International Relations and Strategic Studies from Panteion University, where he graduated top of his class and was awarded a State Scholarships Foundation (IKY) fellowship for doctoral research. He holds a PhD in International Relations, with a dissertation focusing on state formation, the pressures of the international system, and the formation of alliances.
He has worked with the Hellenic Ministry of Foreign Affairs, producing policy briefs, country-specific analyses, and policy proposals on developments in the Middle East, Africa, the Arab and Muslim world, and has also collaborated with the “Andreas Papandreou” Institute for Strategic and Development Studies. Moreover, he cooperated with the University of the Peloponnese as scientific coordinator of the project “Women & Terrorism.”
As Adjunct Lecturer at the University of the Peloponnese, he taught the course Geopolitical Competition in the Eastern Mediterranean. His research includes a postdoctoral project on religion and international relations in the Middle East, as well as participation in international conferences and peer-reviewed publications. He serves as a peer reviewer for international academic journals and as an external evaluator of research and educational projects supported by the European Union.

Publications

Coordinator

Charitini Petrodaskalaki

She concluded her undergraduate studies in the department of History and Archaeology of the University of Athens, with a major in History, and obtained her master’s degree (MA) in History: Near and Middle East in the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London with a distinction. She joined the Center of Mediterranean, Middle East and Islamic Studies (CEMMIS) in 2012, and is currently its coordinator. In addition, she was a research expert in the Center for Religious Pluralism in the Middle East (CRPME), from 2016 to 2018, and participated in the research project ’, from 2020 to 2023.
She speaks Greek, English, French and Arabic. She has collaborated with various NGOs in Greece and participated in international fora in Europe and the Middle East.

Publications

Research Associate

Ihab Shabana

Ihab Shabana holds a PhD from the Department of Political Science and International Relations at the University of the Peloponnese. His research interests focus on the European and Arab Left, political Islam, social movements and the labor movement in the Middle East, postcolonial studies, and intellectual history in the Arab-Muslim world. He has taught at the Hellenic Open University (HOU) and in the Master’s Program in “Mediterranean Studies” at the University of the Peloponnese.

Publications

Research Associate

Katia Zagoritou

Katia Zagoritou is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Peloponnese in the Department of Political Science and International Relations (PSIR), in Greece, and a Research Associate at the Centre for Mediterranean, Middle East and Islamic Studies (CEMMIS). In 2019, she obtained her Master’s degree in Mediterranean Studies at the same department. Her research interests focus on the Kurdish question, Kurdish politics and history, social movements in the Middle East, with an emphasis on the Kurdish Movement(s) and the Kurdish women’s movement, political violence and new models of governance. She has published analysis articles regarding these issues in English and Greek, and has contributed to edited volumes. She has presented parts of her ongoing PhD research at international conferences (UK, USA, Kurdistan Region of Iraq). Besides Greek, she speaks English, French, Italian, and studies Kurmanji and Arabic.

Publications

Research Associate

Ιlias Mitrousis

Ιlias Mitrousis graduated from the Department of International and European Studies at the University of Piraeus in 2018, and in 2020 he received a Master of Arts (MA) in “Mediterranean Studies” from the University of Peloponnese. Since 2025, he has been a PhD Candidate at the Department of Political Science and International Relations of the same University, where he works on his dissertation on the resilience and survival of authoritarian regimes in the Middle East, with a focus on Jordan and Syria. Since November 2018, he has been a research associate at the Centre for Mediterranean, Middle East and Islamic Studies (CEMMIS), contributing regularly with articles and analyses on political and social developments in the Middle East and North Africa. He speaks Greek, English, and French.

Publications

Research Associate

Chryssa Toufexi

She completed her internship at IIR in 2006, when she joined CEMMIS as a researcher until 2010. She holds a degree in International, European and Regional Studies from Panteion University (2007) and a MA in International Relations in the Middle East from Durham University (2008). From 2011 to 2014 she taught in the undergraduate course “Introduction to International Politics”, in the Department of Geography, Politics and Sociology at the University of Newcastle. Since 2014, she has been an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy of England. In 2019 she obtained her PhD in Critical Theory of International Relations and Cybersecurity at the University of Newcastle, with a studentship in Cities, Critical Infrastructures and Political Violence. Her PhD examines the role of popular culture and symbols in the construction of cyberwarfare and cyberterrorism as national security issues in the US. She rejoined CEMMIS in 2024.

