Nibras Kazimi: How Jihadists Weaponize Islamic History and How to De-Weaponize It

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Religious extremists in the Middle East, both Sunni and Shia, have succeeded in weaponizing memory. They wield historical precedence to inform and legitimize their actions and strategies. Nibras Kazimi, an Iraqi citizen, will discuss how they do this and how to undermine their legitimacy by de-weaponizing precedence.

Nibras Kazimi‘s blog Talisman Gate was one of the most riveting Iraqi blogs written from Baghdad in the midst of its drarma and turmoil and was renowned for its acute political insight. His research focuses on the growing threat of jihadism in the Middle East, as well as prospects for democracy in the region. His primary interest is the national security of Iraq and how threats there are enabled and coordinated by regional Middle Eastern actors and factors.

Kazimi directed the Research Bureau of the Iraqi National Congress in Washington, DC and Baghdad, and was a pro-bono adviser for the Higher National Commission for De-Ba’athification, which he helped establish and staff. He was a Visiting Fellow at the Hudson Institute and wrote a weekly column for The New York Sun and a monthly column for Prospect magazine (UK). He has published several papers on jihadism as well as articles in publications such as Newsweek and the New Republic. He is the author of the monograph Syria Through Jihadist Eyes: A Perfect Enemy (Hoover Institution Press, 2010). He is a member of The Atlantic Council’s 2016 Iraq Task Force.