Books by Brynjar Lia
to my friend and colleague Abd al-Rahim Hallaj who assisted me during my research at the Egyptian... more to my friend and colleague Abd al-Rahim Hallaj who assisted me during my research at the Egyptian National Archives in the spring of 1995. I also wish to extend my gratitude to Age Roisli, Brit Roisli and James Whidden for their linguistic assistance. Finally, I am greatly indebted to Jamal al-Banna, a prominent Islamist writer and the brother of the late Hasan al-Banna, founder of the Society of the Muslim Brothers. His generous help and support and, not least, his unique recollections have been essential in carrying out this study.
A P o l i c e F o r c e w i t h o u t a S t a t e w i t h o u t a S t a t e
Globalisation and the Future of Terrorism: Patterns and Predictions. London: Routledge, 2005, 2005
This book sets out to explain how international terrorism is shaped, how it evolves over time and... more This book sets out to explain how international terrorism is shaped, how it evolves over time and what we are to expect in the future. It offers a fresh contribution by drawing upon research and methods outside the traditional terrorism research genre, and by taking both a theoretical and a practical predictive approach still unusual in the field of terrorism studies.
Articles and Book Chapters by Brynjar Lia
Babylon: Nordisk tidsskrift for Midtøstenstudier, 2024
Korleis kan vi vite kven militante islamistar høyrer på og betraktar som
autoritative kjelder i s... more Korleis kan vi vite kven militante islamistar høyrer på og betraktar som
autoritative kjelder i sentrale spørsmål? Denne artikkelen forsøker å
skissere nokre framgangsmåtar i studiet av jihadistpredikantar og
tilhengjarskaren deira.
Bustan: The Middle East Book Review,, 2023
This essay addresses the history of Usama bin Laden’s al-Qaʿida and the
U.S.’s global war on terr... more This essay addresses the history of Usama bin Laden’s al-Qaʿida and the
U.S.’s global war on terror through the prism of two new books by leading experts in the field. Nelly Lahoud’s book makes important use of new documents seized at bin Laden’s compound in Abbottabad. Peter Bergen explores the relationship between Pakistan, al-Qaʿida, and the American war on terror. Both of these books add to the scholarly literature and shed light on existing debates in the field of jihadism studies. And examined in combination these books help scholars in the field conceptualize broader analytical issues that are important not only for how one understands al-Qaʿida, but also, more generally, for how one interprets and evaluates the history of jihadi organizations. For example, how does one judge success and failure for these groups? And what is the proper framework for analyzing the relationship between the central leaderships of these organizations and their regional branches, or even those who are inspired to act in their name? How do we explain the resilience and longevity of al-Qaʿida and its ideology? These two books help point the way forward for future scholars in the field.
Third World Thematics: A TWQ Journal, 2022
Since the 2010s, the Middle East and Africa have witnessed a sharp proliferation of insurgent pro... more Since the 2010s, the Middle East and Africa have witnessed a sharp proliferation of insurgent proto-states – territorial enclaves controlled by insurgent groups. Gathering six ethnographic accounts from these regions, this volume seeks to answer the following: How do rebel governments and kin-based forms of socio-political organisation shape and influence one another? When rebels establish territorial control, their emerging proto-states will be shaped by processes of negotiation with pre-existing social forces. Therefore, sociopolitical organisation in rebel-held areas can only be understood by analysing the interactions between “the preexisting” and “the incoming” orders. Nonetheless, as we emphasise in this introduction, the study of kinship groups in conflict areas and rebel governments have developed as two distinct research fields. The aim of this volume is to bring them together and seek a deeper understanding of how kin-based loyalties, networks, institutions, and social conventions may shape and influence rebel governance practices. The volume features many examples of insurgent groups meticulously crafting “tribal administrations” to curtail civilian resistance. Yet, it also shows that the various rebel groups described face far greater difficulties in reforming society culturally, than asserting military dominance over tribal actors. For the rebels, social revolutions are harder earned than political domination.
Third World Thematics: A TWQ Journal, 2022
The surprising ability of the jihadist organisation “the Islamic State” to capture and hold large... more The surprising ability of the jihadist organisation “the Islamic State” to capture and hold large territories in Syria and Iraq raises important questions regarding rebel governance in civil wars. One understudied aspect in the growing literature on rebel rule is insurgents’ relations to kinship organisations. This article offers a detailed empirical exploration of ISIS’ tribal policies in the mid-2010s. It argues that ISIS’ relative success in maintaining control over tribal areas in Syria and Iraq and preventing a tribal-based uprising is due to three main factors. First, ISIS pursued well-calibrated carrot-and-stick policies vis-à-vis the tribes, which divided tribal constituencies and undermined their ability to mobilise effectively. Secondly, the politico-military situation in both Iraq and Syria contributed to deprive the Sunni-Arab tribes from trustworthy military allies and sources of external support, which forced them instead to lie low and accept ISIS rule, while waiting for ISIS to be defeated by their enemies. Thirdly, inter- and intra-tribal divisions had allowed ISIS to penetrate most tribes thereby reducing the tribe’s ability to act as cohesive and effective socio-political and military units. By comparing tribal groups and jihadist insurgents, the article also speaks to the theoretical debate on extremist advantages in civil war.
Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations, 2022
In contrast to common assumptions, jihadist movements' view of Christian minorities in the Middle... more In contrast to common assumptions, jihadist movements' view of Christian minorities in the Middle East has been neither unambiguous nor static. It changes according to the overall political conflict in the region and is characterized by specific, unpredictable struggles that arise locally. By studying the official statements of al-Qaeda and ISIS, their ideological and strategic writings and their conduct vis-à-vis indigenous Christians in the Middle East, this article seeks to paint a more complex picture of how jihadists perceive this minority. One key finding is that the Christians of the Middle East and the foreign Christian 'Crusaders' are not a single phenomenon or foe in the conceptual worldview of jihadists. Second, rather than seeking to eradicate Christians completely, jihadist movements wish primarily to demonstrate the dominance of Muslims and their role as legitimate rulers over Christian minorities. Third, terrorist attacks on Christians and churches have been devastating and deadly, especially in Egypt and Iraq, but local Christian minorities are not a top priority target for most jihadist groups.
Religions, 2022
Initially construed as the vital link between Saddam Husayn’s Iraq and al-Qaida in the runup to t... more Initially construed as the vital link between Saddam Husayn’s Iraq and al-Qaida in the runup to the Iraq war, the Ansar al-Islam (AI) group formed in Iraqi Kurdistan in December 2001 has been the subject of intense debate and huge media coverage. In academic research, however, its history, evolution and affiliation have received surprisingly little academic scrutiny. Commonly depicted as an al-Qaida affiliated group or a sub-group controlled by al-Qaida’s emerging organization in Iraq (AQI), the AI group should—this article argues—instead be understood as a strong independent-minded group with an ideology and operational pattern distinct from that of AQI. Although sharing many commonalities, the AI and AQI became de facto rivals, not allies. Contrary to accepted wisdom, the AI and its first successor group remained a distinct Salafi-jihadi insurgent group largely focused on fighting ‘the near enemy’, i.e., Kurdish and Iraqi authorities. It strongly resisted repeated calls for joining al-Qaida’s new umbrella organization in Iraq, the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) in 2006, and it paid no homage to AQI’s or ISI’s leaders. Also on the international level, the groups were fundamentally different. As opposed to al-Qaida’s terrorist plotting abroad, the AI’s international network were hierarchical structures, geared towards raising logistical and financial support as well as recruitment. The article highlights the need for greater attention to the complexities and nuances in patterns of contacts and cooperation between militant Islamist extremists. Informed by the growing scholarship on the multifaceted nature of contemporary jihadism, its numerous manifestations in local settings, and its strong internal rifts, this paper seeks to redress the early reductionist portrayal of the AI movement.
Politics and Religion, 2021
Scholarship on political Islam suggests that support for early Islamist movements came from liter... more Scholarship on political Islam suggests that support for early Islamist movements came from literate merchants, government officials, and professionals who lacked political representation. We test these claims with a unique tranche of microlevel data drawn from a Muslim Brotherhood petition campaign in interwar Egypt. Matching the occupations of over 2,500 Brotherhood supporters to contemporaneous census data, we show that Egyptians employed in commerce, public administration, and the professions were more likely to sign the movement's petitions. The movement's supporters were also overwhelmingly literate. Contrary to expectations, the early Brotherhood also attracted support from Egyptians employed in agriculture, albeit less than we would expect given the prevalence of agrarian workers in the population. A case study tracing Muslim Brotherhood branch formation and petition activism in a Nile Delta village illustrates how literate, socially mobile agrarian families were key to the propagation of the movement in rural areas.
