Qatar-UK Alumni Board Members

Mr Neerav Patel has been His Majesty’s Ambassador to the State of Qatar since January 2024. He has particular experience in the Middle East and South Asia, including tours in Egypt, Afghanistan and in Israel as Charge d’Affaires during recent Gaza conflicts.

Mr Patel has worked in London for the past seven Prime Ministers on foreign, security and development policy in a range of roles at the centre of the UK government, including in the Prime Minister’s Policy Unit, supporting the National Security Council, and the Joint Intelligence Commitee. His work has focused on strategic policy making across the Middle East, Africa, South Asia, China, Russia/Ukraine, international terrorism, and global economic and energy issues. 

Mr Patel started his career as a Government Economist, and has a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from the University of Oxford. He speaks Arabic. He lives in Doha with his wife and two young children.

Dr Waseem is an experienced culture relations and education leader with a demonstrated history of working in the non-profit organisation management industry. Dr Waseem is the British Council Country Director in Qatar which is the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. He has a long track record leading and running innovative programmes across Arts and Culture, Education and English to support Qatar’s 2030 National Vision. Dr Waseem is a concert pianist and a medical doctor who managed to merge between Medicine and Music and used Music as a tool with disabled children to enhance their communication and life skills. He got a master’s degree in health systems and Hospital Management from Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine in addition to PGdip in Music from Royal Academy of Music in London.

Sheikh Aasim Alwaleed Ali Al-Thani is a Non-Resident Fellow at the Gulf International Forum and a Young Fellow at the Institute for Peace & Diplomacy. He served as a platoon commander and an operations officer in the Qatari Armed Forces. He has a master's degree in Diplomatic Studies (DSP) from the University of Oxford and a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service (BSFS) from the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in Qatar (SFS-Q) . Additionally, he has a postgraduate Diploma in Military Science from Ahmed Bin Mohammed Military College (ABMMC).

Sheikh Aasim is a member of the Pi Sigma Alpha National Political Science Honor Society and won the Outstanding Cambridge Learner Award for obtaining the Highest Mark in Qatar for Cambridge IGCSE Literature (English) in 2017 at Sherborne Qatar. He has served as a board member of the Education City Student Leadership Council in 2019. He is the Co-Founder and President of the Gulf States Society at the University of Oxford, establishing it in 2024. He is also the youngest member to graduate from the Oxford Diplomatic Studies programme and was a member of the Cambridge MENA Forum Young Leaders Initiative 2023. He has received special recognition and commendations by both national and foreign officials and dignitaries.

Ayseba Umutlu is a broadcast journalist from Azerbaijan, currently working at Al Jazeera English, where she has played a valuable role across various departments over the past seven years. Based in Qatar, she previously worked in her home country as a reporter, presenter, and moderator, and served as an MC for numerous events. Ayseba has also served as the President of the Qatar Chapter for the Middle East Leadership Academy and is an Alumni Ambassador for City University London in Qatar. Passionate about social life wherever she lived, she has been deeply involved in Azerbaijan, the UK, and Qatar, authoring projects and organizing events, driven by her commitment to making a positive impact on society. Her work reflects a strong commitment to journalism and community engagement. 

Emad Turkman MBE, a qualified Mechanical Engineer with a postgraduate diploma in Business and Marketing, began his career in the UK before moving to the Middle East. In 1995, he took over as head of Dexion’s distributor, Rumaillah Services, in Qatar. Now, Rumaillah Group comprises seven wholly-owned companies and nine joint ventures, employing over 1,500 people. Emad also serves as Chairman of the Qatar British Business Forum and Apton Partitioning Limited. In 2011, he was awarded an MBE by HM Queen Elizabeth II for promoting British businesses in Qatar. Emad is fluent in Turkish and Arabic.

Fahad Badar is a seasoned banker with over 21 years of banking experience at Commercial Bank of Qatar, having successfully held several key roles, including EGM Wholesale Banking and EGM Government Sector and International Banking, as well as other senior positions in Retail Banking and Operations across the Bank.

