Recent Updates From SETF

Washington DC Staff

Details

 Meet the Staff

Executive Director: Mouaz Moustafa

Mr. Moustafa was born and raised in Damascus, Syria before moving to the US as a teenager. He is the current Executive Director for SETF and UFS (United For a Free Syria) and a board member of the Coalition for a Democratic Syria (CDS). As former staffer for Congressman Vic Snyder and Senator Blanche Lincoln, Mr. Moustafa spent four and a half years working in Congress before leaving to work briefly with Egyptian opposition based in the US. Mr. Moustafa worked for a whole year with the Libyan Revolution. During this period, Mr. Moustafa was the Executive Director of the Libyan Council of North America (LCNA) and Political Director of the Libyan Emergency Task Force (LETF) and worked closely with top officials within the Transitional National Council (TNC). Mr. Moustafa joined SETF in the fall of 2011 to help advocate on behalf of the pro-democracy movement in his native Syria and boasts an extensive network of Syrian activists, opposition figures and FSA commanders through which he works. On his recent trip inside Syria, Mr. Moustafa's pictures were prominently featured in several news media outlets regarding his work with Civilian Administrative Councils including NPR and USA Today.
National Public Radio
USA TODAY

 

Media and Communications Director: Cassie Chesley

Ms. Chesley is the Media and Communications Director of SETF. She is a graduate of New College of Florida, the Honors College of Florida, where she completed a Bachelors degree in International and Area Studies and wrote and defended a thesis on identity and ethnicity-based immigration law in Israel. As a student at New College, Ms. Chesley worked as an intern for the United Nations Association of Sarasota where she wrote and edited the monthly newsletter and organized events. Prior to that she interned at the conflict resolution non-profit the Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy. Upon moving to DC, she worked as an intern for Florida Congresswoman Kathy Castor. She began as a Policy Fellow at SETF and became the Media Coordinator in October 2012. Ms. Chesley currently works on a number of media and public outreach initiatives, including SETF's "Adopt a Village" project to support the grassroots democratic initiatives inside Syria, the Coalition for a Democratic Syria's educational "A Face to the Humanitarian Crisis" project and social media campaign, and interfaith collaboration.
Foreign Policy Blog

Research Associate: Ahmad Soliman

Mr. Soliman is a Research Associate with the Syrian Emergency Task Force and United for a Free Syria. He previously worked as a Senior Policy fellow in the Defense and Diplomacy Center at the Roosevelt Institute, concentrating on U.S. foreign policy in the MENA region. Prior to that interned at a law firm for three years, served as a research assistant on projects on electoral violence & fraud in Egypt and Pakistan, an as a research assistant on a project studying truth and reconciliation commissions through a sociological lens. Having worked for an Egyptian commercial bank and non-profit cancer center, he gained a valuable perspective on the economic and human development issues of Egyptians. Most recently he interned with GM's public policy center on Capitol Hill. He has traveled extensively throughout North Africa, and is particularly interested in issues of Political Islam and economic development in Arab states. Ahmad graduated from the University of Michigan with degrees in Business Administration and Political Science.

Board of Trustees and Board of Directors:

SETF has a both a Board of Trustees and Board of Directors consisting of Syrian American professionals from across the United States including Dr. Mahmoud Khawam, Dr. Yahya Basha and Dr. Hashem Mubarak.

Policy Fellows:

SETF currently has two Policy Fellows: Joel Bombardier and Sonia Hinson.