Esam Omeish

Dr. Esam Omeish is an activist and surgeon in Northern Virginia, and a member of CAIR's national board. He holds a bachelor's degree and medical degree from Georgetown University and has had a private practice in general surgery since 1998 and also practices in Northern Virginia at Fairfax Hospital, Alexandria Hospital, and other area hospitals. From 1992 to 1994, Esam was the national president of the Muslim Students' Association of the United States and Canada (MSA), presiding over 350 chapters. From 2004 to 2008, he was the national president and chairman of the board for the Muslim American Society (MAS), one of the largest community organizations in the U.S. with more than 50 chapters. He has also served as board chairman of several community and civic organizations including Community Medical Clinic (2000-2004), the Islamic Center of Passaic County, New Jersey (1995-1998), Dar Alhijrah Islamic Center (1998-2002), the MSA Council of Washington, D.C. (1986-1989), and others. In 2009, Esam ran for the office of Virginia state assembly delegate, becoming the first Muslim to run for public office in Virginia. In the same year, he was appointed by the governor of Virginia to a state commission on immigration. Esam has been active in D.C. political circles for more than 25 years, including involvement with the White House, National Security Council, both houses of the U.S. Congress, the Department of State, the Department of the Treasury, the Department of Defense, think tanks, and non-governmental organizations In October 2011, he graduated from the Washington Embassy Orientation Program on U.S. Government Policy Making at the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies (NESA) at the National Defense University.