Histoire des mobilisations islamistes (XIXe-XXIe siècles), sous la direction de François Burgat & Matthieu Rey. 93-106. Paris: CNRS. , 2022
Au sortir de la Première Guerre mondiale, le monde musulman connaît une profonde mutation lorsque... more Au sortir de la Première Guerre mondiale, le monde musulman connaît une profonde mutation lorsque le nouveau dirigeant turc abolit le califat. Cette décision précipite la formation, en quelques années, de nouvelles formes de mobilisation inédites autour de l'islam. Très certainement, la Confrérie des Frères musulmans en constitue l'exemple le plus manifeste. Par sa structure, son message et le poids qu'elle acquiert dans la société égyptienne, elle devient le symbole de possibles partis islamistes. En dépit de sa renommée, qui n'a cessé de croître après la Seconde Guerre mondiale, les premiers pas de la Confrérie et de son fondateur hautement charismatique, Hasan al-Banna, demeurent méconnus et ont pu conduire à des distorsions analytiques. Pour certains, ce nouveau mouvement répondrait exclusivement à des crises régionales autour de la question de Palestine 1. Pour d'autres, il serait le produit de financements extérieurs, uniquement. Or, si les facteurs externes à l'Égypte ont participé à sa croissance, ce sont davantage les éléments endogènes qu'il faut restituer pour saisir la formation du premier mouvement islamiste. Autour de la variable identitaire, l'islam comme stock symbolique de messages autochtones répondant aux défis du moment, les Frères musulmans font d'un mouvement à vocation dans un premier temps seulement caritative, le lieu de réflexion sur la construction d'une autre société, sur la réalisation d'un message radicalement nouveau et sur la promotion
In السلفية العالمية: الحركات السلفية المعاصرة في عالم متغير, edited by Roel Meijer. , 2014
Arabic translation of:
Brynjar Lia. "'Destructive Doctrinairians': Abu Mus‘ab al-Suri's Critique... more Arabic translation of:
Brynjar Lia. "'Destructive Doctrinairians': Abu Mus‘ab al-Suri's Critique of the Salafis in the Jihadi Current". In Global Salafism: Islam’s New Religious Movement, edited by Roel Meijer. 249-268. New York: Oxford University Press, 2009.
Nytt Norsk Tidsskrift, 2019
The Islamic State, an extremist Islamist organization established during the Syrian civil war, at... more The Islamic State, an extremist Islamist organization established during the Syrian civil war, attracted a large number of sympathizers and volunteers, including women, from around the world. An estimated 1,000 female volunteers from Europe left for Syria or Iraq and became part of «the Caliphate», established by the group in mid-2014, representing an historically unprecedented female «emigration to jihad». This article seeks to explain why so many European women traveled to «the Caliphate» and what roles they assumed or were given in the Islamic State
Die Welt des Islams, 2017
The rise of ISIS has drawn scholarly attention to militant Islamist movements as quasi-state acto... more The rise of ISIS has drawn scholarly attention to militant Islamist movements as quasi-state actors, embracing governance as a core area of legitimation. Due to their commitment to conservative, literalist interpretations of Sharīʿa, jihādī movements have gained a reputation for being patriarchal, misogynist, and ultra-masculinist. This article seeks to qualify this perception, arguing that the social and political order established in jihādī proto-states is not based on norms and practices commonly associated with patriarchy. Although ISIS and other militant Islamist rebel rulers may outwardly have some of the trappings of a patriarchal order, especially in gender relations, they are first and foremost intensely religious-ideological communities, where blood ties and kinship play a minimal role. They are surprisingly bureaucratized and highly regulated, leaving little room for the traditional holders of power in patriarchal societies: the elders, traditional religious clerics, clan leaders, and heads of tribes. Instead , those who hold power are overwhelmingly young armed men whose authority rests on warfare skills and the mastery of extremist ideology. In the case of the ISIS " caliphate " , the most well-known jihādī proto-state, women also take part in a variety of roles outside the household, including operative and military roles, defying the image of women as passive victims.
Die Welt des Islams, 2017
Roel Meijer (ed) Global Salafism: Islam’s New Religious Movement. New York: Oxford University Press, 2009, pp.249-268., 2009
global salafism 250 think of contemporary Jihadis as simply radicalised elements within-or as by-... more global salafism 250 think of contemporary Jihadis as simply radicalised elements within-or as by-products of-a broader Salafi phenomenon.
Middle East Policy, Nov 2016
The dramatic expansion of jihadism as an ideology and a global rebel movement in recent years is ... more The dramatic expansion of jihadism as an ideology and a global rebel movement in recent years is one of the most remarkable developments affecting the Middle East. Why has jihadism grown so much stronger since 9/11, during a time period when the major world powers spent trillions of dollars trying to combat jihadism? This article grapples with this issue by offering an analytical description of the evolution and the underlying drivers of jihadism with an emphasis on developments after 2011. It pays particular attention to the popular support base, the transnational character and the social embeddedness of contemporary jihadi insurgencies. The common conceptualization of jihadism as an isolated terrorist underground or a narrow apocalyptic cult of fanatics without any significant popular support belies today’s reality. Instead, jihadism represents a global rebel movement with several territorial proto-states, a huge popular base of geographically scattered and dedicated supporters around the globe and an unprecedented capacity to rally fighters and resources to new conflict areas. This movement cannot be defeated by coercive means alone. Only when jihadism is better conceptualized, based on a willingness to accept that it represents a political insurgency brought forth by real-world grievances, can a sound strategy for stemming its continued expansion be constructed.
