Dr Nancy Kobrin ... counter-terrorism expert

Members and guests of ESRA Modiin were held spellbound on Monday evening, September 26, 2016, when they were treated to an outstanding presentation entitled "Unmasking Jihad" by Dr. Nancy Hartevelt Kobrin.

We Israelis are all too aware of the realities in our country, where we have fallen victim to unending, brutal suicide bombings, shootings, car rammings, stone throwings, knifings and outright murder, more macabre, shocking and gruesome than the most diabolical mind. These are in addition to myriad rockets and missiles rained down on us by our enemies from the north and south, and the countless underground tunnels in all their evil, web-like horror.

This extreme form of violence has been the subject of many studies. Researchers have been baffled as to why anyone, mostly at a young age, decides to take the lives of others and end or risk his/her own life in the process.

Dr. Hartevelt Kobrin, an Israeli psychoanalyst and counter terrorism expert and a fellow at the American Center for Democracy, has been researching the psyche of Islamic suicide terrorism for years, and is the author of several books on the topic.* In her presentation of under an hour, Dr. Kobrin - a consummate lecturer - shared her view and findings about what makes the Jihadist tick, offering a fascinating exposé that ranged from body language to the roles of both patriarch and matriarch, to the psychoanalytical methods that included early childhood development stages. 

Her talk was riveting to the core. So much information was shared that it was difficult to absorb everything all at once.

Suffice to say that Dr. Kobrin will be back in Modiin for another presentation next year. She is that brilliant and well worth hearing!

*She is the author of: The Banality of Suicide Terrorism (2010); Penetrating the Terrorist Psyche (2013); The Maternal Drama of the Chechen Jihadi (2014); The Jihadi Dictionary: The Essential INTEL Tool (2016).