The Middle East Policy Council (MEPC) has announced its inaugural cohort of 40 Under 40 Awardees. The 40 Under 40 Awards recognize the breadth of cultural, economic, and political relationships between the United States and countries of the Middle East with awardees from a variety of professional backgrounds including academia, business, culture, and diplomacy.

Amirah Ismail is a Foreign Service Officer at the U.S. Department of State. She has specialized in European and Middle Eastern affairs during her career, with assignments abroad and in Washington, supporting U.S. relations with Afghanistan, Algeria, Armenia, Belarus, Egypt, Estonia, Georgia, Jordan, Latvia, Lebanon, Morocco, Poland, Romania, Syria, and Tunisia. Ismail holds an M.A. in Middle East Studies from George Washington University and degrees in Global Studies and Justice Studies from Arizona State University. She has earned multiple Meritorious and Superior Honor Awards for her service and is an alumna of the Congressman Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Fellowship. Ismail speaks Arabic, French, and Russian.