'The Crime-Terror Nexus: Investigating the overlap between criminal and extremist practices, narratives and networks in Tripoli, Lebanon
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Oxford
Department Name: Politics and International Relations
Abstract
THE RELEVANCE OF OUR RESEARCH
Tripoli, Lebanon's second city, has over the past eight years witnessed a significant increase in levels of violence. This mainly stems from the progressive merger of criminal and terrorist milieux, practices and narratives and their growing embeddedness in the marginalized districts of Qobbe, Bab al-Tebbaneh and Mankoubin. Indeed, there is a 'neighbourhood effect' at work: preliminary data we collected from the Lebanese Interior Ministry shows that out of 152 Tripolitans arrested for terrorism-related charges in 2016 and 2017 over two-thirds hailed from one of these three districts, and that the overwhelming majority were, or had been, involved in criminal activities.
This phenomenon of Islamo-gangsterism is far from unique to Tripoli - scholars and security practitioners have in fact demonstrated that between a quarter and a half of all convicted jihadis in Europe have a criminal background and hail from the marginalized neighbourhoods of large cities. The prevalence and overlap of criminal and terrorist networks in Manchester's Moss Side or Brussels' Molenbeek are a case in point of how Islamo-gangsterism can become rooted in certain sociopolitical, spatial and historical contexts. There is an urgent need to study why and how TNOC becomes rooted in deprived urban communities and increasingly intersects with terrorism, and we are using Tripoli as an example of how to address this.
THE RESEARCH QUESTION
What are the underlying factors and processes that explain how spaces such as Tripoli's Qobbe, Bab al-Tebbaneh and Mankoubin as well as, more generally, the deprived neighbourhoods of large cities (1) become the privileged milieus of TNOC and (2) turn into safe territories for crime-terror interaction?
OUR RESEARCH METHODS
Answering this question demands data on the sociopolitical, spatial and historical dimensions of TNOC's genesis, embeddedness and interaction with extremist networks in Tripolitan neighbourhoods. We will collect this by using a rigorous mixed methods research design that involves undertaking archival research, data collection, a survey of residents and qualitative interviews.
(1) Archival research: we will investigate the history of crime-terror interaction in Tripoli by retracing the rise and fall of two revolutionary groups which epitomized early forms of this phenomenon - the Organization of Anger and the Movement of the Wanted - by exploring the archives of Lebanese and Tripolitan newspapers.
(2) Data collection: we will retrieve and analyse data on terrorist and criminal convicts, as well as on Tripoli's deprived districts, from the Lebanese Interior Ministry.
(3) Survey of residents: we will explore the spatial and sociopolitical dimension of crime-terror interaction by conducting a survey of 150 residents in each of the three aforementioned districts in order to ascertain the nature and extent of local perceptions of criminal and extremist milieux, practices and narratives.
(4) Qualitative interviews: we will interview twenty well-placed observers of the crime-terror nexus in Tripoli in order to obtain additional insights and shed light on this phenomenon.
Our project uses an interpretative lens that draws upon urban sociology, contentious politics and cultural anthropology to grasp how neighbourhood dynamics, a history of dissent as well as the prevalence of narratives emphasizing humiliation and rebellion, can intersect with criminal and extremist practices.
ENGAGEMENT WITH STAKEHOLDERS
Our project relies on sustained engagement with non-academic stakeholders at each stage of the process in order to achieve two goals: (1) to allow us to continuously reflect on whether and how findings derived from Tripoli can be applicable elsewhere (members of advisory board: Ch Supt John Denley and Antonio Sampaio) and; (2) to enhance the dissemination and outreach of our output (project partners: March, Berghof Foundation and Carnegie MEC).
