Martin Sherman- Founder and CEO
Martin Sherman is the founder and CEO of the Israel Institute for Strategic Studies. Dr. Sherman holds degrees in Physics and Geology (B.Sc.), Business Administration (MBA) and Political Science (PhD) .
He writes a regular and widely read column “Into the Fray” in the Friday edition of the Jerusalem Post
He served for seven years in operational capacities in the Israeli intelligence community. From 1990-91 he held the post of ministerial advisor to the Israeli government, and has testified as an expert before the Joint Economic Committee (JEC) of US Congress, in a hearing on economic and security trends in the Middle East.
He was a research fellow (2003-2014) at the International Policy Institute for Counter- Terrorism (ICT) and acted as the academic coordinator of the internationally renowned Herzliya Conference in 2001 and 2002. From 2003-2010 he was the academic director of the Jerusalem Summit.
Dr. Sherman has 15 years’ experience as a director on the boards of several
Israeli commercial companies.
His academic publications include two books, The Politics of Water in The Middle East, and Despots, Democrats and the Determinants of International Conflict, (Macmillan), as well as several articles in journals such as the Middle East Quarterly, The Journal of Strategic Studies, The Journal of Intelligence and Counter Intelligence, The Journal of Theoretical Politics, Nations and Nationalism, and Nationalism & Ethnic Politics.
Dr. Sherman has also published numerous chapters in edited volumes and policy papers on a range of strategic and foreign policy issues. Likewise, he has appeared frequently on TV and radio both on Israeli and international networks and writes extensively on security political and economic issues in the Israeli national press in both English and Hebrew.
Maj-Gen. (Res.) Gershon Hacohen – Research Associate
Maj-Gen. (res.) Gershon Hacohen served in the IDF for 42 years, commanding troops in battle on both the Egyptian and Syrian fronts as well as in Lebanon.
He enlisted in the IDF in 1973 and took part in the Yom Kippur war as an infantry soldier, fighting on the Egyptian Front in Sinai and the Suez Canal area.
He later transferred to the Armored Corps, where he rose through the ranks becoming a brigade commander and later a division commander.
From 2000, Hacohen served in the IDF’s General Staff, and in 2006 was promoted to the rank of Major-General in which capacity he was appointed Commander of the IDF Military Colleges and Commander of the Northern Corps. He retired from the IDF in 2014
Following his military service, Maj-Gen Hacohen has engaged extensive research on numerous security and strategic issues and has published a wide range of articles and policy papers on these topics. He is a frequent and sought after lecturers on military matters both in Israel an abroad. He holds a Master’s degree in philosophy and literature from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Lt-Colonel (Res.) Maurice Hirsch – Research Associate
Lieutenant Colonel Maurice Hirsch is the former Chief Military Prosecutor for Judea and Samaria
Lieutenant Colonel Hirsch specialized in the prosecution of terrorists, the Palestinian Authority and International Law as applied in Judea and Samaria.
Hirsch was born in South Africa and educated in the United Kingdom, completing his law studies before immigrating to Israel. In the course of his military service, Hirsch served in a number of senior positions in the Military Advocate General’s Corps., including Assistant to the Legal Advisor to Judea and Samaria; Head of Legal Advice to the Navy, Air Force, Ground Forces and Home Front, and ultimately as the Head of the Military Prosecution for Judea and Samaria. Hirsch retired from the IDF after 19 years of service at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.
During his military service Hirsch dealt extensively with different aspects of Palestinian terrorism and lead a number of initiatives that were focused on battling the phenomena. In an unusual incident, Hirsch represented the IDF and the State of Israel in talks with a UN organization that had released a particularly controversial report. Hirsch’s efforts were recognized as a great success and a further report put out by the same organization was considerably more balanced.
Since retiring from the IDF, Hirsch now acts as the Head of Legal Strategies for Palestinian Media Watch. He also served as the Senior Military Justice Consultant for NGO Monitor.
Professor Yakov Faitelson – Research Associate
Yakov Faitelson holds degree in Computer Sciences and Mathematics (MSc). In 2013 he was awarded the title of Honorary Professor of International Solomon University, Kyiv, Ukraine.
He served as a first Mayor of the Israeli city of Ariel (1981-1985), the Chairman of the Board Committee for Computerization of the Israel Electric Corporation (1990-1993), the General Director of the Industrial Park Barkan (1988-1994) and several other senior positions in Israel. He also served as a Representative and Director for special projects of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee in Former Soviet Union (1998-2011) and as Head of the Jewish Agency Representative Office for Ukraine (2012-2013).
He was one of the heads of Aliya movement in Lithuania and USSR (1969-1971) and one of the organizers of the First 3-day Hunger Strike of 32 Jews from Lithuania and Latvia for Aliya in the building of the Central Telegraph in Moscow on May 1971.
From 1981 he wrote over 170 articles (in Hebrew, Russian and English) on the Demography of the Land of Israel and other different issues connected to the State of Israel and the Middle East problems.
Professor Faitelson served as consultant on Demography for Benjamin Netanyahu, during the 1988 Knesset Election Campaign (October 1988).
His articles have been published by the Institute for Zionist Strategies, the Moscow Institute for Middle East Studies, Middle East Quarterly, by various newspapers, magazines and various Internet sites in Israel, Russia, Ukraine and USA.
Barry Shaw – Senior Associate for Public Diplomacy
Barry Shaw is a Senior Associate for Public Diplomacy at the Israeli Institute for Strategic Studies.
He is regularly contributes to various media outlets including the Jerusalem Post and a frequent speaker at conferences and pro-Israel advocacy events.
Shaw has been a staunch defender of Israel in the public diplomacy arena for decades and has initiated the creation of several pro-Israel grassroots groups,
He has a keen following of tens of thousands of people globally.
Shaw is the author of three books:
‘Israel Reclaiming the Narrative’ rebuts fraudulent allegations against Israel with fact based refutations.
‘Fighting Hamas, BDS and Anti-Semitism’ is a thoroughly researched exposure of the Jew hatred at the heart of the Palestinian cause from their headquarters in Gaza and Ramallah into the campuses and anti-Israel activism in too many Western countries.
His most recent book, ‘BDS for IDIOTS,’ employs ridicule as new method of countering BDS activists and repudiating their slander against Israel with facts and humor.
Dr. Moshe Dann – Research Associate
Dr. Moshe (Martin) Dann received his MA from the University of Chicago and his Ph.D. from City University of New York(CUNY), where he also taught until moving to live to Israel.
His academic works have appeared in several historical journals and he has authored two books including his most recent “As Far As The Eye Can See” (New English Review Press).
Dr. Dann is a freelance columnist for the Jerusalem Post where his writings frequently appear.
He resides in Jerusalem.