On April 27, Motaz Zahran, Egypt’s ambassador to the United States, and his wife, Hala Elhusseiny Youssef, hosted a reception celebrating the month of Ramadan and the 100th anniversary of the Egypt-U.S. diplomatic relation at the Meridian International Center.

Master of Ceremony, Vivian Salama, national security reporter for The Wall Street Journal, opened the event, and Ambassador Stewart Holliday, President of Meridian International Center, delivered remarks about the Egypt-U.S Diplomatic diplomatic relations, as well as the Iftar reception.

Former Egyptian minister of foreign affairs Amr Moussa, Egypt’s international cooperation minister Rania Al-Mashat, Congressman Dutch Ruppersberger, Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart, and Yael Lempert, acting assistant secretary for Near Eastern affairs also spoke on the topic of the U.S.-Egypt relationship.

In his speech, ambassador Motaz Zahran reminisced about the day he arrived in Washington to begin his work as an ambassador and spoke about Egypt-U.S. collaboration efforts and the significance of this partnership. “It is both my job and my honor to point out that the reservoir of goodwill between our two nations runs deep. And no wonder: Egypt’s ambitions mirror America’s ambitions; our virtues are your virtues,” Zahran said. 

On April 20, Moosa Hamdan Al Tai, Oman’s ambassador to the United States, hosted an interfaith Iftar at the Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center to celebrate the month of Ramadan. The event welcomed Egyptian Ambassador Motaz Zahran, his wife, Mrs. Hala Youssef, Turkish Ambassador Hasan Murat Mercan, and his wife, İnci Mercan, along with several other members of the diplomatic community.

On May 5, Shaikh Abdullah bin Rashid Al Khalifa, Bahrain’s ambassador to the United States, and his wife, Shaikha Aisha bint Jaber Al Khalifa, hosted a VIP reception for Washington Performing Arts’ donors and guests that purchased tables for the Annual Gala and Auction on May 21.

All the proceeds raised at the Gala are meant to support Washington Performing Arts’ education initiatives. The ambassador’s wife Shaikha Aisha Al Khalifa is on Washington Performing Arts’s board and a co-chair at the Annual Gala.

Those in attendance included board members, junior board members, gala co-chairs, and Jenny Bilfield, President and CEO of Washington Performing Arts.