Tripoli, Lebanon's second city, has over the past eight years witnessed a significant increase in levels of violence. This mainly stems from the progressive merger of criminal and terrorist milieux, practices and narratives and their growing embeddedness in the marginalized districts of Qobbe, Bab al-Tebbaneh and Mankoubin. Indeed, there is a 'neighbourhood effect' at work: preliminary data we collected from the Lebanese Interior Ministry shows that out of 152 Tripolitans arrested for terrorism-related charges in 2016 and 2017 over two-thirds hailed from one of these three districts, and that the overwhelming majority were, or had been, involved in criminal activities.
This phenomenon of Islamo-gangsterism is far from unique to Tripoli - scholars and security practitioners have in fact demonstrated that between a quarter and a half of all convicted jihadis in Europe have a criminal background and hail from the marginalized neighbourhoods of large cities. The prevalence and overlap of criminal and terrorist networks in Manchester's Moss Side or Brussels' Molenbeek are a case in point of how Islamo-gangsterism can become rooted in certain sociopolitical, spatial and historical contexts. There is an urgent need to study why and how TNOC becomes rooted in deprived urban communities and increasingly intersects with terrorism, and we are using Tripoli as an example of how to address this.
THE RESEARCH QUESTION
What are the underlying factors and processes that explain how spaces such as Tripoli's Qobbe, Bab al-Tebbaneh and Mankoubin as well as, more generally, the deprived neighbourhoods of large cities (1) become the privileged milieus of TNOC and (2) turn into safe territories for crime-terror interaction?
OUR RESEARCH METHODS
Answering this question demands data on the sociopolitical, spatial and historical dimensions of TNOC's genesis, embeddedness and interaction with extremist networks in Tripolitan neighbourhoods. We will collect this by using a rigorous mixed methods research design that involves undertaking archival research, data collection, a survey of residents and qualitative interviews.
(1) Archival research: we will investigate the history of crime-terror interaction in Tripoli by retracing the rise and fall of two revolutionary groups which epitomized early forms of this phenomenon - the Organization of Anger and the Movement of the Wanted - by exploring the archives of Lebanese and Tripolitan newspapers.
(2) Data collection: we will retrieve and analyse data on terrorist and criminal convicts, as well as on Tripoli's deprived districts, from the Lebanese Interior Ministry.
(3) Survey of residents: we will explore the spatial and sociopolitical dimension of crime-terror interaction by conducting a survey of 150 residents in each of the three aforementioned districts in order to ascertain the nature and extent of local perceptions of criminal and extremist milieux, practices and narratives.
(4) Qualitative interviews: we will interview twenty well-placed observers of the crime-terror nexus in Tripoli in order to obtain additional insights and shed light on this phenomenon.
Our project uses an interpretative lens that draws upon urban sociology, contentious politics and cultural anthropology to grasp how neighbourhood dynamics, a history of dissent as well as the prevalence of narratives emphasizing humiliation and rebellion, can intersect with criminal and extremist practices.
ENGAGEMENT WITH STAKEHOLDERS
Our project relies on sustained engagement with non-academic stakeholders at each stage of the process in order to achieve two goals: (1) to allow us to continuously reflect on whether and how findings derived from Tripoli can be applicable elsewhere (members of advisory board: Ch Supt John Denley and Antonio Sampaio) and; (2) to enhance the dissemination and outreach of our output (project partners: March, Berghof Foundation and Carnegie MEC).
Planned Impact
THE BENEFITS OF OUR RESEARCH
As the first truly interdisciplinary and empirical research into the making of Islamo-gangsterism in the marginalized neighbourhoods of Tripoli, our project will bring two key benefits to non-academic stakeholders and users of research:
(1) It will provide new knowledge on the crime and terror landscape of Tripoli, Lebanon's second city, which remains an enigma not just to the public but also to policymakers and practitioners. The data and networks generated by this project will facilitate the work of Lebanese and international NGOs and donors interested in launching initiatives and projects in Tripoli, thus contributing to its medium-term development.
