'Immeasurable loss': HRW's Joe Stork, pioneer of Western Middle East studies, dies

Leading American Middle East academic Joe Stork has died, leaving behind a legacy of pro-Palestinian solidarity and unparalleled expertise in the West on Middle East affairs.

Stork, whose resume boasts the likes of Human Rights Watch (HRW), Middle East Research and Information Project (MERIP) and Gulf Center for Human Rights (GCFHR), died aged 81 on Wednesday. 

Tributes have since poured in on social media, from colleagues, mentees, and peers.

A graduate of Columbia University in Middle Eastern studies, Stork went on to co-found MERIP in 1971, a non-profit that describes itself as offering "critical, alternative reporting and analysis, focusing on state power, political economy, and social hierarchies as well as popular struggles and the role of US policy in the region".

Stork served as the editor of MERIP’s flagship publication, The Middle East Report, from its founding until 1995. 

Whilst at MERIP, Stork interviewed Dr. Azmi Bishara, the director of the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies in 1986, when was professor of philosophy and cultural studies at Birzeit University.

Stork also interviewed prominent Palestinian politician Hanan Ashrawi, and Algerian diplomat Mohamed Sahnoun, who served as the country's permanent representative to the United Nations.

MERIP was noted for its left-leaning, anti-imperialist writing, at a time when US foreign policy towards the Middle East was dominated by "neo-colonial" thinkers with a strong bias toward Israel - a phenomenon still ongoing today.

Stork notably worked as deputy director of HRW in the Middle East and North Africa, which he joined in 1996. 

While at HRW, Stork focused on the violation of international human rights by states and armed groups amid Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories and Iraq. Stork’s expertise also extended to the rights crisis in Bahrain and freedom of religion issues in Egypt.

At the NGO, Stork authored numerous reports on topics such as rights abuses in Egypt's prisons, torture in Bahrain's prisons and human rights abuses in the UAE.

Stork was also known for his strong support for pro-Palestinian activists, having carried out research concerning Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories, much to the anger of pro-Israeli groups.

In 2008, Stork penned an appeal on behalf of HRW to then-US President George Bush, urging him to persuade Israel to reverse its blockade policy on the Gaza Strip.

Stork said Israel’s comprehensive restrictions on the movement of goods and people, including fuel and other civilian necessities, "have produced a devastated economy and a severe humanitarian crisis there", which he described as constituting "collective punishment against the civilian population, a serious violation of international humanitarian law".

Stork also became involved with the GCFHR since 2011, before serving as Chair from 2019 until 2022.

He had campaigned for the release of several prominent rights activists from the region, including UAE's Ahmed Mansoor and Bahrain's Abdulhadi al-Khawaja and Nabeel Rajab. 

Rajab, a prominent activist, and Maryam al-Khawaja, daughter of Abdulhadi, also mourned Stork's death this week.

Stork has also written for The New Arab, mostly on repression in Egypt and rights activism in the Gulf.

Drewery Dyke, an expert on Middle Eastern affairs and a senior fellow at Foreign Policy Centre, told TNA that Stork had a big impact on people he worked with, whether in academia or human rights activism.

"Joe Stork was an inspiration to those who were younger than him, and he was a model for what we thought human rights activism could be, and the difference it could make to people in different parts of the Middle East, and globally," he told The New Arab.

"The universal values and the moral clarity that he had represented a beacon for us to work towards and align ourselves with."

The executive director at HRW, Tirana Hassan, said: "We are mourning the loss of our colleague, friend and mentor to many, Joe Stork. Joe retired from HRW a few years ago but was never far away, continuing to fight injustice across MENA."

"Kind, brave and a brilliant mind, You are missed Joe," she said on X.

MERIP also released a statement, which read: "Our MERIP community is in mourning today with the news that our co-founder and longtime editor Joe Stork has passed away. From our founding in 1971 to the late 1990s Joe’s editorial hand shaped MERIP into what it is today. Our hearts are with him, his family and friends."

The GCFHR also mourned the academic and activist, calling his passing an "immeasurable loss not only for his family, loved ones and colleagues", but for the "entire human rights community".

"We are forever grateful for his significant work and outstanding commitment to human rights."