Marc Lynch

POMEPS, Hegghamer, and a new article

Hi everyone — I am almost, but not quite, dug out of the hole in which I’ve been buried for the last month or so. Over the last two days I hosted the inaugural conference for a the Project on Middle East Political Science, a major new initiative I’m directing aimed at building the professional, ...

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Hi everyone --- I am almost, but not quite, dug out of the hole in which I've been buried for the last month or so. Over the last two days I hosted the inaugural conference for a the Project on Middle East Political Science, a major new initiative I'm directing aimed at building the professional, public and policy impact of academic political scientists specializing in the Middle East.  We had 25 political scientists from all over the country, along with several current and former top policy officials talking about the state of the field.  I'll have much more to say about this soon.   POMEPS is also hosting a book launch event this afternoon at 4:00 for Thomas Hegghammer, of Jihadica fame, who will be discussing his newly published book Jihad in Arabia -- come join us at 4:00 at the Elliott School for Hegghammer, wine and cookies! 

Hi everyone — I am almost, but not quite, dug out of the hole in which I’ve been buried for the last month or so. Over the last two days I hosted the inaugural conference for a the Project on Middle East Political Science, a major new initiative I’m directing aimed at building the professional, public and policy impact of academic political scientists specializing in the Middle East.  We had 25 political scientists from all over the country, along with several current and former top policy officials talking about the state of the field.  I’ll have much more to say about this soon.   POMEPS is also hosting a book launch event this afternoon at 4:00 for Thomas Hegghammer, of Jihadica fame, who will be discussing his newly published book Jihad in Arabia — come join us at 4:00 at the Elliott School for Hegghammer, wine and cookies! 

In the meantime, I wanted to let those of you who are interested know that I have the lead article in the new issue of Studies in Conflict and Terrorism:  "Islam Divided Between Salafi-Jihad and the Ikhwan."  From the abstract:

The Muslim Brotherhood poses a unique challenge to efforts to combat Al Qaeda and like-minded groups. It is one of the key sources of Islamist thought and political activism, and plays a significant role in shaping the political and cultural environment in an Islamist direction. At the same time, it opposes Al Qaeda for ideological, organizational, and political reasons and represents one of the major challenges to the salafi-jihadist movement globally. This dual nature of the Muslim Brotherhood has long posed a difficult challenge to efforts to combat violent extremism. Does its non-violent Islamism represent a solution, by capturing Islamists within a relatively moderate organization and stopping their further radicalization (a “firewall”), or is it part of the problem, a “conveyor belt” towards extremism? This article surveys the differences between the two approaches, including their views of an Islamic state, democracy, violence, and takfir, and the significant escalation of those tensions in recent years. It concludes that the MB should be allowed to wage its battles against extremist challengers, but should not be misunderstood as a liberal organization or supported in a short-term convergence of interests. 

The full article is behind a paywall, and I can’t post it for copyright reasons but if you’re not a subscriber and you want to read it then drop me an email I may be able to help you out.  

Marc Lynch is associate professor of political science and international affairs at George Washington University, where he is the director of the Institute for Middle East Studies and of the Project on Middle East Political Science. He is also a non-resident senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security. He is the author of The Arab Uprising (March 2012, PublicAffairs).

He publishes frequently on the politics of the Middle East, with a particular focus on the Arab media and information technology, Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, and Islamist movements. Twitter: @abuaardvark

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