Kayra Sener

Kayra Sener is a Program Assistant with the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center, where she steers communications, research, and content for the Realign for Palestine initiative. Her work spans social-media strategy, media outreach, and rapid-response analysis on Gaza-related developments.

Before joining the Council, Kayra reported for Middle East Eye and the East Valley Tribune, covering US politics, foreign affairs, and campus free-speech debates. A Turkish native, she has also contributed op-eds and news pieces on Turkish foreign policy, Erdoğan’s regional strategy, and protest movements in the United States.

Kayra earned her A.B. from Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs, where her senior thesis—advised by former US ambassador Daniel C. Kurtzer—analyzed Turkey’s interventions in Syria and rhetorical positioning on Israel-Palestine. She speaks Turkish fluently and conversational German.