Martyrs Without Borders

Friday, November 30, 2007

Martyrs Without Borders

The rate of suicide attacks in the Iraqi insurgency has surpassed the number of suicide operations by all previous insurgent groups combined, including those by Hezbollah in Lebanon, Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka, and Hamas in Israel. Many of the suicide bombers are foreign volunteers--they come from neighboring countries such as Saudi Arabia and Syria, and from as far away as North Africa and Europe. What motivates these foreign fighters to make this journey of death? Dr. Mohammed Hafez, author of Suicide Bombers in Iraq, will answer this and other vexing questions by examining the varied factions that comprise the Iraqi insurgency, the ideology and theology of martyrdom, and the prospects for a new generation of global jihadists forged in the crucible of Iraq.
Dr. Mohammed Hafez earned a Ph.D. in international relations from the London School of Economics and has received major research grants from the United States Institute of Peace and the Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation. He is the author of Suicide Bombers in Iraq: The Strategy and Ideology of Martyrdom (2007); Manufacturing Human Bombs: The Making of Palestinian Suicide Bombers (2006); and Why Muslims Rebel: Repression and Resistance in the Islamic World (2003). Next year, he will join the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, as an associate professor of national security affairs.
Join the New America Foundation for an engaging discussion on suicide bombers with Dr. Hafez, followed by a robust Q&A session led by Patrick C. Doherty.

Friday, November 30, 2007

12:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.

New America Foundation 1630 Connecticut Ave, NW, 7th FloorWashington, DC

Crime Report

These listings are taken from the Washington Post, Weekly Section. We have reprinted them here to make you aware of trends in areas you might frequent. Use caution and good judgment when you are out and about.

Northwest, DC

R Street

9 a.m. March 1 to 3 p.m. March 3. A man allegedly sexually assaulted a female in a residence.

Connecticut Avenue, 1200 block

3 to 3:05 a.m. April 2. A man approached a female from behind and demanded a cellphone. When she turned, he snatched her cellphone and purse and fled.

Connecticut Avenue, 2600 block

6:15 to 6:20 p.m. April 3. Several males picked up a bucket containing a musician's tips. The musician saw one take cash from the bucket, which was then returned to the musician. When the musician confronted them, he was assaulted. The males fled.

Prospect Street, 3000 block

4:45 to 4:50 p.m. April 5. A male grabbed propertyy from a female at a restaurant and fled.

Q Street, 1700 block

2:11 a.m. April 5. A male pedestrian was robbed by a male at gunpoint.

Wisconsin Aveneu, 2300 block

4:30 to 5 p.m. April 5. Property was stolen from a female's handbag at a grocery store.

14th and P Streets

3 to 3:02 a.m. April 3. Two pedestrians were crossing a street when a male approached from behind and knocked a cellphone from a female pedestrian's hand. He picked it up and fled.

Connecticut Avenue, 1700 block

6:30 to 6:35 a.m. April 5. A bookstore was entered by throwing a rock through a front glass door. Money was taken from a cash register, and the store was ransacked.

Woodley Road, 2600 block

4:30 to 4:31 p.m. April 2. A man knocked on a door of a hotel room and forcibly entered the room when a female opened the door. He showed a knife and sexually assaulted her, then fled.

Capital Connection

Friday, November 30, 2007