The National Security Roundtable

ABOUT THE SPEAKER
While in medical school some thirty years ago, Dr. Tawfik Hamid (aka Tarek Abdelhamid) became an Islamic extremist in Egypt and was recruited into the Islamic terrorist organization, Jamaa Islamiya, along with Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri (currently al-Qaeda's second-in-command).

After adopting the ideology of violent jihad, Dr. Hamid slowly began to recognize the threat of radical Islam and Islamist distortions of the religion. He rejected these distortions and decided to break free and pursue a path of reformation within Islam. He wrote new and theologically-valid interpretations of core Islamic texts - providing a counterbalance to radical teachings - and shared his message in mosques.

Following 9/11, Dr. Hamid boldly decided to speak out. His knowledge and understanding of Islamic culture and the jihadi mindset made him a much sought after speaker at forums throughout the world, including the U.S. Congress, the Pentagon, Director of National Intelligence, the European Parliament and many others. He has appeared on numerous television networks (e.g., FOX News, CNN, BBC, etc.) and written for major publications such as The Wall Street Journal, The Jerusalem Post, The New York Times, Daily News, National Review and numerous others.

An Islamic thinker and reformer, Dr. Hamid is currently a Senior Fellow and Chair for the Study of Islamic Radicalism at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies. He has a medical degree in internal medicine, as well as a Master's degree in cognitive psychology and educational techniques, and is the creator of an innovative multi-dimensional learning model used in educating medical students, as well as children. Dr. Hamid is also author of the book Inside Jihad: Understanding and Confronting Radical Islam, in which he shares his personal experiences and insights about Islamic terrorism, and highlights the myths and misconceptions, as well as mistakes Westerners have made in confronting Islamism. Most importantly, he shares his ideas on effecting Islamic reformation, a key component in solving the problem of radical Islam, and lays out a roadmap for effecting such change.