Education
Ph.D. Cornell University, Government, 2006.
M.A. Cornell University, Government, 2004.
M.A. Tel Aviv University, Security Studies, 1999.
B.A. Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Middle East Studies, 1992.
Honors, Awards and Fellowships
2017: Smith Richardson Foundation Grant for the Project “After the Caliphate.”
2014: Research Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School of Government.
2010: Choice Magazine’s Outstanding Academic Title Award for the book “Combating Jihadims: American Hegemony and Interstate Cooperation in the War on Terrorism”
2009: Center for Globalization and Global Citizenship, Haverford College, Faculty Research Award.
2008 -2020: Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy Research Institute.
2006-07: Post-Doctoral Fellowship, Department of Political Science, Tel Aviv University.
2000: Tzechick award for the best study on Israeli Security, awarded by the Jaffa Center for Strategic Studies (INSS), for the M.A. thesis “Israeli Deterrence in the Gulf War.”
1997: Excellence scholarship, the Security Studies Program, Tel Aviv University.
Teaching Experience
- Haverford College. Courses taught: International Politics; International Security; Evolution of the Jihadi Movement; Armed Nonstate Actors; Politics in the State System; International Relations Theory: Conflict and the Middle East; Introduction to Terrorism Studies; War on Terrorism; Israeli Politics and Society; Technology and International Security; Short of War: Deterrence and Compellence in International Politics.
- Visiting Associate Professor, IBEI (Institut Barcelona d'Estudis Internacionals). Course taught: Terrorism and Counterterrorism
- Instructor, The Hebrew University, Jerusalem. Course taught: Strategy in the Middle East.
Research Interests:
Terrorism and counter-terrorism; The al-Qaeda Movement, Radical Islamic movements; Hegemony and interstate cooperation; Non-state actor vs. organizing principals to world order; Politics of the Middle East; Religion and international relations; Israel and its messianic Right; Foreign policy; The causes of interstate and intrastate conflict
Books
- Jihadism Constrained: The Limits of Transnational Jihadism and What It Means for Counter-Terrorism (Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield, 2019).
- The al-Qaeda Franchise: The Expansion of al-Qaeda and Its Consequences (New York: Oxford University Press, 2016).
- Combating Jihadism: American Hegemony and Interstate Cooperation in the War on Terrorism (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2009).
Book Chapters
- “Terrorism and Protean Power: How Terrorists Navigate Uncertainty.” In Peter Katzenstein and Lucia Seybert, eds., Protean Power: Exploring the Uncertain and Unexpected in World Politics (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018), 188-208.
Articles
- “Paper Tiger: The Enemy Image of America,” Survival 65:3 (June-July 2023), 1-30. (With Dominic Tierney)
- “Justice, Inequality and Order: The Curious Case of the Jihadi Divine Justice” International Affairs 99:1 (2023), 81-100.
- “Casting Shadow: Founders and the Unique Challenges of a Terrorist Group’s First Leadership Change,” Studies in Conflict & Terrorism (2021), DOI: 10.1080/1057610X.2021.2018903
- “The Limits of Ideologically-Unlikely Partnerships: Syria’s Support for Jihadi Terrorist Groups,” Studies in Conflict & Terrorism 46:9 (2023).
- “Ayman al-Zawahiri and the Challenges of Succession in Terrorist Organization,” Terrorism and Political Violence 34:8 (2022), 1826-1845.
- “In Limited Demand: The Other Foreign Volunteers in the Syrian Civil War,” Terrorism and Political Violence 34:4 (2022), 682-705.
- “Why Do jihadi Groups Recruit Foreign Fighters?: The Case of the Islamic State,” Orbis 64:1 (2020), 111-130.
- “The Battle for Algeria: Explaining Organizational Fratricide Among Armed Non-State Actors,” Studies in Conflict & Terrorism 44:9 (2021), 776-798.
- “The Future of al-Qaeda: Lessons from the Muslim Brotherhood,” Survival 60:2 (2018), 151-178.
- “Israel and Its Messianic Right: Path Dependency and State Authority in International Conflict.” International Studies Quarterly 60:1 (2016), 47-58.
