BOOKS | foreign-fighters

THE BOOKS

I have dedicated two decades of my life to the study of violent radicalization in Islamist movements, including the phenomena of foreign fighters and suicide bombers. These books are rich in empirical research and theoretical analysis of the sources of radicalization and violent extremism in the Muslim world. I invite you to read them, critically assess their arguments, and engage me in a conversation to address the challenge of global jihadism.

Why Muslims Rebel

ISBN: 978-1-58826-302-5

"A theoretically informed and persuasive study of Islamist movements' turn to violence.... accessible, sound, and effectively presented."

—Laleh Khalili, International Journal of Middle East Studies

"[Hafez's] argument is an important one and deserves serious attention."

—Eliz Sanasarian, Perspectives on Politics

"A significant work of originality, astuteness, fairness, and depth.... I would recommend it to colleagues and students alike."

—John P. Entelis, Fordham University

Manufacturing Human Bombs

ISBN-978-1-929223-72-5

Suicide bombings have become a terrifyingly familiar feature of contemporary warfare and insurgency. But explanations of such attacks are typically either too narrow or too superficial to enable us to understand—and thus combat—this complex and deadly phenomenon.

In this slim but remarkably balanced, informative, and insightful volume, Mohammed Hafez delves beneath the surface as he explores the case of Palestinian suicide bombers during the al-Aqsa intifada that began in 2000. Drawing on extensive research in the West Bank and Israel, Hafez reveals an intricate web of factors that fueled the campaign of suicide attacks. To understand the bombings, he argues, we must examine the interrelation among the motives of the individual “martyrs,” the calculations of the organizations that deployed them, and the attitudes of a victimized society.

Suicide Bombers in Iraq: The Strategy and Ideology of Martyrdom

ISBN-978-1-60127-004-7

The war in Iraq has become a haven for jihadists as the country fractures along ethno-sectarian divides. The emergence of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has its origins in the movement that stoked sectarian strife to foster a failed Iraqi state.

The overwhelming majority of violence, including suicide attacks, in Iraq have targeted Iraqi security forces and Shia civilians. Many of the perpetrators are non-Iraqi volunteers from Saudi Arabia, Syria, Jordan, North Africa, and Europe. They are turning the country and the region into a sectarian bloodbath.

Understanding the phenomenon of ISIS begins with an understanding of the Iraqi insurgency, its suicide bombers. and the failed American occupation. This study, the first of its kind on the Iraqi insurgency, draws extensively on open-source intelligence and papers of record, primary sources from insurgent groups including online documents and videos, and interviews with U.S. servicemen who have served in Iraq. It examines the history of suicide bombing in Iraq and many other countries, theoretical perspectives on suicide bombing, the varied factions that comprise the insurgency, the ideology and theology of martyrdom supporting suicide bombers, their national origins and characteristics, and the prospects for a “third generation” of transnational jihadists forged in the crucible of Iraq.