(2) It will shed ethnographic insights into how the crime-terror nexus works from below. This is a crucial issue with relevance beyond Tripoli, as the neighbourhoods of Manchester, Brussels, Paris and Birmingham have also become home to the phenomenon of Islamo-gangsterism. Our research will stimulate discussion amongst the UK community of security practitioners and social workers by pointing to the need to design policies built around more effective neighbourhood engagement.
ENGAGEMENT WITH STAKEHOLDERS
To ensure that our project delivers clear benefits for the users of the research, it builds on sustained collaboration with two types of stakeholders:
(1) Members of our Advisory Board: John Denley, Detective Chief Superintendent and Head of the Regional Organized Crime Unit for the West Midlands, and Antonio Sampaio, who heads the urban violence programme at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London.
Engaging with them at the implementation and dissemination stages will allow us to reflect critically on whether and how lessons derived from the crime-terror nexus in Tripoli can be applied elsewhere, for example in the UK.
(2) Our Project Partners in Lebanon: March, a Lebanese civil society organization leading counter-extremism initiatives in Tripoli's deprived districts; the Berghof Foundation, an international NGO which runs dialogue and empowerment sessions in Tripoli; and the Carnegie Middle East Center, Lebanon's most influential think tank and advocacy group.
Engaging with them at the implementation and dissemination stages will allow us to exert community-level impact, policy and programming impact, and public-level impact as detailed below.
COMMUNITY-LEVEL IMPACT
The two informal workshops co-organized with our Project Partners in Lebanon will have a community-level impact by empowering local civil society actors and community members to raise awareness of TNOC, and to resist its appeal and effects. The workshops will also create and consolidate a network of activists committed to building human security from below, thus setting up local channels of communication that will allow for effective knowledge exchange and regular contact amongst stakeholders. Once these channels of communication are open, it is envisioned that they will be self-sustaining.
POLICY AND PROGRAMMING IMPACT
The two formal workshops co-organized with our Project Partners in Lebanon will bring together top scholars as well as leading Middle Eastern and European practitioners of the crime-terror nexus in Beirut. The workshops will be translated into English and Arabic and, given the Carnegie Middle East Center's highly influential networks of contacts and outreach capacities, are expected to maximize policy effect. We will also publish a Carnegie Paper in both English and Arabic that will disseminate our recommendations to practitioners.
PUBLIC-LEVEL IMPACT
We will produce a documentary film in order to raise awareness and help change public perceptions of TNOC. It will give a voice to the citizens of Tripoli, enabling them to express how their lives have been impacted by TNOC. This is a unique way of exerting an impact on Lebanese and transnational audiences. The film will be made available online for free.
As the first truly interdisciplinary and empirical research into the making of Islamo-gangsterism in the marginalized neighbourhoods of Tripoli, our project will bring two key benefits to non-academic stakeholders and users of research:
(1) It will provide new knowledge on the crime and terror landscape of Tripoli, Lebanon's second city, which remains an enigma not just to the public but also to policymakers and practitioners. The data and networks generated by this project will facilitate the work of Lebanese and international NGOs and donors interested in launching initiatives and projects in Tripoli, thus contributing to its medium-term development.
(2) It will shed ethnographic insights into how the crime-terror nexus works from below. This is a crucial issue with relevance beyond Tripoli, as the neighbourhoods of Manchester, Brussels, Paris and Birmingham have also become home to the phenomenon of Islamo-gangsterism. Our research will stimulate discussion amongst the UK community of security practitioners and social workers by pointing to the need to design policies built around more effective neighbourhood engagement.
ENGAGEMENT WITH STAKEHOLDERS
To ensure that our project delivers clear benefits for the users of the research, it builds on sustained collaboration with two types of stakeholders:
(1) Members of our Advisory Board: John Denley, Detective Chief Superintendent and Head of the Regional Organized Crime Unit for the West Midlands, and Antonio Sampaio, who heads the urban violence programme at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London.
Engaging with them at the implementation and dissemination stages will allow us to reflect critically on whether and how lessons derived from the crime-terror nexus in Tripoli can be applied elsewhere, for example in the UK.