"Autobiography or Fiction? Ḥasan al-Bannā’s Memoirs Revisited". Journal of Arabic and Islamic Studies 15 (2015): 199-226., Dec 2015
Scholars dealing with the rise of contemporary Islamism and the Muslim Brothers’ early history fr... more Scholars dealing with the rise of contemporary Islamism and the Muslim Brothers’ early history frequently turn to Ḥasan al-Bannā’s autobiography, Mudhakkirāt al-Daʿwah wa’l-Dāʿiyah (Memoirs of the Call and the Preacher) as one major source of information about the movement’s origin. Despite the centrality of this autobiography and the abundance of references to it in Islamist literature, it remains poorly understood. Drawing upon a range of under-explored primary sources, this article argues that the autobiography was never written as a traditional ex post facto memoir. Only by recognizing its fictionalized nature and by exploring the boundaries between biography and fiction, can al-Bannā’s memoirs can be properly understood.
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Books by Brynjar Lia
Articles and Book Chapters by Brynjar Lia
autoritative kjelder i sentrale spørsmål? Denne artikkelen forsøker å
skissere nokre framgangsmåtar i studiet av jihadistpredikantar og
tilhengjarskaren deira.
U.S.’s global war on terror through the prism of two new books by leading experts in the field. Nelly Lahoud’s book makes important use of new documents seized at bin Laden’s compound in Abbottabad. Peter Bergen explores the relationship between Pakistan, al-Qaʿida, and the American war on terror. Both of these books add to the scholarly literature and shed light on existing debates in the field of jihadism studies. And examined in combination these books help scholars in the field conceptualize broader analytical issues that are important not only for how one understands al-Qaʿida, but also, more generally, for how one interprets and evaluates the history of jihadi organizations. For example, how does one judge success and failure for these groups? And what is the proper framework for analyzing the relationship between the central leaderships of these organizations and their regional branches, or even those who are inspired to act in their name? How do we explain the resilience and longevity of al-Qaʿida and its ideology? These two books help point the way forward for future scholars in the field.
Brynjar Lia. "'Destructive Doctrinairians': Abu Mus‘ab al-Suri's Critique of the Salafis in the Jihadi Current". In Global Salafism: Islam’s New Religious Movement, edited by Roel Meijer. 249-268. New York: Oxford University Press, 2009.
autoritative kjelder i sentrale spørsmål? Denne artikkelen forsøker å
skissere nokre framgangsmåtar i studiet av jihadistpredikantar og
tilhengjarskaren deira.
U.S.’s global war on terror through the prism of two new books by leading experts in the field. Nelly Lahoud’s book makes important use of new documents seized at bin Laden’s compound in Abbottabad. Peter Bergen explores the relationship between Pakistan, al-Qaʿida, and the American war on terror. Both of these books add to the scholarly literature and shed light on existing debates in the field of jihadism studies. And examined in combination these books help scholars in the field conceptualize broader analytical issues that are important not only for how one understands al-Qaʿida, but also, more generally, for how one interprets and evaluates the history of jihadi organizations. For example, how does one judge success and failure for these groups? And what is the proper framework for analyzing the relationship between the central leaderships of these organizations and their regional branches, or even those who are inspired to act in their name? How do we explain the resilience and longevity of al-Qaʿida and its ideology? These two books help point the way forward for future scholars in the field.
Brynjar Lia. "'Destructive Doctrinairians': Abu Mus‘ab al-Suri's Critique of the Salafis in the Jihadi Current". In Global Salafism: Islam’s New Religious Movement, edited by Roel Meijer. 249-268. New York: Oxford University Press, 2009.
Brynjar Lia. "Jihadism in the Arab World after 2011: Explaining its Expansion", Middle East Policy 23, no.4 (2016): 74-91.
