Dr Brynjar Lia is a Research Professor at the Norwegian Defense Research Est. (FFI), where he heads FFI’s research on international terrorism and radical Islamism. Trained in Russian, Arabic and Middle Eastern studies, Dr Lia obtained his PhD in contemporary Middle Eastern history at the University of Oslo. He was a Visiting Fulbright Scholar at Harvard University from 2001-2, has spent many years in the Middle East, and has been interviewed and/or cited on terrorism issues by the BBC, The New York Times, Washington Post, Newsweek, Time Magazine, and a number of other international media outlets. Dr Lia is the author of a number of acclaimed books on terrorism, Islamism and the Middle East. They include: The Society of the Muslim Brothers in Egypt 1928-42 (Ithaca Press, 1998); Globalisation and the Future of Terrorism: Patterns and Preditions (Routledge, 2005); A Police Force without a State: A History of the Palestinian Security Forces in the West Bank and Gaza (Ithaca Press, 2006); Building Arafat’s Police: The Politics of International Police Assistance in the Palestinian Territories After the Oslo Agreement (Ithaca Press, 2007), and Architect of Global Jihad: The Life of al-Qaida Strategist Abu Mus'ab al-Suri (London and NY: Hurst & Columbia Univ. Press, 2007/8)

 

E-mail: brynjar.lia@ffi.no
Office phone: +47 6380 7739

Personal website: www.brynjarlia.com

 

Mr Petter Nesser is a research fellow at the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI). He is trained in the areas of Social Science, Middle Eastern Studies and Arabic. Mr Nesser has conducted extensive research on Jihadi terrorism in Western Europe (2003 onwards) while focusing on motivational factors, recruitment and radicalization processes. His work includes well-known research reports such as Jihad in Europe and The Slaying of the Dutch Filmmaker, which have been widely read and cited. Mr Nesser’s most recent publications include: "Chronology of Jihadism in Western Europe 1994-2007: Planned, Prepared, and Executed Terrorist Attacks", Studies in Conflict & Terrorism,  October 2008; "How Did Europe's Global Jihadis Obtain Training for their Militant Causes?" Terrorism and Political Violence, April 2008; and "Jihadism in Western Europe after the invasion of Iraq", Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, June 2006, Mr Nesser is currently working on a book project dealing with Sunni Islamist militancy in Europe, 1994-2008. Mr Nesser has communicated his research findings at academic institutions and conferences in Norway, as well as internationally, and to the public media.

 

Email: petter.nesser@ffi.no
Office phone: +47 6380 7754

 

Ms Cecilie Finsnes is a research assistant at FFI’s Terrorism Research Group. She has a background in Arabic and Middle Eastern studies from the University of Oslo, and earned an M.Phil. degree in Arabic Studies in 2008. Her thesis deals with the moderate Islamist movement in Egypt and how its programs and declarations relate to democratic principles. Ms. Finsnes is also in charge of operating FFI’s video database on jihadist propaganda; she collects and analyzes the videos, and studies how jihadists use the Internet and videos as a tool for communication and furthering of political agenda.

 

Email: cecilie.finsnes@ffi.no
Office phone : +47 6380 7767

 

Email: qandeel.siddique@ffi.no
Office phone : +47 6380 7763

Dr Thomas Hegghammer is a senior research fellow at FFI. He holds a PhD in political science from the Institut d'Etudes Politiques in Paris and an MA and MPhil in Middle Eastern Studies from Oxford University. A fluent Arabist and elementary Urdu speaker, he has conducted extensive field research in the Muslim world. Dr. Hegghammer specialises in the study of Islamist ideology, Islamism in Saudi Arabia, and the history of the Arab Afghans. Thomas Hegghammer is co-author of al-Qaida in its own words (Harvard University Press, 2008) and has two books in the making for Cambridge University Press: one about jihadism in Saudi Arabia, the other about Abdallah Azzam and the history of the Arab Afghans. Read more...

 

Dr Hegghammer is currently on leave from FFI; he is a member of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton during the academic year 2009-2010. He is also an associate at Harvard Kennedy School.

 

Email: thomas.hegghammer@ffi.no / hegghammer@gmail.com
Office phone: +47 6380 7770
Personal webpage: http://hegghammer.com

 

Ms Hanna Rogan is a doctoral candidate with  FFI’s Terrorism Research Group. Trained in linguistics (Arabic, French, Albanian) and Balkan and Middle Eastern studies, she has researched various aspects of contemporary militant Islamism. Ms. Rogan’s main research interests include militant Islamism and communication strategies, particularly the use of new communication technologies – a topic on which she has published and lectured extensively. Her PhD research on radical Islamism in the Maghreb is currently underway; the project focuses on the Islamist insurgency in Algeria, including its regional and international implications.

 

Ms Rogan is currently on maternity leave from FFI.

 

E-mail: hanna.rogan@ffi.no
Office phone : +47 6380 7716

 

Ms Anne Stenersen is a doctoral candidate with FFI’s Terrorism Research Group. With an academic background in Middle Eastern studies, Arabic and Russian, she has conducted research on militant Islamism, with a focus on CBRN (chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear) terrorism, al-Qaeda’s use of the Internet, and the Taliban insurgency. Ms. Stenersen’s recent publications include: Al-Qaida’s quest for weapons of mass destruction: The history behind the hype (Saarbrücken: VDM Verlag, February 2009); “The Internet: A virtual training camp?” Terrorism and Political Violence (April 2008); “Chem-bio cyber class: Assessing jihadist chemical and biological manuals”;  Jane’s Intelligence Review (September 2007); and "Are the Afghan Taliban Involved in International Terrorism?", CTC Sentinel, (September 2009). Ms. Stenersen has a B.A. in Cultural and Social Sciences from the University of Bergen, and an M.Phil in Asian and African Studies from the University of Oslo. She is currently preparing a doctorate on The Taliban insurgency and al-Qaeda-Taliban relations.

 

Email: Anne.Stenersen@ffi.no
Office phone: +47 6380 7745
 

Mr Truls Tønnessen is a historian and research fellow at FFI’s Terrorism Research Group. His key research area includes Insurgency in Iraq, with a special focus on al-Qaeda. Mr. Tønnessen is currently pursuing a PhD on the Iraqi insurgency at the University of Oslo. He has also conducted research on transport-related terrorism, such as aviation and maritime terrorism. Prior to this, Mr. Tønnessen studied History and Arabic at the University of Oslo. His dissertation, titled “Islamisation of the Egyptian Student Movement 1970 – 1981,” dealt with the rise of the Egyptian al-Gama`a al-Islamiyya.

 

Email: truls-hallberg.tonnessen@ffi.no
Office phone: + 47 6380 7707