(2) Our Project Partners in Lebanon: March, a Lebanese civil society organization leading counter-extremism initiatives in Tripoli's deprived districts; the Berghof Foundation, an international NGO which runs dialogue and empowerment sessions in Tripoli; and the Carnegie Middle East Center, Lebanon's most influential think tank and advocacy group.
Engaging with them at the implementation and dissemination stages will allow us to exert community-level impact, policy and programming impact, and public-level impact as detailed below.
COMMUNITY-LEVEL IMPACT
The two informal workshops co-organized with our Project Partners in Lebanon will have a community-level impact by empowering local civil society actors and community members to raise awareness of TNOC, and to resist its appeal and effects. The workshops will also create and consolidate a network of activists committed to building human security from below, thus setting up local channels of communication that will allow for effective knowledge exchange and regular contact amongst stakeholders. Once these channels of communication are open, it is envisioned that they will be self-sustaining.
POLICY AND PROGRAMMING IMPACT
The two formal workshops co-organized with our Project Partners in Lebanon will bring together top scholars as well as leading Middle Eastern and European practitioners of the crime-terror nexus in Beirut. The workshops will be translated into English and Arabic and, given the Carnegie Middle East Center's highly influential networks of contacts and outreach capacities, are expected to maximize policy effect. We will also publish a Carnegie Paper in both English and Arabic that will disseminate our recommendations to practitioners.
PUBLIC-LEVEL IMPACT
We will produce a documentary film in order to raise awareness and help change public perceptions of TNOC. It will give a voice to the citizens of Tripoli, enabling them to express how their lives have been impacted by TNOC. This is a unique way of exerting an impact on Lebanese and transnational audiences. The film will be made available online for free.
Publications
Caroline Rooney
(2022)
Playing With Reality: Denying, Manipulating, Converting and Enhancing What isThere
Rooney Professor Caroline
(2020)
Creative Radicalism in the Middle East: Culture and the Arab Left after the Uprisings
| Title | Poetry in Nicosia Beyond Barriers (Saqi Books) |
| Description | This anthology brings together writers across sectarian divides. |
| Type Of Art | Creative Writing |
| Year Produced | 2019 |
| Impact | The book was launched to the public at the Poetry Café (London), and I participated in the reading. Reviews include: Ambitious and enchanting the selection encompasses a striking diversity of genres and perspectives.' Jonathan Fryer 'These pieces of fiction, poetry and journalism offer a cast of diverse narrators perceptive and peppered with fresh detail' TLS 'Unifying, inclusive, perspectives which celebrate diversity vibrant, rich in Levantine tonalities Nicosia and its inhabitants are liberated on every page of this prodigious volume, with its soul encapsulated by these visionaries. A revelatory read.' Morning Star |
| URL | https://saqibooks.com/books/saqi/nicosia-beyond-barriers/ |
| Title | The Republic of the OUtlaws |
| Description | This is a documentary film (not yet released, currently in post-production) which we co-produced with the Lebanese production company, RoarParks Films (for more, see the Partnerships and Collaboration section). It tells the story of the rise and fall of a mini criminal state in Tripoli, Lebanon, in the 1970s. In 1974, on the eve of the Lebanese civil war, the northern city of Tripoli no longer looks like the prestigious and prosperous hub for Middle Eastern trade which it had been for centuries. Many of its most beautiful quarters are now a refuge for an increasingly impoverished population and insurgent groups start roaming the city, recruiting dozens of young men who are so disenfranchised by the state's neglect that they are ready to rebel. Protest ideologies like Marxism or Islamism begin to spread in the slums of Tripoli. Enter a coalition of gangsters called "the Outlaws". They're a gang of criminals, not a rebel group, yet they start gaining attention by calling on the impoverished population to join their group in order to protest against the state and to create new power structures. Within a matter of months, hundreds of locals in Tripoli joined the gang and, together, created the "Republic of the Outlaws" - a mini-criminal state with a president, ministers and soldiers. The Republic broke away from Lebanon and became its own criminal state for nine months. This film tells the true story of the rise and fall of the "Republic of the Outlaws". It is based on more than a dozen filmed interviews with former officials in the "Republic of the Outlaws" who used to be criminals, as well as with older residents of Tripoli who recall this period of time, and a local sociologist who adds local and national context. It is also based on a trove of archives from Lebanese newspapers as well as footage both archival and contemporary of Tripoli. The "Republic of the Outlaws" existed between March and December 1974. This new state initially benefited Tripoli's impoverished population which had now