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Devorah Margolin

  • Blumenstein-Rosenbloom Senior Fellow
Also available in:
  • العربية
  • Farsi

Expertise

  • Terrorism
Devorah Margolin
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Devorah Margolin is the Blumenstein-Rosenbloom Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute and an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University. Her research primarily focuses on terrorism governance, terrorism financing, the role of propaganda and strategic communications, countering/preventing violent extremism, and the role of women and gender in violent extremism. She earned her PhD in international relations and security studies from the Department of War Studies at King's College London.

Dr. Margolin previously served as Director of Strategic Initiatives and a Senior Research Fellow at the Program on Extremism at The George Washington University, where she was the Project Manager for the ISIS Files Digital Repository, a collection of over 15,000 pages of original ISIS materials found in Nineveh Province in Iraq by the New York Times. She also served as principal investigator (PI) on a National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education Center grant, was co-PI on a grant examining best practices for reintegration programming for returning spouses and minors, and was co-PI on a Global Network on Extremism and Technology grant.

Dr. Margolin has presented her research to academics, practitioners, and government officials around the world, and has published her work in peer review journals and newspapers, including Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, Terrorism and Political Violence, CTC Sentinel, Journal for Deradicalization, the Washington Post, Lawfare, Newsweek, and Foreign Policy. She has provided commentary to media outlets including the BBC, the Los Angeles Times, USA Today, The Telegraph, Voice of America, CBS News, NBC News, and the New York Times. She co-edited, with her Institute colleague Aaron Y. Zelin, the 2024 anthology Jihadist Governance and Statecraft. Her co-edited volume Jihadist Terror: New Threats, New Responses, was published with I.B. Tauris (Bloomsbury Press) in Spring 2019.

Education

Ph.D., King's College London

Devorah Margolin
Download High-Resolution Portrait

Contact

(202) 230-9550 (media inquiries only)
(202) 452-0650 (other inquiries)
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Featured Publications

Al-Shabab gives goats as zakat (alms) in Somalia.
Maps & Graphics
Jihadist Governance and Statecraft
In this anthology, contributors discuss the policy challenges associated with an emerging phenomenon, but disabuse readers of any notion that jihadist governance and statecraft should be equated with political moderation.
Jul 10, 2024
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  • Devorah Margolin
  • Aaron Y. Zelin
Families of Islamic State fighters in Syria - source: Reuters
Reintegration of Foreign Terrorist Fighter Families: A Framework of Best Practices for the U.S.
An in-depth report that draws on case study investigations, scholarly analyses, and interviews with practitioners and stakeholders to propose a new framework for reintegrating the families of foreign fighters who supported the Islamic State.
Mar 2023
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  • Devorah Margolin
Hamas at 35
A look back at the group’s track record and unchanging core ideology shows why its gestures toward democracy and inclusivity should not be mistaken for true moderation.
Dec 21, 2022
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  • Devorah Margolin

Recent Policy Analysis by Devorah Margolin

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani attends the ceremony of the new Syrian government flag being raised for the first time, outside United Nations Headquarters in New York, U.S., April 25, 2025 - source: Reuters
Brief Analysis
Seizing the Moment of Opportunity in Syria: Guidelines for U.S. Action
May 21, 2025, starting at 11:00 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT)
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  • Matthew Levitt
  • Devorah Margolin
  • Souhire Medini
  • David Schenker
The Syria Breakdown Series Title Card
Articles & Testimony
Hope for al-Hol? The Syria Breakdown, Episode Six
Mar 13, 2025
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  • Devorah Margolin
Syria's Minister of Foreign Affairs Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani speaks during a meeting with Syrian diaspora after the International Conference on Syria in Paris on February 13, 2025 - source: Reuters
Brief Analysis
Post-Paris Steps in Syria Could Be Decisive
Feb 28, 2025
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  • Devorah Margolin
  • Aaron Y. Zelin
German and French foreign ministers meet with Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus - source: Reuters
Brief Analysis
The Paris Conference on Syria: Coordination and a Roadmap Are Needed
Feb 11, 2025
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  • Devorah Margolin
  • Souhire Medini
Brief Analysis
Syria Crisis Leaves Islamic State Prisons and Detention Camps Vulnerable
Dec 9, 2024
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  • Devorah Margolin
Brief Analysis
Countering Hamas’s Shadow Governance in Gaza
Oct 25, 2024
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  • Devorah Margolin
  • Neomi Neumann
All Policy Analysis by Devorah Margolin
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