DisplayBio.aspx

Don Rassler is an Instructor in the Department of Social Sciences and the Director of the Harmony Research Program at the Combating Terrorism Center (CTC) at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. As part of his duties at West Point, Rassler served for four months on General Petraeus’ CENTCOM Assessment Team. In 2009, Rassler was part of a four person team that conducted a strategic assessment of the threat picture in Afghanistan, the findings of which were presented to the International Security and Assistance Force commander, General Stanley McChrystal, and Ambassador Karl Eikenberry, U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan. Rassler has also advised a number of operational units and been interviewed by various media outlets. He is co-author of the forthcoming book, The Fountainhead of Jihad: The Haqqani Nexus, 1973-2012, which will be released by Hurst and Columbia University Press.

Prior to joining the CTC, Rassler worked on intelligence, defense reform and NATO transformation projects for the Department of Defense as a Senior Consultant at Detica.

BS in Anthropology, University of Oregon, 2002
MA in International Affairs, Columbia University, 2007

Fountainhead of Jihad: the Haqqani Nexus – 1973-2012, to be published by Hurst and Columbia University Press in the fall of 2012.

--Co-author of forthcoming book on the historical evolution of the Haqqani network and its relationships with key actors.

South Asian Militant Groups: Insights into Lashkar-e-Taiba's Fighters, October 2012.

--Co-author and project leader of comprehensive CTC study of Lashkar-e- Taiba (LT) fighters, based upon a coded dataset of 1,000 LT martyr biographies.

"Taliban and al-Qaida: What Role does Religion Play?" June 2012.

--Author of policy brief published by the Danish Institute for International Studies and the University of Copenhagen (Denmark).

Letters from Abbottabad: Bin Laden Sidelined? May 2012.

--Co-author of study of 17 de-classified documents captured from Usama bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

The Haqqani Nexus and the Evolution of al-Qaida, July 2011.

--Lead author of CTC report on the historical relationship between the Haqqani network and al-Qa`ida.

"Securing Sanctuary" November 2009.

--Author of article about al-Qa`ida in Pakistan, published in as part of a series on the group’s senior leadership.

"Tradeoffs and Paradoxes: Terrorism, Deterrence and Nuclear Weapons" December 2008.

--Co-author of a white paper initially written for the Department of Defense's Schlesinger Task Force on Nuclear Weapons Management. A modified version of this report was also later published in September 2009 by Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, one of the leading journals in the terrorism/counterterrorism field.

"Al-Qaida’s Pakistan Strategy" June 2009.

--Author of article published in the CTC Sentinel on al-Qa`ida’s dynamic role in Pakistan and the group’s fostering of anti-Pakistan violence.

"Critical Mass: Hizb ut-Tahrir and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan," December 2006.

--Author of memorandum outlining the threats posed by the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan and Hizb ut-Tahrir in Central Asia.

My research interests are focused on the Haqqani network, the early history of al-Qaida and the changing dynamics of Afghanistan’s and Pakistan’s militant landscapes.

Department of Social Sciences Display Biographical Details

Mr. Don Rassler