“Resolving Jihadist Conflicts? Religion, Civil War, and Prospects for Peace” is a research project funded by Riksbankens Jubileumsfond and stretching over five years. It is led by Professor Isak Svensson at the Department of Peace and Conflict Research, Uppsala University, Sweden. One of the most pressing challenges on the contemporary agenda for peace and security is armed conflicts involving mil
itant groups with self-proclaimed Islamist aspirations, such as IS (Islamic State) in Syria and Iraq, Boko Haram in Nigeria and the Taliban in Afghanistan. However, we know surprisingly little about the conditions under which jihadist conflicts, partly or completely, may be resolved through peaceful means. In particular, there is a gap in peace and conflict research concerning if, how, and to what extent, our existing theories on conflict resolution are applicable to solve jihadist conflicts. The project sets out to fill this lacuna. The purpose is to explore the potential, as well as the limitations, for conflict resolution in these contexts by examining the research question: under what conditions are jihadist conflicts likely to be resolved? In order to address this pertinent and highly complex research problem, this project brings together peace and conflict scholars with scholars of religious studies in general and Islam in particular, and we expect to see important synergy effects by doing so. Drawing on this multidisciplinary expertise, the project seeks to develop a theoretical framework that focuses on 1) who the actors are, 2) the issues at stake, and 3) the behavior of these actors. The project combines quantitative and qualitative research methods and analyzes and compares jihadist conflicts to other types of conflicts, and explores variations within jihadist conflicts. The project consists of a Core Group that brings together peace and conflict scholars with scholars of religious studies in general and with expertise on Islam in particular. The Core Group members all bring specific knowledge and expertise to the project, and have all conducted research on and published extensively on issues relevant to this project. Together, they also have rich and broad experiences of different research methods, ranging from statistical analysis to ethnographical fieldwork, which we will utilize in this project. The Core Group consists of:
Professor Isak Svensson
([email protected])
Professor Ebrahim Moosa
Professor Mark Juergensmeyer
Associate Professor Desirée Nilsson
Assistant Professor Mimmi Söderberg Kovacs
The project leader is assisted by full-time research assistant, Daniel Finnbogason, M.Soc.Sci Peace and Conflict Studies. ([email protected])
The Core Group and collaborative network benefits from the input of an Advisory Board of esteemed international scholars. The Advisory Board consists of:
Senior Professor Peter Wallensteen
Professor Emeritus Jan Hjärpe
Professor Monica Toft
Professor Emeritus William I. Zartman
The project also benefits from the active participation of a carefully selected Working Group, whose members will function as a highly useful peer-review network. Some will also contribute with their own research publications within the project. The Working Group draws together area expertise on jihadist conflicts in different geographical areas as well as scholars with a general expertise on religion and conflicts:
on the Middle East, in particular Syria and Iraq (Professor Leif Stenberg, Lund University), Egypt and Palestine (Dr. Jeroen Gunning, Durham University), and the wider Middle East (Professor Mohammad Fazlhashemi, Uppsala University);
the Horn of Africa (Professor Ken Menkhaus, Davidson College); Africa, particularly Mali and Nigeria (Dr. Morten Bøås, Norwegian Institute for International Affairs, NUPI);
Afghanistan (Dr. Astri Suhrke, Chr. Michelsen Institute, CMI); Asia, in particular Indonesia (Dr. Munim Sirry, University of Notre Dame), Myanmar and Southern Thailand (Dr. Marte Nilsson, Peace Research Institute Oslo, PRIO);
global patterns of religious conflicts (Professor Matthias Basedau, German Institute of Global and Area Studies, GIGA); religious conflicts and sexual violence (Dr. Ragnhild Nordås, Peace Research Institute Oslo, PRIO), and mediation and conflict resolution (Dr. Govinda Clayton, University of Kent).
