Breaking lunch update: the Conflict in the Middle East, from Gaza to Iran
Where: Deakin Law School, Building LC, Level 7 Boardroom
When: 2 July 2025, 1-2pm (Lunch will be provided)
With a ceasefire recently entering into force between Israel and Iran, we seek to unpack recent developments in the ongoing conflict(s) in the Middle East.
This breaking penal will discuss the international implications of the unilateral actions by the Trump administration, the legality of the Israeli and Iranian actions, and prospects for both short term and long-term consequences concerning the proliferation of nuclear weapons and safety and security of people in the region.
We will also explore the connections between the Israel/Iran front to the ongoing violence and starvation of Palestinians in Gaza, and the systemic violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
Moderator:
Professor Marilyn McMahon, Dean, Deakin Law School
Panellists:
Shahram Akbarzadeh
Professor Akbarzadeh is a professor of Middle East & Central Asian Politics and Director of the Middle East Studies Forum. He has held the prestigious ARC Future Fellowship between 2013-2016 and was named Australia’s leading researcher in Middle East and Islamic Studies. Professor Akbarzadeh has published more than 40 refereed papers and was the founding editor of the Islamic Studies Series and produced key reports for the Australian Research Council (ARC)
Andrew Thomas
Dr Thomas is a lecturer in Politics, International Relations and Middle East Studies. He appears regularly in media as an expert on Middle East politics and his book, ‘Iran and the West: a non-Western approach to foreign policy’ examines Iran’s encounters with the West by looking at non-Western perspectives.
Shiri Krebs
Professor Krebs is a professor of Law and Director of the Centre for Law as Protection. She serves as the Chair of the Lieber Society on the Law of Armed Conflict and an affiliate scholar at the Stanford University Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC). Professor Krebs is a Visiting Legal Fellow at DFAT (2024-2025) and her research on drone warfare and surveillance technologies is funded by the Australian Research Council (ARC) and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.
If you would like to watch a recording of the discussion, please find it here.
This breaking penal will discuss the international implications of the unilateral actions by the Trump administration, the legality of the Israeli and Iranian actions, and prospects for both short term and long-term consequences concerning the proliferation of nuclear weapons and safety and security of people in the region.
