Al Qaeda Transformed, Carnegie, Washington

This conference will bring together leading scholars and practitioners from the United States, Europe, and the Arab world to examine the complex dynamics underway within al-Qaeda.

This conference will bring together leading scholars and practitioners from the United States, Europe, and the Arab world to examine the complex dynamics underway within al-Qaeda. This will include its role in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and North Africa, as well as European influence on the movement, and the broader political and social context within which al-Qaeda operates today.

AGENDA

8:30–9:00 a.m.
Registration

9:00–10:15 a.m.
Al-Qaeda in the Levant

• Fidaa El Itani
• Nelly Lahoud, U.S. Military Academy at West Point 
• Joas Wagemakers, Radboud University Nijmegen
• Moderator: Frederic Wehrey, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

10:15–10:30 a.m.
Break

10:30–11:45 a.m.
Al-Qaeda in North Africa

• Ismail Alexandrani, Arab Reform Initiative
• Anouar Boukhars, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
• Frederic Wehrey, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
• Bronwyn Bruton, Atlantic Council
• Moderator: Michele Dunne, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

11:45 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
Break

12:00–1:00 p.m.
Luncheon Discussion: Al-Qaeda’s Curious Comeback
Bruce Hoffman, Georgetown University

1:00-1:15 p.m.
Break

1:15–2:30 p.m.
European Influences on Al-Qaeda— and Potential Blowback

• Farhad Khosrokhavar, Sciences Po
• Petter Nesser, Norwegian Defense Research Establishment
• Raffaello Pantucci, Royal United Services Institute for Defense and Security Studies 
• Moderator: Sarah Chayes, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

2:30–2:45 p.m.
Break

2:45–4:00 p.m.
Implications for Local and Western Strategies

• Nadwa Al-Dawsari, Yemeni Tribal Voices blog 
• Peter Bergen, New America Foundation
• Jen Easterly, National Security Council
• Moderator: William McCants, Brookings Institution