From Freedom Fighters to Jihadists: Human Resources of Non-State Armed Groups - Paperback

by Vera Mironova (Author)

This book examines the internal organization of armed groups and, in particular, their human resources. Analyzing the growth of these groups through the prism of a labor market theory, this book shows that extreme Islamist groups were able to attract fighters away from more moderate groups because they had better internal organization, took better care of fighters both physically and monetarily, and experienced less internal corruption. With unparalleled access and extensive ethnographic research drawn from her two years embedded with Iraqi Special Operation forces, Mironova delves deep into the ideological and practical nexus of some of the most radical groups in the Middle East.

Author Biography

Vera Mironova is Visiting Fellow at Harvard University. She received her PhD in Political Science from the University of Maryland and for three years was an International Security Fellow at the Robert and Renée Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Dr. Mironova, whose research explores individual level behavior in conflict environments, has conducted fieldwork in numerous active conflict zones and post-conflict regions all over the world, and from 2016 to 2017, she was embedded with Iraqi Special Operations Forces during the Mosul Operation. Her scholarship has been featured in numerous publications including The New York Times, Foreign Policy, BBC, and The Boston Globe. She has also served as a commentator for a number of major media outlets, including The New York Times, the Associated Press, Washington Post, and Vice News.