- “Threat Identification and the UN’s 1267 Sanctions Committee.” Terrorism and Political Violence 27:4 (2015), 609-627.
- “State Authority in the Balance: The Israeli State and the Messianic Settler Movement.” International Studies Review 16:4 (December 2014), 499-521.
- “U.S. Strategy in a Transitioning Middle East: Reviving ‘State Responsibility’." Orbis 58:2 (April 2014), 198-211.
- “Al Qaeda and Global Governance: The Constraining Impact of Rigid Ideology.” Terrorism and Political Violence 26:3 (2014), 470-487.
- “God vs. Westphalia: Radical Islamist Movements and the Battle for Organizing the World.” Review of International Studies 38 (2012), 589-613.
- “Al Qaeda’s Franchising Strategy.” Survival 53:3 (May/June 2011), 29-50.
- “Foreign Fighters: Recent Trends.” Orbis 55:2 (Spring 2011), 189-202.
- “Bolstering the State: A Different Perspective on the War on the Jihadi Movement.” International Studies Review 11:4 (December 2009), 663-686.
- “Al Qaeda’s Palestinian Problem.” Survival 51:4 (August/September 2009), 71-86. Reprinted in Paul Cruickshank, ed., Al Qaeda: Critical Concepts in Political Science, Vol. 5 (Oxford: Routledge, 2012).
- “English School American Style: Testing the Preservation-Seeking Quality of the International Society.” European Journal of International Relations 15:2 (June 2009), 291-318.
- “Sovereignty Under Attack: The International Society Meets the al Qaeda Network.” Review of International Studies 31:1 (January 2005), 45-68. Reprinted in Jeffrey Haynes, ed., Religion and Politics: Critical Concepts in Religious Studies, Vol. 4 (Oxford: Routledge, 2009).
- “Israeli Self-Defeating Deterrence in the 1991 Gulf War.” Journal of Strategic Studies 26:4 (December 2003), 83-107.
Additional Works
- “Review of Sivan Hirsch-Hoefler and Cas Mudde, The Israeli Settler Movement: Assessing and Explaining Social Movement Success,” Israel Studies Review 37:3 (2022), 164-168.
- “Al-Qaeda Is Being Hollowed to Its Core,” War on the Rocks, February 24, 2021 (with Colin Clarke).
- “Review of Jessie Blackbourn, Danis Kayis, and Nicola McGarrity, Anti-Terrorism Law and Foreign Terrorist Fighters,” Terrorism and Political Violence 34:4 (2022), 877-878.
- “Bound to Fail: Transnational Jihadism and the Aggregation Problem,” War on the Rocks, August 28, 2018.
- “Review of William Polk, Crusade and Jihad.” International Journal of Middle East Studies (Forthcoming).
- “Review of Richard Nielsen, Deadly Clerics.” Middle East Journal 72:4 (2018), 718-720.
- “Review of Marc Sageman, Misunderstanding Terrorism.” Cambridge Review of International Affairs 30:5-6 (2017), 588-590.
- “Review of Nahed Artoul Zehr, The War against al-Qaeda: Religion, Policy, and Counter-narratives,” Politics and Religion 10:4 (2017), 927-930.
- “Deviance and Uncertainty in the International System. Review of William J. Brenner, Confounding Powers: Anarchy and International Society from the Assassins to Al Qaeda.” International Studies Review,19:3 (2017), 537-539.
- “Power, Legitimacy, and the Self-Limiting Logic of Terrorism.” Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, February 24, 2017.
- “Al Qaeda’s Ruthless Pragmatism Makes It More Dangerous Than Islamic State.” Reuters, October 27, 2016 (with Colin Clarke).
- “It’s Been 15 Years Since 9/11. How Has al-Qaeda Changed?.” The Washington Post’s Monkey Cage, September 10, 2016.
- “ISIS’ Lone Wolf Threat and How the West Should Respond.” Foreign Affairs, August 25, 2016.
- “Jihad's Civil War: The Battle Between ISIS and al Qaeda Simmers On,” Foreign Affairs, June 16, 2016.
- “Experts Weigh In: What Is the Future of al-Qaida and the Islamic State?.” Markaz (Brookings Institution), January 7, 2016.
