Isak Svensson

Islamist civil wars pose a major challenge to peace and security around the world. Written by two leading scholars of conflict resolution, Jihadist Peace: Ending Islamist Civil Wars offers a groundbreaking analysis of why these conflicts are among the most difficult to end, and what can be done about it. The book makes a theoretical contribution by explaining their intractability, arguing that the transnational ideological framing of Islamist civil wars increases uncertainty about the capabilities and resolve of the warring parties. Drawing on conflict resolution theory, rigorous statistical analysis, and detailed case studies of Afghanistan, Mauritania, Mali, and Syria, the authors explore the conditions under which these wars can both come to an end and be resolved. They argue that the local dimension is key: by disentangling both rebel and government actors from broader networks, Jihadist Peace charts a path toward resolving some of the world's most intractable civil wars.

Islamist civil wars pose a major challenge to peace and security around the world. Written by two leading scholars of conflict resolution, Jihadist Peace: Ending Islamist Civil Wars offers a groundbreaking analysis of why these conflicts are among the most difficult to end, and what can be done about it. The book makes a theoretical contribution by explaining their intractability, arguing that the transnational ideological framing of Islamist civil wars increases uncertainty about the capabilities and resolve of the warring parties. Drawing on conflict resolution theory, rigorous statistical analysis, and detailed case studies of Afghanistan, Mauritania, Mali, and Syria, the authors explore the conditions under which these wars can both come to an end and be resolved. They argue that the local dimension is key: by disentangling both rebel and government actors from broader networks, Jihadist Peace charts a path toward resolving some of the world's most intractable civil wars.

Who are the mediators in international mediation? Where do they come from, why do they take up assignments, and what are their mandates? Isak Svensson and Peter Wallensteen – leading experts in mediation and conflict resolution – focus on the experiences of mediators and their mandates in Nordic countries, primarily Sweden, Norway and Finland. They explore why these countries are popular for this type of work, what their assets and shortcomings are, and how smaller countries can generate support for their efforts. Furthermore, they develop the 'Mediation Staircase' to assess achievements of mediation as a way to more effectively evaluate mediation with different types of mandates. The Peacemaking Mandate uses the Nordic experiences to provide valuable lessons for contemporary armed conflicts, wars and peace processes, which are becoming ever more important in times of turbulence across the world.

Who are the mediators in international mediation? Where do they come from, why do they take up assignments, and what are their mandates? Isak Svensson and Peter Wallensteen – leading experts in mediation and conflict resolution – focus on the experiences of mediators and their mandates in Nordic countries, primarily Sweden, Norway and Finland. They explore why these countries are popular for this type of work, what their assets and shortcomings are, and how smaller countries can generate support for their efforts. Furthermore, they develop the 'Mediation Staircase' to assess achievements of mediation as a way to more effectively evaluate mediation with different types of mandates. The Peacemaking Mandate uses the Nordic experiences to provide valuable lessons for contemporary armed conflicts, wars and peace processes, which are becoming ever more important in times of turbulence across the world.

This practical handbook is a resource for those interested in organizing and conducting modern, climate-adapted work-related travel and meetings. We present a new method for creating the best possible conditions for deep work on trains, specifically designed for long distances. We demonstrate how the train journey can be organized to function as shared working time and a unique and valuable workplace. We call it Brain Train.

Denna praktiska handbok är en resurs för dig som är intresserad av att organisera och genomföra moderna, klimatanpassade arbetsrelaterade resor och möten. Vi presenterar här en ny metod för att skapa bästa möjliga förutsättningar för djuparbete på tåg, särskilt anpassat för långa distanser. Vi visar hur tågresan kan organiseras så att den fungerar som gemensam arbetstid och en unik och värdefull arbetsplats. Vi kallar det Brain Train.

Jihadist rebel groups that take control over a territory, claim authority over its population, and implement radical religious laws have become a rising security issue over the last decade. Generally brutal and authoritarian, the best-known manifestation of this phenomenon is the Islamic State (IS). While the IS has been decimated in the last few years, most analysts agree that the problem of jihadist violence is far from over, and that the IS may very well re-configure itself in a not so distant future. Moreover, beyond Iraq and Syria, the security threat posed by violent jihadism remains an acute issue. Yet no one has hitherto systematically explored the potential for civil resistance against jihadist armed groups. In Confronting the Caliphate, Isak Svensson and co-authors Daniel Finnbogason, Dino Krause, Luís Martínez Lorenzo, and Nanar Hawach focus on a core set of questions: What can civilians, who oppose the jihadists' attempt to rule them, do to manifest their dissent? To what extent are civilians engaging in acts of resistance against jihadist rebel rule and what does such resistance look like? Does it matter, and can it in any way influence the trajectories of jihadist proto-states? New military and political realities in Iraq and Syria have opened up the possibility to generate new knowledge in areas where the IS has been pushed back. The authors draw from a novel survey on civil resistance against the IS in Mosul after the IS lost control of the city. This survey--the first of its kind--concentrates on the extent and character of resistance behavior against the IS. The authors also utilize contemporary Arab-language social media blogs and news websites in order to document protests against jihadists in Syria, and they also draw on interviews with activists and civilian in Syria and Lebanon who have lived under rule of jihadist groups. Importantly, they show that the international character of jihadist groups are often perceived as alien to local customs, thereby triggering resistance. Given the events of the recent past and the potential resurgence of such groups, this book is a valuable intervention that not only shows us how jihadists rule, but provides the best explanation yet of how ordinary people resist jihadist totalitarianism.

