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Palgrave Macmillan

The Politics of Militant Group Survival in the Middle East

Resources, Relationships, and Resistance

  • Book
  • © 2017

Overview

Authors:
  1. Ora Szekely

    1. Political Science, Clark University , Worcester, USA

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  • Offers a careful and illuminating examination of four non-state actors in the Arab-Israeli conflict ecosystem

  • Synthesizes a wide range of sources, both in English and Arabic, as well as a rich set of interviews and field research

  • Challenges conventional wisdom about support for non-state actors both in their regions and externally

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Table of contents (7 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xv
    Download chapter PDF

  2. Introduction

    • Ora Szekely
    Pages 1-47

  3. The PLO

    • Ora Szekely
    Pages 49-105

  4. Amal

    • Ora Szekely
    Pages 107-146

  5. Hizbullah

    • Ora Szekely
    Pages 147-200

  6. Hamas

    • Ora Szekely
    Pages 201-249

  7. Beyond the Arab–Israeli Conflict Ecosystem

    • Ora Szekely
    Pages 251-280

  8. Conclusion

    • Ora Szekely
    Pages 281-290

  9. Back Matter

    Pages 291-330
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Keywords

About this book

This book compares the performances of four key non-state actors in the Arab-Israeli conflict ecosystem: the PLO, Hamas, Hizbullah, and Amal. It argues that it is not the assets a militant group has, but rather how it acquired them that matters in explaining the variation in these actors' abilities to militarily resist and politically recover from confrontations with far more powerful adversaries. Groups that rely on marketing campaigns to secure local support and regional patronage do far better than those that rely on coercion or even barter. The book develops a typology of organizations based on their foreign and domestic policies, which has interesting implications for other non-state actors, such as ISIS. It is based on field research in Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, the West Bank, Egypt, and Syria, including interviews with members of a range of Lebanese and Palestinian militant groups, as well as politicians, UN staff, journalists, and members of the Jordanian and Israeli armies.

Reviews

“Szekely has written a spectacular book that explores the origins and consequences of the policy choices militant groups adopt. Examining the groups of the PLO, Amal, Hizbullah, and Hamas, Szekely argues that these groups must make strategic choices about winning support from domestic or international audiences. Groups that pursue an international strategy become more transnational in the long run. Those that adopt a domestic agenda enjoy local support, but their international influence is limited. Szekely presents a very convincing argument, with great attention to detail and a strong knowledgeable command of the nuances of her cases.” (Amaney Jamal, Edwards S. Sanford Professor of Politics, Princeton University, USA)

Authors and Affiliations

  • Political Science, Clark University , Worcester, USA

    Ora Szekely

About the author

Ora Szekely is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Clark University, USA. Her research focuses on militant group policy making and performance in the Middle East.

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