Aya Batrawy
International Correspondent, Dubai, UAE
Aya Batrawy is an NPR International Correspondent. She leads NPR's Gulf bureau in Dubai.
She joined NPR in 2022 from the Associated Press, where she was an editor and reporter for over 11 years. She covered the Arab Spring uprisings from Cairo, the rise and fall of the Muslim Brotherhood and the ensuing turmoil that ricocheted across the region.
Batrawy moved to Dubai in 2013 with AP, where she reported on tensions with Iran and the emergence of Gulf Arab states as the region's new powerbrokers. She also led coverage on Islam's hajj pilgrimage from Mecca and examined efforts by Gulf oil producers to diversify their economies away from fossil fuels in a world grappling with climate change.
The weight of her coverage has also centered on the rise of Saudi Arabia's crown prince — his attempts at transforming the kingdom and centralizing power.
Batrawy's love of broadcast news began at the University of South Florida. As an undergraduate, she volunteered at WMNF community station and the local NPR Member station in Tampa Bay, where she grew up. After two years in Washington as a journalist and a master's from London's SOAS, she moved to Cairo and produced for NPR's Peter Kenyon and Deborah Amos, crisscrossing North Sinai in memorable adventures with both. She taught journalism at the American University in Cairo and freelanced for Voice of America, Pacifica Radio and PRI's The World.
When not listening to podcasts, she's trying to drink her coffee while it's still hot, make it to barre class on time and keep up with royal news.