Hur kan vi förstå uppkomsten och konsekvenserna av dagens konflikter? Vad kan göras för att förhindra att de bryter ut? Och hur kan pågående konflikter lösas på ett sätt som skapar varaktig fred? I denna breda grundbok presenteras centrala frågeställningar och analytiska perspektiv på krig, terrorism, konflikthantering och konfliktlösning, samt fredsbyggande och utveckling. Boken innehåller också illustrativa fallanalyser – allt ifrån första världskriget, kriget i Afghanistan, konflikthantering i Afrika, svensk säkerhetspolitik och försoningsprocesser i Bosnien-Hercegovina till fredsbyggande insatser i Palestina.I denna andra upplaga har samtliga kapitel uppdaterats och tre nyskrivna kapitel, som behandlar terrorism, religionens betydelse för konfliktlösning och fred samt fred och säkerhet ur ett jämställdhetsperspektiv, har tillkommit.Freds- och konfliktstudier har en flervetenskaplig karaktär, vilket i boken återspeglas i de olika kapitelbidragen och författarnas akademiska bakgrund. Boken vänder sig till de som är intresserade av frågor om krig och fred samt studenter vid universitet och högskolor som möter ämnet freds- och konfliktstudier för första gången.

Uppseendeväckande många medlare i internationella konflikter kommer från Norden. Varför är det så och vilka skäl finns för detta nordiska engagemang?Sveriges engagemang går tillbaka till Folke Bernadotte 1948 och via de idag ofta bortglömda insatserna av Dag Hammarskjöld, Gunnar Jarring och Olof Palme till utrikesminister Margot Wallströms globala nätverk av kvinnliga fredsmäklare.I en värld med oroväckande många krig visar författarna att konflikter kan hanteras med hjälp av medling från en fristående tredje part och att av de 40 konflikter och 50 medlare som boken tar upp har medling resulterat i 11 fredsavtal som stadigvarande avslutat stora krig.

För några år sedan sågs Den arabiska våren som ett hoppfullt tecken på en annalkande demokratisering. Idag är många av de länder, där dessa uppror skedde utan vapen, präglade av krig och terror. Varför tycks terrorn dra fram särskilt i spåren av ickevåldsprotester? Vilka är orsakerna till det sönderfall vi bevittnar i Mellanöstern? Går det att förhandla med extremister? Och varför tycks det omöjligt att tala om terrorism utan att komma in på religion? Det är några av de aktuella frågor som behandlas i denna bok – tillsammans med den kanske viktigaste: Vilka är ickevåldets vägar i denna terrorns tid? Tro & Liv Skriftserie är en bokserie för teologiska samtidsstudier. Den tas fram i samarbete mellan Teologiska högskolan Stockholm och Equmeniakyrkans medarbetarförbund, och ges ut på Marcus Förlag.

This book examines the effect of biased and neutral mediators in civil wars.Based on analysis of both global data and case studies of contemporary peace processes, including India and Norway in Sri Lanka, China in Cambodia, US in Israel/Palestine, and Russia in Georgia, the book makes two main contributions. First, it explores the role of biased mediators in contemporary peace processes. The author develops a theory explaining why biased mediators are more effective than their neutral counterparts and the book identifies four different mechanisms through which biased mediators can be effective peace-brokers. By developing a comprehensive set of mechanisms to explain bias mediation, the work deepens understanding of biased mediators in general, and their role in resolving civil conflict in particular.The second contribution offered is a novel way of measuring mediation success. Previous research has concentrated on settlement, behavior, or implementation. While these conceptualisations of mediation success all have merit, they fail to address how the basic incompatible positions are regulated. This book focuses on mediators’ ability to regulate core compatibilities by crafting institutional peace arrangements that generally are considered to enhance the prospect for durable peace. This approach has wider implications for peace and conflict research by bringing together research on durability of peace and studies on international mediation, two fields of research which hitherto have been kept apart. This book will be of much interest to students of international mediation, conflict management, civil wars, security studies and IR in general.

Varför startas krig och hur skapas fred? Det är fundamentala frågor som forskare länge har ägnat sig åt. Därför vet vi i dag en hel del både om krigens orsaker och om fredens möjligheter. I "Krig/fred. Riksbankens Jubileumsfonds årsbok 2016/2017" presenterar forskare från det human- och samhällsvetenskapliga fältet sina resultat. Det handlar bland annat om hur demokratiseringsprocesser, flyktingar, klimat och åldrande påverkar konfliktnivån, hur stabil fred kan byggas i en värld som trots alla konflikter har blivit fredligare, hur kriget påverkar de drabbade i generationer samt hur krig i dag faktiskt ska förstås. Boken avslutas med ett samtal mellan experterna Hans Blix, Katarina Engberg och Pierre Schori om fredens utmaningar i vår tid.

This book examines the effect of biased and neutral mediators in civil wars.Based on analysis of both global data and case studies of contemporary peace processes, including India and Norway in Sri Lanka, China in Cambodia, US in Israel/Palestine, and Russia in Georgia, the book makes two main contributions. First, it explores the role of biased mediators in contemporary peace processes. The author develops a theory explaining why biased mediators are more effective than their neutral counterparts and the book identifies four different mechanisms through which biased mediators can be effective peace-brokers. By developing a comprehensive set of mechanisms to explain bias mediation, the work deepens understanding of biased mediators in general, and their role in resolving civil conflict in particular.The second contribution offered is a novel way of measuring mediation success. Previous research has concentrated on settlement, behavior, or implementation. While these conceptualisations of mediation success all have merit, they fail to address how the basic incompatible positions are regulated. This book focuses on mediators’ ability to regulate core compatibilities by crafting institutional peace arrangements that generally are considered to enhance the prospect for durable peace. This approach has wider implications for peace and conflict research by bringing together research on durability of peace and studies on international mediation, two fields of research which hitherto have been kept apart. This book will be of much interest to students of international mediation, conflict management, civil wars, security studies and IR in general.