Speech on Muslim Women & Violent Jihad

Farhana Ali, Associate Analyst, RAND Corporation, International Policy talks about Muslim female fighters. Ms. Ali has charted an increase in suicide attacks by Muslim women since at least 2000 and in new theaters of operation, including Uzbekistan, Egypt, and Iraq. She argues that these attacks are more devastating than those conducted by male jihadists due to the perception that women are unlikely to commit such acts and so they are more likley to be successful and in part because the shock or their attacks draws far greater media attention than male bombers. Ms. Ali talks about the place of these women in Islamic history, their psychological profile, and the likely continuation of this trend and responds to questions from members of the audience.