Ronen A. Cohen

Ronen Cohen
Born1976 (age 47–48)
Academic background
Alma materBar-Ilan University[1]
ThesisThe Development of the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization and Its Struggle Against the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1997–1987 (2004)
Academic work
InstitutionsAriel University[2]
Main interestsIranian studies
Websitehttps://www.ariel.ac.il/wp/mecarc/ronen-a-cohen/

Ronen A. Cohen (Hebrew: רונן א. כהן) is an Israeli scholar of Middle Eastern studies. He is an associate professor at Ariel University, and heads both its Middle Eastern & Central Asian Studies (MECAS) center and Department of Middle Eastern and Political Science Studies.[3]

Cohen's main field of research is contemporary history and politics of Iran[2] and he has written numerous works on the subject including monographs on Iranian organizations the Hojjatieh, the Forqan and the Mojahedin-e Khalq.

Views

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Cohen maintains that Ruhollah Khomeini was immensely influenced by Musa al-Sadr, deriving "most of his methods and vision" from his pupil. He credits Iranian Revolution to Sadr, not Khomeini, stating "Khomeini conducted the music, but the music was composed by al-Sadr."[4]

In a June 2013 interview with The Jerusalem Post, Cohen categorically dismissed that the next Iranian president, to-be-elected in 2013 presidential election, may follow a nuclear policy different from his predecessor and said "the president is a clerk, a pawn of the supreme leader".[3]

Writing an opinion piece for Israel Hayom in 2018, Cohen remarked that regime change is inevitable in Iran: "it is just a matter of time before the revolution implodes and blows up in everyone's face".[5]

Published works

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Books as author
  • The Rise and Fall of the Mojahedin Khalq, 1987–1997: Their Survival after the Islamic Revolution and Resistance to the Islamic Republic of Iran. Sussex Academic Press. 2009.[1][2]
  • The Hojjatiyeh Society in Iran: Ideology and Practice from the 1950s to the Present. Palgrave Macmillan US. 2013.
  • Revolution Under Attack: The Forqan Group of Iran. Palgrave Macmillan US. 2015.[6]
  • Upheavals in the Middle East: The Theory and Practice of a Revolution. Lexington Books. 2016.[7]
  • The Mostadha'fin's Confusing Journey from Shariati's Revolutionary Utopianism to Khomeini's Dystopian Reality, 1976–1982. Peter Lang. 2019.
Book chapters
  • "Self-Criticism and Confronting Anti-Semitism: The Moderate Voices of Recognition in the Islamic World". Post-Holocaust Studies in a Modern Context. IGI Global. 2019.
Books as editor
  • Identities in Crisis in Iran: Politics, Culture and Religion. Lexington Books. 2015.
Selected papers

References

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  1. ^ a b Rafati, Naysan (2010). "Reviewed Work: The Rise and Fall of the Mojahedin Khalq, 1987–1997: Their Survival after the Islamic Revolution and Resistance to the Islamic Republic of Iran by Ronen A. Cohen". Journal of Islamic Studies. 43 (10): 736–739. JSTOR 27919949.
  2. ^ a b c Frantzman, Seth J. (2010). "Reviewed Work: The Rise and Fall of the Mojahedin Khalq, 1987–1997". Digest of Middle East Studies. 19 (1): 736–739. doi:10.1111/j.1949-3606.2010.00024.x.
  3. ^ a b Ben Solomon, Ariel (13 June 2013), "Analysis: Iran election won't impact nuclear policy", The Jerusalem Post, retrieved 25 April 2021
  4. ^ Mūsā al-Ṣadr – redeemer, revolutionary, and father of the Shī'a awakening in the Middle East, International Political Science Association
  5. ^ Ronen, Cohen (31 December 2018), "To protest or not to protest", Israel Hayom, retrieved 25 April 2021
  6. ^ Lob, Eric (2016). "Reviewed Work: Ronen A. Cohen, Revolution under Attack: The Forqan Group of Iran (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2015)". International Journal of Middle East Studies. 48 (3): 599–601. doi:10.1017/S0020743816000611. S2CID 164160251.
  7. ^ Bevers, Michael (2015). "Reviewed Work: Upheavals in the Middle East: The Theories and Practice of a Revolution by Cohen Ronen A.". Journal of Islamic Studies. 26 (3): 343–345. doi:10.1093/jis/etv035. JSTOR 26200408.