واحدة من أكثر التطورات المحيرة منذ الحدث الفاصل في 11/9 وبداية الحرب العالمية التى تقودها الولايات المتحدة على الإرهاب (GWOT: الحرب العالمية على الإرهاب) هو توسع الحركة الجهادية في العالم العربي. حدث ذلك على الرغم من الجهود المبذولة لمنع حصوله. وشملت الاستثمارات الهائلة في مكافحة الإرهاب ومكافحة التمرد من قبل ائتلاف دولي بقيادة الولايات المتحدة، بالتعاون مع الشركاء الإقليميين، طائفة كاملة من الأدوات المتاحة في "عدة الشغل " لدى الدولة. على الرغم من هذه الحملة الواسعة والمكلفة، فقد شهدت السنوات الـ 15 الماضية نموا وتطورا ملحوظا في الجهاد كعقيدة تمرد، هي قوة حرب العصابات العسكرية والتهديد الارهابي العالمي. وفي وقت كتابة هذا التقرير، كان تنظيم"الدولة الإسلامية" يخسر الأرض في معقل الحركة في سوريا والعراق وفي محافظتها الإقليمية الرئيسية في ليبيا. ومع ذلك، فقد أثبتت المنظمة قدرتها على تنسيق واذكاء حملة غير مسبوقة من العنف الإرهابي الدولي (خارج العراق وسوريا)، متسببة بسقوط أكثر من 1200 ضحية في القارات الخمس ما بين سبتمبر/ أيلول 2014 ويوليو/ تموز 2016 (2).
أما بالنسبة لمنطقة الشرق الأوسط، فإن نظرة خاطفة على المؤشرات الرئيسية لقوة الجهاديين في المنطقة على مدى العقد الماضي تؤكد بالمثل وجود اتجاه تصاعدي مشؤوم
Introduction: Fremvæksten af Islamisk Stat (IS) – en al-Qaeda-udbrydergruppe, der har erobret store dele af det nordlige Syrien og det vestlige Irak – har på ny gjort spørgsmålet om jihadisme og statsbygning aktuelt. Selv om denne nye enhed på mange måder er uden fortilfælde, er den dog ikke den første jihadistiske ”stat”. Faktisk har jihadistiske oprørere de seneste 25 år gentagne gange udråbt ”islamiske stater” eller ”emirater” i store dele af den muslimske verden, herunder i Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kaukasus, Yemen, Somalia, Irak, Syrien, Gaza, Sinai, Kairo, Libyen og det nordlige Mali. Det er dog kun ganske få af disse proto-stater, der har overlevet mere end et år, og langtfra alle har formået at etablere egentlig territorial kontrol.
COUNTERACT (Cluster Of User Networks in Transport and Energy Relating to Anti-terrorist ACTivities) was funded by the European Commission under the Sixth Framework Programme for Research and Development (2002-2006)
som har preget landene i hundrevis av år. De yngre generasjonene har mer utdanning enn før, de har tilegnet seg ferdigheter som tradisjonelle autoritetspersoner ikke har. De behersker moderne informasjonsteknologi. Likevel mangler de både posisjoner og arbeid. I politikken sitter gammelmannsveldet fortsatt med makten.
Appell blant unge. – Dette kan være noe av årsaken til at jihadismen har så stor appell blant unge i den arabiske verden i dag – til tross for bevegelsens stadig mer brutale og grusomme voldsbruk, sier professor Brynjar Lia på Senter for islam- og midtøstenstudier ved Universitetet i Oslo. Lia er en av landets aller fremste eksperter på jihadisme og militante islamistbevegelser, og han forsker nå særlig på opprørskontrollerte områder i Midtøsten – rebel governance.
Antologien er redigert av Øystein Sørensen, Bernt Hagtvet og Nik. Brandal og er del av en bokserie fra «Nettverk for studier av totalitarisme og demokrati» ved Universitetet i Oslo. Boken «Islamisme: Ideologi og trussel» tar mål av seg til å bidra til «en kunnskapsbasert debatt» om islamisme. Her lykkes den bare delvis.
Publisert i Aftenposten 15.april 2016.
http://www.aftenposten.no/kultur/Sorensen_-Hagtvet-og-Brandals-antologi-er-polemisk-og-unyansert-om-islamisme-8430999.html
– Thomas Hylland Eriksen og Arne Johan Vetlesens essay «Nyliberalismens ektefødte barn» har avfødt debatt om begrepet nyliberalisme. Men ingen har grepet tak i påstanden om sammenhengen mellom nyliberalisme og terror. Hva sier forskningen?
– Jeg er kritisk til bruken av såpass generelle ideologiske og politiske tendenser til å forklare noe så spesifikt som jihadistisk terrorisme, som tross alt involverer kun en ørliten promille av befolkningen. For den marginaliserte taperen finnes det et utall responsmuligheter for å bli sett og hørt. Det forblir uklart hvorfor noen tyr til gateopptøyer og andre blir terrorister.