Professors in the Pub: Intelligence Failures and Consequences in the Middle East and Beyond

Each month, come to Café des Taxis to have a drink (or two) and discuss important world events with professors and other subject-matter experts. Share your questions and views and join the long tradition of politics in the pub! 

This month:

On October 7, 2023, at a time when Israel was commemorating its biggest intelligence failure to date (the surprise attack that led to the 1973 Arab–Israeli War), Hamas launched a coordinated land, sea, and air attack on Israel that killed over seven hundred and has resulted in Israeli reprisals on Gaza claiming the lives of several hundred more.

This attack by Hamas has been widely described both within and outside the country as “Israel’s 9/11”—a comparison not without merit. As with 9/11, there were severe intelligence failures, but will Israel choose a wiser path of response than the US did all those years ago? What lessons are there to learn with respect to intelligence and the domestic and foreign policy of Western countries? What options are there for moving forward in the Middle East?

Come discuss these questions and more and ask your own on October 19, 2023, at 6:30 pm, in Cafe des Taxis.

The lead professor for this event will be Ariel Reichard, Post-Doctoral Fellow at Charles University’s Institute of Political Science and the Herzl Center of Israel Studies.