Before teaching at AUIS, Abbas worked for several years as a journalist covering Iraq and the Middle East, appearing as a guest analyst in a number of Arabic-language TV programs. He has made a number of documentary films focusing on Iraqi women activism for equal rights, oil and Iraq's history. Abbas was also involved in writing a series of English and Arabic guides on democratization in Iraq for the Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization, the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. He also founded and managed the Ayoon Organization for Human Rights, a non-profit organization that documented human rights abuses in Iraq. Abbas holds a Ph.D. from Purdue University.