access to social services through the criminals stealing from the rich, and no longer paid taxes to the Lebanese state. But in time the top officials of the new Republic including the President and leader of the gang, Ahmed Qaddour, began to gain a reputation for corruption and violating morals - to the point of starting to run brothels in the main mosques of this fairly conservative city. The Outlaws, under growing fire from the local population, began to fight one another, which provided a window of opportunity for the Lebanese army to intervene and oust them from Tripoli. In a show of how strong the army of the "Republic of the Outlaws" still was, the battle was long and bloody, lasting three weeks, causing hundreds of fatalities and destroying much of Tripoli's infrastructure - with architectural scars still visible today. In spite of the resonance it has with the growth of gangs today, this episode of Lebanese history remains little known outside of Tripoli and this documentary brings it to life. This film is not a purely local, if incredible story. It has universal appeal, as both a testament to organized crime's many faces and a cautionary tale about the enduring appeal of gangsters across a world where rebellion is simmering, and also about their true nature. From the gangs ruling the favelas of Rio or villages in the Mexican countryside to those mingling with terrorists in the banlieues of Western capitals, this film sheds light on an important yet typically underestimated aspect of organized crime - its ability to embody a rebellion and to appeal to the most marginalized sectors of society, with devastating effects. |
| Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Impact | The film has not yet been released (it is still under post production) so we have not seen any tangible impacts yet. |
| Description | Through archival research and data collection we have proved that a significant proportion of those arrested for terrorist offences in Tripoli in the 1970s but also in the 2010s had a criminal background especially those arrested who hailed from specific, very poor neighbourhoods ie Bab al-Tebbaneh and Qobbe. This suggests that there is a nexus between criminality, terrorism and poverty. Another key finding of our ESRC-funded research is that history and culture play an important role in the way in which the crime-terror/rebellion nexus takes place. In Tripoli's case, we discovered that "terrorism" or "rebellion" were actually perceived locally as fitting earlier, more historical forms of rejection of the state's authority and that there was a quasi-cultural element to the local propensity for contention. This has two important implications : (1) the very notion of a "nexus" and the very terms "terrorism" or "rebellion" should be used with caution for they are not perceived as systematically making sense at the local level ; (2) the concept of transnational organised crime, alluding to a global and organised phenomenon, comprises elements that are very local and cultural which do not chime well with the concept of TNOC. |
| Exploitation Route | The two implications outlined above would have significant implications for law enforcement, for it points to the need for the police working on issues of crime and terrorism to privilege an approach less centred on a security-only lens but also taking into account the way the local social structures and local histories feed into narratives of resistance, and to invest time and resources to contain cultures of dissent built on legacies of state neglect. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Government, Democracy and Justice,Security and Diplomacy |
| Description | Same thing as for the academic impacts but applied to the policy world. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2019 |
| Sector | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Government, Democracy and Justice,Security and Diplomacy |
| Impact Types | Policy & public services |
| Description | Partnership for Conflict, Crime and Security Research |
| Organisation | Partnership for Conflict, Crime and Security Research |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | My Co-I Caroline Rooney and I shot a short video presenting our preliminary research findings -- a video which PaCCS produced and disseminated to its large network of contacts in the academic and policy world. The video interview has been made available online and transcribed at: https://www.paccsresearch.org.uk/blog/crime-terror-nexus/ |
| Collaborator Contribution | PaCCS took the time and effort (eg material equipment, admin support etc) to shoot the video presenting our preliminary research findings |
| Impact | Disseminating research findings to the broader public through a video and transcription of the video (available online at: https://www.paccsresearch.org.uk/blog/crime-terror-nexus/) |
| Start Year | 2019 |
| Description | Partnership for Conflict, Crime and Security Research |
| Organisation | University of Cambridge |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | My Co-I Caroline Rooney and I shot a short video presenting our preliminary research findings -- a video which PaCCS produced and disseminated to its large network of contacts in the academic and policy world. The video interview has been made available online and transcribed at: https://www.paccsresearch.org.uk/blog/crime-terror-nexus/ |
