Dr. Rob Geist Pinfold is a Leonard Davis Post-Doctoral Fellow in International Relations at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is also a Research Fellow in the Department of War Studies, King’s College London and the National Security Studies Centre at the University of Haifa. Additionally, he teaches on the International Affairs MA programme at the Department of Defence Studies, King’s College London.

Previously, Rob has taught at BA and MA levels, as well as in the military education sector, at the Department of War Studies and the Department of Defence Studies at King’s College London. He also held research fellowships at the Institute for National Security Studies – a leading Israeli think tank – as well as at the University of Haifa.

Rob holds a PhD in War Studies from King’s College London. His research intersects the study of strategy and territorial conflict, with a focus on the Middle East. His publications include articles in Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, The Journal of Strategic Studies and Mediterranean Politics. He also jointly edited a book, Understanding Israel: Political, Societal and Security Challenges, which was published by Routledge in 2019.

Education

2018 PhD in War Studies, King’s College London, UK

2012 MA in Terrorism, Security and Society, King’s College London, UK

2010 BA in Politics and Modern History, the University of Manchester, UK

Academic Positions

2020-Present Leonard Davis Institute for International Relations, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Post-Doctoral Fellow

2019-Present Department of Defence Studies, King’s College London, UK, Teaching Fellow

2018-2020 Division of International Relations, the University of Haifa, Israel, Post-Doctoral Researcher

2015-2016 Department of War Studies, King’s College London, UK, Graduate Teaching Assistant

Research Fellowships

2019-Present Department of War Studies, King’s College London, UK, Research Fellow

2019-Present National Security Studies Centre, the University of Haifa, Israel, Research Fellow

2016-2018 The Institute for National Security Studies, Israel, Neubauer Research Fellow

2016-2017 The University of Haifa, Israel, Pre-Doctoral Research Fellow

Publications

Rob Geist Pinfold and Joel Peters, 2019, "The Limits of Israel’s Periphery Strategy: Lessons from the Caucasus and Central Asia," Mediterranean Politics, published online, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13629395.2019.1693125

Rob Geist Pinfold and M. L. R. Smith, 2019, "Theorising Territorial Withdrawal: The Need to Think Strategically," Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, published online, DOI: 10.1080/1057610X.2019.1661083

Rob Geist Pinfold, 2019, "Territorial Withdrawal as Multilateral Bargaining: Revisiting Israel’s “Unilateral” Withdrawals from Gaza and Southern Lebanon," The Journal of Strategic Studies, published online, DOI: 10.1080/01402390.2019.1570146.

Joel Peters and Rob Geist Pinfold (Eds.), 2018, Understanding Israel: Political, Security and Societal Challenges (Oxford: Routledge).

Joel Peters and Rob Geist Pinfold, 2015, "Consolidating Right-Wing Hegemony: The Israeli Election, 2015," Mediterranean Politics 20 (3): 405-412.

Courses taught in the academic year 2020-21:

Understanding Israeli Security Policy: Territory, Occupations and Withdrawals (winter term: hybrid online and in-class course)

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