- “Divide and Conquer in Syria and Iraq: Why the West Should Plan for a Partition.” Foreign Affairs, November 30, 2015.
- “Threat Analysis and Multilateral Counterterrorism.” Lawfare (Brookings Institution), October 4, 2015.
- “Al-Qaeda After Omar: Why His Death Could Hurt the Terrorist Group and Empower ISIS.” Foreign Affairs, August 9, 2015.
- “The Jihadi Threat to International Order.” The Washington Post’s Monkey Cage, May 15, 2015. Reprinted in Islam and International Order, POMEPS Studies no. 15, July 22, 2015.
- “Islamic State in Yemen: Why IS Is Seeking to Expand,” BBC.com, March 21, 2015.
- “Accepting al Qaeda: The Enemy of the United States’ Enemy.” Foreign Affairs, March 9, 2015.
- “Review of Jacob Shapiro, The Terrorist's Dilemma: Managing Violent Covert Organizations.” Perspective on Politics 12:4 (2014), 991-993.
- “ISIS' Gruesome Gamble: Why the Group Wants a Confrontation with the United States.” Foreign Affairs, August 14, 2014. Reprinted in Gideon Rose, ed., The ISIS Crisis (NY: Council of Foreign Relations, 2015).
- “The Near Enemy: Why the Real Threat to Israel Isn’t in Gaza.” Foreign Affairs, July 14, 2014. Reprinted in Gideon Rose, ed., Clueless in Gaza (NY: Council of Foreign Relations, 2014).
- “ISIL’s Bold Caliphate Roll-Out: Objectives and Risks.” War on the Rocks, July 8, 2014.
- “Obama’s Sensible Iraq Plan Is Likely Doomed.” CNN.com, June 18, 2014.
- “Collateral Damage in Iraq: The Rise of ISIS and the Fall of al Qaeda.” Foreign Affairs, June 15, 2014. Reprinted in Gideon Rose, ed., Endgame in Iraq (NY: Council of Foreign Relations, 2014); Also Reprinted in Gideon Rose, ed., The ISIS Crisis (NY: Council of Foreign Relations, 2015).
- “Review of Michael W.S. Ryan, Decoding Al-Qaeda’s Strategy: The Deep Battle Against America.” The Middle East Journal 68:2 (Spring 2014), 334-335.
- “After Disowning ISIS, al Qaeda is Back On Top: Here's Why That Isn't Necessarily Bad News.” Foreign Affairs, February 14, 2014.
- “Al Qaeda’s Syria Problem,” Foreign Policy’s Middle East Channel, January 23, 2014 (with Ariel Ahram).
- “Review of Wellman, James K. and Lombardi, Clark Benner, eds., Religion and Human Security: A Global Perspective.” H-Diplo, H-Net Reviews, January, 2013.
www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=37128
- “The Cost of Riding the Tiger: Hamas’s Road from Miscalculation to Escalation,” Geopolitics: The FPRI Blog, November 19, 2012.
- “Hamas' Miscalculation: Why The Group Thought It Could Get Away With Striking Israel,” Foreign Affairs, November 18, 2012. Reprinted in Gideon Rose, ed., Clueless in Gaza (NY: Council of Foreign Relations, 2014).
- “Same Song, Second Verse.” In a symposium on ten years since 9/11, The Journal of International Security Affairs (Fall/Winter 2011), 31-33.
- “Review of Richard Immerman’s Empire for Liberty: A History of American Imperialism from Benjamin Franklin to Paul Wolfowitz,” Political Science Quarterly 126:3 (Fall 2011), 504-505.
- “After bin Laden.” E-Notes, Philadelphia: Foreign Policy Research Institute, May 2011.
- “Teaching About Jihadism and the War on Terrorism.” Footnotes 15:7, Philadelphia: Foreign Policy Research Institute, October 2010.
- “The Question of International Cooperation in the War on Terrorism.” E-Notes, Philadelphia: Foreign Policy Research Institute, June 2010.
- “Hamas and Its Discontents: The Battle Over Islamic Rule in Gaza.” Foreign Affairs, September 9, 2009.
- “Stretching Military Analysis to Include Asymmetric Conflict.” Dynamics of Asymmetric Conflict 1:2 (2008), 192-194.