| Collaborator Contribution | PaCCS took the time and effort (eg material equipment, admin support etc) to shoot the video presenting our preliminary research findings |
| Impact | Disseminating research findings to the broader public through a video and transcription of the video (available online at: https://www.paccsresearch.org.uk/blog/crime-terror-nexus/) |
| Start Year | 2019 |
| Description | AHRC TV Event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The event brought together grant researchers and television professionals to explore potential future collaborations. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Antigone's Worldings Colloquium, John Hope Franklin Humanities Institute, Duke University |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Participation in an online seminar of experts on the contemporary significance of Antigone in relation to liberation struggles and criminality. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://fhi.duke.edu/news/announcing-antigones-worldings |
| Description | BBC Kent Live Interview |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | On 5 August 2020, I was interviewed live on BBC Radio Kent's news programme Drivetime in order to explain the effects of the dockyard explosion in Beirut. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Book launch of 'Beirut and the Moon' |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | I acted as interlocutor of the 25/11/2020 online book launch of Naji Bakhti's new novel 'Beirut and the Moon', organised by MENACS (Sussex) |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Book launch, Jihad in the City |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Undergraduate students |
| Results and Impact | I presented the main findings of my book and our broader research project, in a one hour talk which generated a lively questions and answers session and discussion with the students. The main audience were undergraduate students at Oxford University and nearby Universities of Oxford Brooks and Reading. The level of discussion suggested strong engagement with our research, and requests for further information were made to me after the talk. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://twitter.com/OxfordMEC/status/1493170305061244930 |
| Description | Brismes Keynote Lecture |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | An online recorded lecture on the differences between 'woke' culture and the Arab awakenings of the uprisings from Cairo to Tripoli. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.brismes.ac.uk/conference/past-conferences/2021-conference |
| Description | Exiled in Language Workshop |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The event was convened by a psychotherapy study group to bring together psychotherapeutic practitioners and poets to explore how socio-political displacement is articulated in different uses of language. I gave a poetry reading at this event. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Giving an interview about our preliminary research findings to a nationwide platform on organized crime |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | My Co-I and I gave a 25min video presentation (under the form of a Q and A) about the advancement of our research about the crime-terror nexus in Lebanon and about the local dynamics of transnational organized crime. The video was produced by a Cambridge University-linked platform disseminating research findings from academics to the broader audience, with the hope of targeting policymakers dealing with organized crime too. The video was shared on social media platforms and was ultimately transcribed as part of a short article summing up the key points pertaining to our preliminary research findings. It is available at: https://www.paccsresearch.org.uk/blog/crime-terror-nexus/ |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| URL | https://www.paccsresearch.org.uk/blog/crime-terror-nexus/ |
| Description | Interview on BBC Arabic TV News 28/01/23 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I was interviewed on the escalation of violence in the Israel-Palestine conflict. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Interview with German weekly Der Spiegel |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | I gave an interview in German weekly Der Spiegel about what the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan tells us about the new directions of militant Islamism more generally - a key argument I made is that it is not unfamiliar for such armed groups to engage in activities opposed to their professed ideology, such as drug trafficking which is contrary to Islamist beliefs. This, I argue, stems from the fact that these groups adapt to local environments in contexts marked by civil war and high uncertainty in which revenue-generating activities are important for survival. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.spiegel.de/ausland/islamismus-experte-lefevre-das-modell-der-taliban-ist-fuer-islamistis... |