 

Email forwarding: chryssa.toufexi@cemmis.edu.gr

Publications

Research Associate

Dimitris Papanikolaou

A humanitarian worker and researcher with an interdisciplinary academic background spanning international relations, law, Islamic studies, and public health. Holds a BA in International and European Studies from the University of Piraeus, an MA in Islamic Studies from the Universidad de Granada, and an MA in International Humanitarian Law & Human Rights from the Democritus University of Thrace and is currently pursuing an MSc in Public Health and Health Policy at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Professional experience covers many years in the humanitarian sector, working with leading UN and EU agencies as well as Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), in contexts such as Lebanon, Greece, Cyprus, Serbia, and Spain, with a focus on displaced populations from the Middle East. Skilled in combining field-based and desk-based research, with a deep understanding of complex humanitarian contexts, programmatic realities, and policy environments. Experienced in data collection, analysis, and translating evidence into operational and strategic insights, with a particular interest in forced migration, people on the move, humanitarian affairs, public health, and access to healthcare. Has participated in various research projects with the Euro-Arab Foundation for Higher Studies in Spain, is a member of CEMMIS since October 2019, and speaks English, Spanish, and Arabic.

Publications

Research Associate

Eleni–Panagiota (Elda) Stoupa

Eleni–Panagiota (Elda) Stoupa is a Scientific Associate at the MSc program “Global Health – Disaster Medicine” of the School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, and a Research Associate at the Centre of Mediterranean, Middle East and Islamic Studies within the Department of Political Science and International Relations, University of the Peloponnese.
She holds a BSc in Political Science and Public Administration from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, with a specialization in Political Analysis, and an MSc in Social Anthropology from the University of Edinburgh. She has worked as a Project Manager and coordinator on multiple EU- and internationally funded projects and has participated as a Researcher in several public health projects focusing on vulnerable populations.

Publications

Research Associate

Eirini Giannopoulou

Eirini Giannopoulou is a PhD Candidate of International Affairs at the New School for Social Research in New York (USA). She graduated from the Department of Political Science and Public Administration of the University of Athens, majoring in International and European Studies, in 2021. In 2023, she completed her first MA (with Honours) in International Governance and Politics at the same department. She finished the MSc Violence, Conflict and Development at the School of Oriental and African Studies of the University of London (SOAS) in 2025. Her research interest is centered around private capital flows in conflict resolution, within the liberal peacebuilding agenda and the security-development nexus. She has carried out Internships at the Embassy of Cyprus in Athens, at the Embassy of Greece in Brussels and at the Permanent Mission of Cyprus to the United Nations in New York. She speaks Greek, English and French and is learning Spanish and Russian. She is a member of the CEMMIS research team since 2021.

Publications

Research Associate

Artemis Papadaki

Artemis Papadaki is a graduate of the Department of Theatre Studies at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (2021). In 2024, she completed her Master’s degree in Media, Communication and Culture at Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences. Her thesis focused on the war in Gaza and its representations on social media. Her research interests lie at the intersection of new media, culture and society in the MENA region. She has been studying Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) for the past three years, and in the summer of 2025, she completed the “Colloquial Arabic 1” program at Birzeit University in Palestine. She has professional experience in the cultural sector in Greece, collaborating with festivals and institutions such as the Athens and Epidaurus Festival, the Petit Paris d’Athènes Festival, Fabrica Festival, and Analogue Festival. She speaks Greek, English, and French (B2 level), and is currently learning Arabic and German. She joined the Centre for Mediterranean, Middle East and Islamic Studies (CEMMIS) in October 2021.

Publications

Research Associate

Panagiota Bouka

Panagiota Bouka graduated from the Department of Political Science and International Relations at the University of the Peloponnese and completed her postgraduate studies in the Middle Eastern Studies program at Leiden University. She is also a research fellow at the Institute of International Relations, in the Department of Russia, Eurasia, and Southeast Europe, and since 2019 she has been writing articles on international and European issues. Her research interests focus on the defense of human rights, and for the past three years she has been a member of the Athens Pride organizing team. She speaks English, German, and Spanish, is familiar with Greek Sign Language, and is learning Arabic.

Publications

Research Associate

Christina Fytili

She graduated from the department of International, European and Area Studies at Panteion University (2024) and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Digital Media, Communication and Journalism at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Between 2019 and 2024, she taught Greek language courses to migrants as a volunteer. Since 2023, she has been contributing articles to journals and online media, focusing on international and European affairs, as well as developments in the Middle East. Her research interests include international political communication, international relations, and the geopolitical dynamics of the Middle East.

Publications