The International Institute of Islamic Thought, (IIIT) a part of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood, recently held a meeting on MIdeast peace with a scholar from a U.S MIddle East think tank whose largest supporters are international oil companies and whose board includes a well-known academic supporter of the Brotherhood. According to the IIT website:
Paul Scham, Adjunct Scholar at the Middle East Institute shared his work on the Arab-Israeli historical narratives and their role in peace possibilities. He also shared his perspective on the Israeli-Palestinian summit hosted by President George Bush in Annapolis, Maryland, at a meeting with IIIT staff on Tuesday, November 26…Paul Scham’s principal interest is in the history and historical narratives of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He has authored the recently published Middle East Institute Policy Brief titled Annapolis, November 2007: Hopes and Doubts. He cautions that even if the leaders can reach a compromise, there are significant concerns as to whether their agreement will be accepted by their own societies.
According to its own website, the Middle East Institute (MEI) was founded in 1946 by scholar George Camp Keiser and former Secretary of State Christian Herter and is currently headed by its President, Wendy J. Chamberlin , the ex-U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan. The largest group of contributors to MEI includes:
- Chevron
- ConocoPhillips
- ExxonMobil
- Raytheon
- Saudi Aramco
- Shell
and many other oil companies and Arab banks are included in the next largest group. John Esposito, a well known academic and supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood, is one of the MEI Board Of Governors which also includes former FBI and CIA director William Webster. Prominent Saudis have spoken at events organized by MEI including Prince Faisal Bin Salman Bin Abdul Aziz in 1999 and ex-Ambassador and head of Saudi intelligence Turki Al-Faisal in 2005.