Nadwa Al-Dawsari is an independent researcher and conflict analyst with more than 20 years of field experience in Yemen and the Middle East. She specializes in the Yemen conflict and its intersection with broader regional dynamics She is currently a Fellow at the Center on Armed Groups and an Associate Fellow at the Middle East Institute.

She has advised U.S. and European governments, regional actors, UN agencies, and defense institutions—including CENTCOM, NATO, and EUNAVFOR—on the Yemen conflict and its implications for regional and maritime security. Her research focuses in particular on the Houthis, their military and political evolution, and their growing regional reach, placing these developments within the broader dynamics reshaping the Middle East, the Red Sea, and the Horn of Africa. This includes Iran’s regional networks and the Houthis’ growing ties to al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and al-Shabaab. Her analysis has contributed to U.S. and European policy debates on Yemen, and she is widely published and a frequent speaker at senior policy, defense, and security forums.

In September 2026, Al-Dawsari testified before the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa at a hearing entitled “Countering Houthi Terrorism: Protecting U.S. Interests and Security in the Red Sea.”

Previously, she served as Senior Political and Security Advisor to the World Food Programme, Country Director at the Center for Civilians in Conflict, Senior MENA Advisor at Partners Global, and Founding Director of Partners Yemen. In 2025, she was a Non-Resident Fellow with the Irregular Warfare Initiative.

Education: MA in Development Studies, University of Leeds, United Kingdom

Countries/Regions of Expertise: Yemen; the Gulf; Horn of Africa; Red Sea