Brynjar Lia (born 14 July 1966) is a Norwegian historian and professor of Middle East Studies at Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages at the

University of Oslo The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

. He is also an adjunct research professor at the

Norwegian Defence Research Establishment The Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (''Forsvarets forskningsinstitutt'' – ''FFI'') is a research institute that conducts research and development on behalf of the Norwegian Armed Forces and provides expert advice to political and mi ...

(FFI) where he headed FFI's research on international terrorism and global jihadism between 1999 and 2011. Lia is viewed as one of Norway's foremost experts on terrorism and is much cited in Norwegian and international media in connection to

Al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...

and international terrorism. Lia's last book is about

Abu Musab al-Suri Abu Musab al-Suri ( ar, أبو مصعب السوري), born Mustafa bin Abd al-Qadir Setmariam Nasar ( ar, مصطفى بن عبد القادر ست مريم نصار), is a suspected Al-Qaeda member and writer best known for his 1,600-page book ...

, which has been reviewed in publications like ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...

'', ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Econo ...

'', ''

London Review of Books The ''London Review of Books'' (''LRB'') is a British literary magazine published twice monthly that features articles and essays on fiction and non-fiction subjects, which are usually structured as book reviews. History The ''London Review of ...

'', and ''

The New York Review of Books ''The New York Review of Books'' (or ''NYREV'' or ''NYRB'') is a semi-monthly magazine with articles on literature, culture, economics, science and current affairs. Published in New York City, it is inspired by the idea that the discussion of i ...

''.

Bibliography of books in English

* ''Architect of Global Jihad: The Life of Al Qaeda Strategist Abu Mus'ab Al-Suri'' (Columbia Univ. Press, 2008) * ''Building Arafat's Police: The Politics of International Police Assistance in the Palestinian Territories After the Oslo Agreement'' (Ithaca Press, 2007) * ''A Police Force Without a State: A History of the Palestinian Security Forces in the West Bank And Gaza'' (Ithaca Press, 2006) * ''Globalisation and the Future of Terrorism: Patterns and Predictions'' (Routledge, 2005) * ''The Society of the Muslim Brothers in Egypt 1928-42'' (Ithaca Press, 1998)

External links

Brynjar Lia's website at the University of Oslo

FFI explains al-Qaida document, regarding a pre-warning found on the Internet about the Madrid 2004 bombing

Dr Brynjar Lia's "The al-Qaida Strategist Abu Mus'ab al-Suri: A Profile", from Counterterrorism blog

Newsweek article about Abu Musab al-Suri with comments from LiaBook review of Architect of Global Jihad
(The Economist, 2007)

(London Review of Books, 2008)
The growth of 'online Jihadism'
(BBC World, 26 October 2006)
Jihadi Suicide Bombers: The New Wave
(The New York Review of Books, June 2008) {{DEFAULTSORT:Lia, Brynjar 1966 births Living people Historians of Europe 20th-century Norwegian historians 21st-century Norwegian historians