The Security Studies Unit existed between April 2018 and March 2020. The Unit studied issues of national, regional, and international security with the strong focus on terrorism, armed non-state groups, regional conflicts, and radical ideologies. The Unit was headed by Dr. Abdullah bin Khaled Al Saud (Director of Research) and staffed by Yousef Zarea, Khalid Alshaikh, and Kameal Al-Ahmad.

KFCRIS Publications

Iran's Cyberattacks Capabilities, Special Report, January 2020.

Abdulmajeed Saud Manqarah, Competing Models in the Middle East: Saudi Arabia and Iran, Special Report, July 2019.

Change at the Top: The Reasons, and Consequences of, Hossein Salami’s Elevation to Commander in Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Masarat, May 2019.

Hidden Rivalries behind Iranian Foreign-Policy Making: The Case of Zarif's Resignation, Masarat, March 2019.

Abdullah bin Khaled Al Saud, Foreign Fighters in Leaked 'Daesh' Documents: Analysis of those coming from Saudi Arabia, Dirasat, February 2019.

Mitchell Belfer and Khalid Alshaikh, Iran’s Clandestine War on the Kingdom of Bahrain: Saraya al Ashtar and the Military Wing of Hezbollah Bahrain, Dirasat, January 2019.

Sebastian Maier and Yousef Zarea, Recent Developments of US and Turkish Involvement in the Syrian Conflict, Special Report, December 2018.

What Future for the Kurdish Regions of Northern Syria?, Masarat, December 2018.

Security of the Red Sea Region, Masarat, November 2018.

Mona Alami, Hezbollah's African Venture: Realities and Limitations, Commentary, August 2018.

Troubled Waters, Uncertain Perimeters: The Aktau Agreement in Iran’s Ongoing Caspian Saga, Masarat, August 2018.

Mona Alami, What future for Iraq’s PMU?, Dirasat, July 2018.

Mona Alami, Iran and Russia: Tactical Allies In Syria With Long Term Diverging Agendas, Commentary, June 2018.

Jack Caravelli and Sebastian Maier, A New US National Security Team Confronts Difficult Choices with Iran and North Korea, Dirasat, May 2018.

Iran's Growing Strategic Foothold in the Golan Heights, Masarat, May 2018.

Mona Alami, Lebanese Elections: Gains for Hezbollah with the Emergence of New Kingmakers, Commentary, May 2018.

External Publications

Abdullah bin Khaled Al Saud, "Saudi Foreign Fighters: Analysis of Leaked Islamic State Entry Documents," ICSR Report, 2019.

Abdullah bin Khaled Al Saud and Yousuf Zarea, "Saudi Efforts in Countering Violent Extremism," in Lorenzo Vidino (ed.) De-Radicalization in the Mediterranean: Comparing Challenges and Approaches, Milano: ISPI, 2018.

Activities

Conference: Non-State Actors and the Changing Nature of Conflict, January 2020 (with International Centre for Study of Radicalisation, King's College London).

Workshop: Mitigation of Civil Damage during Armed Conflict, November 2019 (with Center for Civilians in Conflict).

Workshop: Regional Developments and Future Scenario, October 2019 (with Center for Humanitarian Dialogue).

Workshop: The Red Sea Region: Security, Economy, and the Future of the Entity of Coastal States, April 2019.

Workshop: Cyber Security: Challenges and Opportunities, April 2019.

Lecture: Paul Musgrave, The Foreign Policy of the "Divided" States of America, April 2019.

Lecture: Mohammed Al-Jabir, "Humanitarian Situation in Yemen, From Relief to Development and Reconstruction," March 2019 (with Saudi Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen).

Lecture: Jennifer Keene, "Hundred Years Later: The Meaning of WW1 for the United States," March 2019.

Lecture: Abdullah bin Khaled Al Saud, "Foreign Fighters in Leaked ‘Daesh’ Documents: Analysis of those coming from Saudi Arabia," February 2019.

Lecture: Shiraz Maher, "Salafi-Jihadism: History of an Idea," November 2018.

Conference: The Humanitarian Situation in Yemen: Reality and Challenges, October 2018 (with Isnad Center for Comprehensive Humanitarian Operations in Yemen).

Workshop: Nuclear Security: Non-Proliferation and Disarmament, October 2018 (with King’s College London and Naif Arab University for Security Sciences).

Workshop: The Future of the Religious Establishment in Iraq, August 2018.