COLLEGE PARK, Md. — The University of Maryland says the Dalai Lama will speak in College Park.

The university announced Thursday that the Tibetan spiritual leader will deliver the annual Sadat Lecture for Peace on May 7 at the Comcast Center.

The university says the annual lecture series is part of its Anwar Sadat Chair for Peace and Development program. Previous speakers have included former Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan and anti-apartheid leader and former South African president Nelson Mandela.

University of Maryland professor and Sadat Chair Shibley Telhami says the Dalai Lama has been a compelling voice of compassion, toleration, and peace during turbulent times. The Tibetan Buddhist leader has been living in exile since 1959 when Chinese troops crushed protests against Communist rule.

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