Waleed Aly

Waleed Aly was born on August 15, 1978, in Melbourne, Victoria, to Egyptian parents. He pursued a comprehensive education, earning honors degrees in chemical engineering and law from the University of Melbourne in 2002. Following his graduation, Aly worked as an associate to Family Court judge Joseph Kay and then as a solicitor for Maddocks Lawyers in Melbourne until 2007. During this period, in 2006, he also contributed his legal expertise pro bono at the Human Rights Law Centre, on secondment from Maddocks.

Aly’s academic career includes lecturing in politics at Monash University, where his focus is on the application of political theory to global terrorism. He holds a PhD from Monash University, awarded in May 2017, for his thesis titled ‘Towards a structuration theory of global terrorism.’ His media career began with regular appearances on current affairs programs as head of public affairs for the Islamic Council of Victoria. He has written for various prominent newspapers, including The Guardian, The Australian, and The Sydney Morning Herald. Aly became a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times in April 2017. He co-hosts “The Minefield,” an ABC RN program about ethical dilemmas, and previously co-hosted “The Project” on Network 10.

In 2016, Aly received the Gold Logie Award for Most Popular Personality on Australian Television. He is also the author of “People Like Us: Why Arrogance is Dividing Islam and the West” (2007) and “What’s Right: The Future of Conservatism in Australia” (2010). Beyond his academic and media roles, Aly is the lead guitarist and principal songwriter for the Melbourne-based rock band Robot Child.