On 23 November 2025, Birzeit University in the Palestinian West Bank halted all teaching to mourn one of its law students, killed by Israeli gunfire in a nearby village. The case, says Serena Fraiese, reveals how freedom crumbles in the world outside academe before it even reaches campus
Penelope, wife of Odysseus in Homer’s Odyssey, who spent twenty years weaving and unweaving a shroud to delay remarriage and preserve her household, has come to symbolise fidelity, cunning, and endurance. Serena Fraiese argues that her story reveals characteristics that have become central to diplomacy in an age of uncertainty
Serena’s research explores digital governance and political innovation in the MENA region, while also examining the international relations and geopolitical dynamics shaping state strategies, security, alliances, and regional power competition in the broader Mediterranean-MENA space.
Serena has worked in conflict- and disaster-affected regions with international humanitarian organisations, holding managerial roles in coordination, security and risk management, and educational and training initiatives.
She has published in outlets including the Rivista di Digital Politics, International Legal Order and Human Rights (OIDU), and the Business and Human Rights Journal blog.
She has several articles under peer review in leading international journals.
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