Leading academics to examine Obama's legacy in Middle East

The event will be held at the JW Marriott hotel in Washington and aims to 'critically examine the state of democracy in the Arab world'.

The event's keynote speaker is Dr Azmi Bishara, General Director of the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies. He will be giving his speech via video-link.

Other speakers include Lina Khatib, head of the MENA Programme at Chatham House, London; Michele Dunne, Director of the Middle East Programme at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and Daniel Brumberg, director of Democracy and Governance Studies at Georgetown University.

In addition to the event's opening and closing remarks, there will be three main events, titled The Arab Spring and Failed Transitions to Democracy, US Foreign Policy in the Middle East and Future Outlook and Recommended US Policies regarding Democracy in the Arab World.