Currently, he serves as the Executive General Manager, International Banking, responsible for the bank’s international lending and financial institutions relationships. He holds an MBA from Durham University, UK, and a Bachelor’s in Banking & Finance from Bangor University, UK. He is also a board member at the National Bank of Oman and United Arab Bank. Fahad is an avid mountaineer and has climbed Everest and many other mountains around the world.

Khalifa Al Haroon is the Founder and CEO of ILoveQatar.net and the I Love Qatar (ILQ) Network, which is Qatar’s first Qatari social website. 

Khalifa, also known as Mr. Q on his blog/vlog, has a background in law, investment banking and social media management. He has launched several YouTube and online shows such as QTips (Cultural), Weekend Round Up (Event Listing), and RaqamiTV. (Arabic Tech Show). Khalifa obtained his law degree from the Anglia Ruskin University in the UK, which is where he set up his first business as a student, gaining great experience which he then applied in Qatar in many successful business ventures.

Nada A. Al-Mahmeed joined Hamad Bin Khalifa University’s College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) in 2016 as Senior Project Leader, overseeing strategic planning, stakeholder relationships, and marketing. Currently, she serves as Director of the Translation and Training Center at the Translation and Interpreting Institute (TII), offering translation services and professional development workshops. Prior to her role at CHSS, she worked at Qatar Development Bank, driving strategic planning and governance activities. Nada holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and minor in English Studies from Carnegie Mellon University – Qatar and an MBA from the University of Cambridge – UK.

Noha Aboueldahab is an Assistant Professor at Georgetown University in Qatar, specialising in public international law, transitional justice, and the laws of war. She is a Senior Non-resident Fellow at the Middle East Council on Global Affairs and has been affiliated with the Brookings Institution. Aboueldahab serves on multiple editorial boards and is a member of several prestigious legal and academic societies. An award-winning expert in transitional justice, she authored "Transitional Justice and the Prosecution of Political Leaders in the Arab Region" and has a forthcoming book with Oxford University Press. Her work is widely published and cited, and she frequently collaborates with international organisations and media.

Emmy-nominated broadcast journalist Osama Bin Javaid has spent two decades making complex conflict zones understandable for global audiences. With a decade-long tenure at Doha-based Al Jazeera English, he's reported extensively on events such as the Arab Spring, the rise and fall of ISIL, and humanitarian crises. His work specialises in reportage and investigative pieces on radical groups like ISIL, Al-Qaeda and the Taliban, spanning numerous countries across the Middle East, Asia, Europe, and beyond. Additionally, Osama is involved in speaking engagements, providing training, and serves as a voluntary adviser for various organizations, demonstrating his commitment to journalism and community engagement.

During his time at the University of Leeds studying BEng Chemical Engineering, Rashid was encouraged to take on volunteer work when he realised the importance of sports in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Rashid became the president of Qatar Students’ Society during his time at Leeds, where he influenced hundreds of Qatari students in the UK.

The dream Rashid created in the UK of promoting sports as a lifestyle through community came true upon his return to Qatar when he became one of the founding members of the Qatar Triathlon club (QTRI), which now attracts more than 500 active Qatari members. Rashid is also an Ambassador for the Qatar Cancer Society. In 2018, he ran London Marathon where he succeeded in raising funds to support cancer groundbreaking research and clinical trials.

Tahani Al-Hajri, a writer, content creator and social/human rights activist, holds a Master of International Business and Finance and a Bachelor of Accounting and Business Management from the University of Derby. With additional qualifications from institutions like Babson College and Harvard Extension School, she has over five years of entrepreneurship experience, assisting startups in market establishment. Tahani is dedicated to coaching individuals in making social impacts within their communities. Recognised for her educational achievements, she received the Alumni of the Year award from CNAQ in 2015 and won the British Council’s Study UK Alumni Awards 2018-19 for Social Impact in Qatar.