An Insiders Seat at The Table

National Security and Foreign Policy Update with FDD

Qatari money is flooding American college campuses — bankrolling the anti-Israel mobs and encampments that have turned our universities into war zones. This isn’t a coincidence. It’s a strategy. At the same time, the Muslim Brotherhood is tightening its grip across the Middle East, crushing religious minorities from Egypt to the Horn of Africa — and laying the groundwork for the next generation of extremism. These are not two separate crises. They are the same enemy, working on two fronts. Natalie Ecanow and Mariam Wahba, two of FDD’s rising stars, are the ones following the money and exposing the networks before they do more damage. FDD is the institute that Washington, journalists, and world leaders turn to when they need the truth, not the talking points — work that has directly shaped U.S. policy on Iran, Israel, and the forces bankrolling instability at home and abroad. This is not just another briefing. This is a chance to hear, first-hand, from the people fighting this battle in real time, and to stand with the institute doing the work to protect America and Israel.

About FDD:
The Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) is a Washington, DC-based nonpartisan 501(c)(3) research institute focused on national security and foreign policy. FDD does not accept donations from any foreign governments. FDD conducts in-depth research, produces timely analysis, identifies illicit activity, and delivers policy options — all aimed at strengthening U.S. national security and reducing threats posed by adversaries of the United States and other free nations.

Founded shortly after the September 11th attacks, FDD draws on experts and scholars from government, intelligence, military, private sector, academia, and journalism — bringing proficiency in foreign languages, law, finance, and technology to its work. FDD has shared its expertise with the Bush, Obama, Trump, and Biden administrations, and with Congress, on a bipartisan basis.

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Our Speakers

Natalie Ecanow:

Natalie Ecanow is a senior research analyst at FDD focusing on the Middle East and the Gulf. Prior to joining FDD, she worked at a private foundation in New York and on Middle Eastern affairs as an intern at the Hudson Institute. Natalie holds a B.A. in political science from Duke University and an M.A. in security studies from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service.

Mariam Wahba:

Mariam Wahba is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), focusing on Egypt, the Horn of Africa, and minorities in the Middle East.

Previously, she was associate director of communications at FDD, associate director of advocacy with the Philos Project, a Hertog political science fellow, a Tikvah Fund journalism fellow, and a policy associate at In Defense of Christians. Wahba holds a B.A. in Middle East, Arabic, and Jewish studies from Fordham University.

She is a Coptic Christian and an advocate for the persecuted church. Mariam’s work has appeared in Foreign Policy, The Free Press, Newsweek, Breaking Defense, Fox News, and elsewhere.