Natalie Amiri discusses the current situation in the Middle East, caught between war, repression, compromise and chaos.
Tuesday, 27. October 2026, 18:30 – 20:00 h
At the University of Zurich, Rämistrasse 71, 8006 Zurich, KOL-G 201 (Aula)
In her lecture, foreign correspondent and Middle East expert Natalie Amiri analyses the current situation, which is characterised by war, repression, deals and chaos. She says: “Trying to understand the history of the Middle East is like following the moves in a game of chess — but on many chessboards at the same time. Every move on one board triggers moves on the others."
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Admission is free. No pre-registration necessary. No seat reservation possible. The security staff reserves the right to check bags/backpacks. Taking photos and filming are prohibited without authorisation and must be refrained from. The event will also be broadcast live and made available for replay.
Natalie Amiri, born in Munich in 1978 to a German mother and an Iranian father, studied Oriental Studies and Islamic Studies at Otto Friedrich University in Bamberg. A scholarship from the German Academic Exchange Service took her to the universities of Tehran and Damascus. She has been presenting the "ARD-Weltspiegel" programme from Munich since 2014. From 2015, Natalie Amiri headed the ARD bureau in Tehran. In May 2020, she was warned by the Federal Foreign Office not to travel to Iran any longer for security reasons. She was therefore forced to step down as head of the Tehran television studio.
In 2022 and 2024, she was named Political Journalist of the Year by "medium magazin" and has won numerous awards, including the "Glas der Vernunft" (2023). Her books "Zwischen den Welten" (2021), "Afghanistan" (2022) and "Der Nahost-Komplex" (2025) became SPIEGEL bestsellers.
Photo: © Axel Griesch (Laif)