| Description | Interview with Lebanese daily L'Orient Le Jour |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | In an interview I gave to Lebanese daily L'Orient le Jour, I talked about the ways in which the history of Lebanon and the legacies of the civil war of 1975-1990 continues to have ripple effects, forty years later. The article was promoted through the newspaper's social media channels and generated a broader discussion about the need to break the public amnesia in which Lebanese society lives since the end of the war, as well as to kickstart a truth and reconciliation process. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.lorientlejour.com/article/1291627/40-ans-apres-le-massacre-les-fantomes-de-hama.html |
| Description | Keynote speech, the Paul Wilkinson Memorial Lecture at the Centre for the Study of Terrorism, St Andrews University |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Undergraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Based on our research, I was invited to deliver the 2022 Paul Wilkinson Memorial Lecture at the Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence of St Andrews University - there, I presented the preliminary findings of our research on organized crime and Islamist rebellions in 1980s Lebanon. The talk was very well-received. The attendance was about 100, and the talk was recorded and will be made available online soon. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://events.st-andrews.ac.uk/events/the-paul-wilkinson-memorial-lecture-2022/ |
| Description | Op-ed in the Washington Post |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | I was asked to draw on our research expertise about how organized crime and Islamist rebellions mix, in order to shed light into how the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan reflected broader patterns of Islamist armed groups often combine participation in a civil war with attempts at governance and revenue-generating activities. The op-ed was promoted through the Washington Post social media and received a considerable amount of attention. The audience was a mix of informed citizens, journalists, policymakers and fellow scholars. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/08/25/groups-like-taliban-have-seized-power-elsewhere-w... |
| Description | PaCCS Policy Late Event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | Approximately 40 colleagues attended this event on increasing impact through creative collaboration. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Presentation of our main research findings at Aarhus University in Denmark |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Undergraduate students |
| Results and Impact | I was invited to Aarhus University in Denmark to present the preliminary findings of our research - the attendance was about 80-90 undergraduate students who expressed strong interest in learning more about the topic of organized crime and Islamist rebellions. Colleagues provided positive feedback and asked to be kept updated regarding future publications dealing with these themes. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Presentation of preliminary research findings to a working group / panel of experts |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I was invited to present my preliminary research findings at an expert panel comprising leading scholars in the field of political science and politics of the Middle East. The group includes Jeroen Gunning of Kings College London, Morten Valbjorn of Aarhus University, Courtney Freer of the LSE, Fanar Haddad of Baghdad University and others. It is hoped that an impact will be exerted on these scholars as well as on the postgraduates and undegraduates who attended the expert panel, initiating a change of views and research priorities. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | TNOC Workshop |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | TNOC colleagues shared research perspectives and expertise. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Talk at the Middle East Centre of St Antony's College, Oxford University |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | About 100 people came at a talk I gave on Lebanese politics and society, drawing on our research findings, and the number of questions and length of discussion suggested that the level of engagement with the public was high. The attendance were mostly local, with a lot of residents of Oxford participating (not necessarily students, although some were present as well). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://twitter.com/OxfordMEC/status/1498250665654636546 |
| Description | Two presentations delivered at the 2021 PaCCS meeting on Organized Crime |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | I delivered two presentations on our research findings to about 100 UK policymakers specializing in the fileds of the struggle against transnational organized crime as well as the struggle against terrorism. The level of interest generated by the two talks I gave was high, with a lively discussion following both my lectures. Some policymakers suggested that the talks would give added impetus to the broader momentum building up around the need for more investments in marginalized neighbourhoods of large cities in the UK, where organized crime tends to prosper most. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |