Commentaries

Used, as we unfortunately are, to terrorists hiding behind ski masks, the images of the area near the military base in Woolwich, south-east London, could not have been more striking: A murderer, his hands drenched in the blood still warm of his victim, holding a

Perhaps Lawrence of Arabia put it best when he said, “War upon rebellion is messy and slow, like eating soup with a knife.” These words, spoken by the British officer who united the Arab tribes against their Ottoman rulers during World War I, sums up

Egypt will find it hard to avoid deep dichotomy and bitter polarization between secularism and Islamism. First published by the Jerusalem Report  

It is a great honor for us to welcome you to the ICT’s 13th International Conference: World Summit on Counter-Terrorism at the IDC Herzliya. For many of us the annual conference has become a given. The truth is that organizing such a conference entails tremendous

The plan to disarm Syrian chemical weapons is unrealistic, not least because they are the Assad regime’s doomsday weapon to preserve the survival of its own Alawite community. First published by Haaretz  

El plan para desactivar las armas químicas sirias no es nada realista, entre otras cosas, porque son las armas “apocalípticas” del régimen de Assad para mantener la supervivencia de su propia comunidad alauita. First published by El Imparcial  

Dr. Boaz Ganor’s Address at ICT’s 13th International Conference: World Summit on Counter-Terrorism on the need to achieve an internationally accepted definition of terrorism.

In July 2012 Al-Jazeera published the results of “an investigation into the mysterious death of the late Palestinian leader [which] reveals that he may have been poisoned” with radioactive polonium 210. Al-Jazeera and Arafat’s widow Suha were behind the investigation. The scientific investigation was the

In an exceptional and rather dramatic decision a month ago, an Egyptian court banned all activities of the Muslim Brotherhood and ordered the confiscation of party’s funds. If fully or even partly implemented, this ban will create serious existential challenge for the brotherhood. Their best

Here in the Middle East, we have long since become accustomed to the status quo being the good news – even the best news – and to any change in it bearing the seeds of imminent catastrophe. The tectonic changes of the Arab Spring revolutions

There is now a window of opportunity to exploit the organization’s weakness, Egypt’s goodwill and Tehran’s restraint to advance the peace negotiationsFirst published by the Jerusalem Report on November 18, 2013.

Dr. Ely Karmon interview on the Prospects of the Peace Negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians to the series “Five Questions – Five Answers” of the Israeli Office of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung For our interview series “Five Questions – Five Answers”, Dr. Ely Karmon, Senior Research

I returned from a trip abroad and read the numerous articles in Haaretz and Yediot Aharonot concerning the recent publication of testimonies made to the Agranat Commission that had been assigned by the Israeli government to inquire the Yom – Kippur war (1973). First published

Israel’s release of convicted Palestinian terrorists and Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu’s reported agreement in principle to concessions in the Jordan Valley beg an important question; Can Israeli concessions influence the Palestinians to sign an historic peace deal that ends the Arab Israeli conflict once and

Syria has been declared the United States’ No. 1 security threat for 2014. With radical forces growing stronger, are drone strikes the solution?  First published by Haaretz on Janury 8, 2014.

A finales de enero de 2013, tres miembros de una célula salafista/yihadista que operaban cerca de Hebrón fueron asesinados en una operación militar. La célula estaba planeando ataques con armas de fuego y secuestros de soldados de las Fuerzas de Defensa de Israel (FDI), así

On February 3, 2014, Israeli media,citing senior Israeli officials,reportedenthusiastically that following negotiations in Israel between a senior Turkish delegation, headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Fridon Sinirlioglu, and National Security Adviser Yossi Cohen, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s special envoy Joseph Ciechanover and Foreign Ministry Director-General Nissim

While the world is particularly worried about the Ukrainian crisis and the possibility of the return of the Cold War, China suffered probably the most traumatic terrorist attack in its recent history. On March 1, 2014 at least 29 people were killed and more than

Al-Qaeda used to be a unitary centralised jihadist organisation. But post 9/11 it evolved into a decentralised terrorist structure within which it is now possible to identify a central nucleus –known as al-Qaeda Central (AQC) and still located in Pakistan’s tribal areas and adjacent territories

After a series of failed or foiled terror attempts against Israeli targets this year, Iran and Hezbollah finally staged a “successful” attack. The suicide bombing in Burgas, Bulgaria killed five Israeli tourists and a Bulgarian citizen, and wounded some 30 Israelis. First published by Haaretz

The IDF’s surgical aerial strikes have hurt Hamas but to this point have not deterred them from continuously targeting Israeli civilians. First published by The Jerusalem Post  

It is not at all sure that the ruling Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood movement will have the political will to take the necessary economic and political measures to alleviate the situation of the Bedouins and clamp down on the salafis, jihadists and radical Palestinians in Sinai,

Contrary to claims by the Algeria kidnappers that their attack was launched in response to a French strike in Mali, it is likely that the group’s true motivation was to elevate the status of its leader among factions of Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb. First

Despite the wishful thinking of Israeli and Turkish pundits and politicians that a settlement of the Mavi Marmara affair would enable a renewed alliance between the two countries, this has little chance when anti-Israeli rhetoric serves to keep the current Turkish government in power and

During the last days major demonstrations took place across the West Bank in solidarity with Palestinian hunger-strikers and prisoners, with many Palestinian civilians wounded in the clashes with IDF forces. There are presently four Palestinian prisoners on long-term hunger strike and their plight have struck

Having an internationally accepted definition of terrorism is not an easy task and has not been achieved to this date. However, many experts would agree that – although this definition is difficult to achieve – terrorism will be comprised of the following elements: the threat

Although acclaimed as a “socialist” leader, less known were the fascist influences on Chavez’s worldview and policy. In 1994, after ending his incarceration resulting from his failed 1992 military coup, Chavez visited Buenos Aires, where he met Argentine neo-fascist sociologist, the late Norberto Ceresole, a

The civil war in Syria as well as potential the rise of radical Islamists in the country constitute a major national security threat for Turkey on its southern border and for Israel on its northern border. First published by The Jerusalem Post  

Those who are now tasked with investing the terrorist attack at the 2013 Boston Marathon must determine just what sort of attack it was. Was it an instance of organized terrorism, carried out by a local group or cell sent on a mission by an

The choice of a U.S. target indicates the Tsarnaevs had joined radicalized Muslims seeking global jihad, says counterterrorism expert Ely Karmon. First published by Haaretz  

The bombings at the Boston marathon Monday were a devastating reminder that the American homeland remains vulnerable to terrorism. Three people were killed, 176 injured, and judging from media coverage millions of Americans feel aggrieved. The country has been deeply shaken in part because the attack

The Western governments, above all the U.K., have yet to realize that the impunity enjoyed by radical Islamist leaders to publish, organize and incite violence is the single greatest danger to their security. First published by Haaretz  

Across East and West Africa, Iranian and Lebanese nationals have been arrested in connection with Hezbollah-related terrorist activities. What is Hezbollah and Iran – building in Africa, and why? First published by Haaretz  

I have been invited here by this esteemed Committee to answer a question that greatly concerns the European Parliament, and which we are here to discuss today: Is Hezbollah a terrorist organization? It is natural that we should be discussing this question, for there is

It is in the best interest for anyone interested in peace that released prisoners be productive citizens rather than destructive combatants. First published  in The Jerusalem Post. By Dr. Boaz Ganor and Ophir Falk

My colleague Jonathan Spyer has published a short and accurate evaluation about the recent strategic shifts in the region which will undoubtedly impact on all the local actors but also beyond the Middle East.

During the past few months, we have witnessed what can only be perceived as a strategic change in U.S. foreign and defense policy. Part of the strategic change is expressed through new alliances, but mainly in reassessment of military needs and capabilities as well as

Since Khomeini’s rise to power in 1979, Iran has maintained aspirations to lead the radical Islamic camp and continues to deepen its ties to extremist states and terrorist groups throughout the Middle East (Hizbullah in Lebanon, Hamas and the Islamic Jihad in the West Bank

The Libyan authorities earmarked vast economic and military resources for the realization of their “revolutionary goal: Libya established extensive ties with dozens of terrorist organizations around the world, providing these groups with varied assistance. Numerous terrorist attacks have been carried out on Libya’s behalf or

Since the establishment of the Islamic Republic in 1979, Iran views terrorism as a legitimate means to further its ideological and strategic aims – to “export the Revolution.” Iran assists Islamic groups and organizations worldwide, especially in the Middle East – in striving to attack

For many years, terrorism was perceived as a contest between two sides: on the one hand, a group of people or an organization, and on the other, a sovereign state. However, during the course of the second half of the twentieth century, various countries began

The cabinet decision thus signals Israel’s desire to alter the dangerous situation prevailing in southern Lebanon for over 20 years, by implementation of UN Security Council resolution 425. In the past any such change was precluded by the lack of a stable government and effective

It is a sign of the times that the study of Islam today, far from being an escape from anti-Semitism, is more likely to be an immersion in it. It is a grim truth that many Muslims denounce even Jewish scholars of Islam, past and

Experts on terrorism tend to claim that Hamas has shown high sophistication in unleashing waves of terrorism and perpetrating attacks against Israeli citizens. Some have been inclined to argue that Hamas is involved in intricate attempts to hinder the peace process, to change the government

The strategic importance of the Sri Lankan cricket team recently selected as a terror target in Pakistan could be that Sri Lanka now represents a success story in militarily defeating terrorism.