SPEAKERS
Att. Nitsana Darshan-Leitner
Founder & President
@Shurat HaDin
Nitsana Darshan-Leitner is founder and president of Shurat HaDin - Israel Law Center. She has led and won a number of major legal cases against terror organizations, resulting in more than $2 billion in judgments and collecting $200 million in compensation for victims of terror. Mrs. Darshan-Leitner, has assisted in blocking Gaza Flotillas, sued social media companies for allowing terror incitement on their platforms, halted efforts to indict IDF soldiers for war crimes, and filed legal actions against those illegally boycotting Israeli academics and companies. Ms. Darshan-Leitner is regularly quoted in the international media as an authority on terror financing.
Ram Levi
FOUNDER & CEO @Konfidas Digital Ltd.
Founder and CEO of Konfidas Digital Ltd., a cybersecurity consulting firm dedicated to helping its clients align their cybersecurity strategy to the future landscape of cyber threats. Konfidas specializes on bridging business, technology and strategic aspects of cybersecurity. Levi has extensive experience in project management and research and development strategy in governmental, operational, technological environments.
Colonel (Ret.) Gary D. Brown, USAF
Professor of Cyber Security @Marine Corps University
Gary Brown is Professor of Cyber Security at Marine Corps University, Quantico, Virginia. Previously he served as Head of Communications and Congressional Affairs for the Washington Delegation, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC); he was with the ICRC from 2012-2015. Prior to joining the ICRC, he served 24 years as a judge advocate with the United States Air Force. Colonel Brown’s Air Force career included five overseas assignments, including serving for a year as the senior legal advisor for combat air operations in Afghanistan and Iraq at the Combined Air Operations Center, Southwest Asia. In his final military assignment, he was the first senior legal counsel for U.S. Cyber Command, Fort Meade, Maryland, where he served for three years.
Commander Richard Walton
Former Head of the Counterterrorism Command
Former Head of the Counterterrorism Command, London's Metropolitan Police Service, UK (2011-2015). Current Director of Counter Terrorism Global Ltd, providing independent advice, consultancy and training to governments and private companies, working at all levels but in particular at the senior executive / cabinet / board level. Richard Walton has many years of experience delivering successful counter terrorism and counter extremism strategies within a 'rule of law' framework. He has also worked internationally across the security sector delivering rule of law, stabilization and capacity building in fragile conflict affected states. He has additional experience in international relations, operational risk management and mitigation.
Jimmy Gurule
International Criminal Law Expert
An internationally known expert in the field of international criminal law, specifically, terrorism, terrorist financing, and anti-money laundering, joined the Notre Dame Law School faculty in 1989, and in 1996 became a full professor.
Matthew Levitt
Director @The Washington Institute's Counterterrorism and Intelligence Program
Fromer-Wexler fellow and director of The Washington Institute's Stein Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence. From 2005 to early 2007, he served as deputy assistant secretary for intelligence and analysis at the U.S. Department of the Treasury During his tenure at Treasury, Dr. Levitt played a central role in efforts to protect the U.S. financial system from abuse and to deny terrorists, weapons proliferators, and other rogue actors the ability to finance threats to U.S. national security. In 2008-2009, he served as a State Department counterterrorism advisor to the special envoy for Middle East regional security (SEMERS), General James L. Jones.
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Dr. Michael Welner
Forensic Psychiatrist
A forensic psychiatrist renowned for his examinations of defendants of many of the most significant legal cases of the decade, Dr. Welner has been sought out by courts on a number of cutting edge questions, including issues unique to terrorism trials. Dr. Welner has pioneered landmark justice research to standardize criminal evil for application to criminal sentencing and release decisions (www.depravitystandard.org). He has written on the role of the mass media in worsening the threats of terror and how terrorism objectives feed – and feed off -- the crisis of mass killings in America and the West.
Mr. Micah Avni (Lakin)
CEO @Peninsula Group & Founder @Stop Incitement Movement
Mr. Micah Lakin Avni is the CEO of Peninsula Group Ltd., a publicly-traded Israeli commercial finance institution. He was ranked as the 25th most influential person in Israel by The Marker Magazine in 2015. Mr. Avni holds an LLB in Law from the Hebrew University Law School and a joint MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and the Recanati School of Business Administration at Tel Aviv University. He also served as a commander in one of the Israel Defense Force's elite combat units. After Mr. Avni’s father, Richard Lakin, was brutally murdered by Palestinian terrorists in October 2015, Micah founded Stop Incitement, an organization whose goal is to rid incitement to hatred, violence and terror from social media.
Stephen Coughlin
Attorney, Intelligence Officer & Islamic Law Specialist
An attorney, decorated intelligence officer and noted specialist on Islamic law, ideology and related strategic information programs, Mr. Coughlin integrates experience in international law, intelligence, strategic communications and high-level project management in both the national defense and private sectors to develop unique perspectives, assessments and training packages relating to the intersection of national security and law.
Professor George Michael
Professor of Criminal Justice, Westfield State University
Associate Professor of Criminal Justice, Westfield State University. Author of “Lone Wolf Terror and the Rise of Leaderless Resistance.”
Dr. Paul Gill
Lecturer In Security & Crime Science @University College London
A lecturer in security and crime science at University College London who has worked with US counter-terrorism officials, Gill’s work included a study for the US Department of Homeland Security, in which 119 lone actor terrorists were examined.
Linda Lingle
Former Governor Of Hawaii
Linda Lingle was Governor of Hawaii from 2002 until 2010, the first women governor and the first Jewish governor of Hawaii. In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks, she was a leader in ensuring state and local government cooperation in the fight against
terror. Until recently she served as a senior advisor to Governor Bruce Rauner and Chief Operating Officer for the State of Illinois.
Ahmed Melighy
Jerusalem Post Columnist & Egyptian Peace Activist
Jerusalem Post columnist and Egyptian peace activist who specializes in Middle East commentary and who chronicles corruption within the Palestinian Authority as an obstacle to peace and a conduit for terror financing.
Brooke Goldstein
Human Rights Att., Author, & Award-Winning Filmmaker, Director @The Lawfare Project
Brooke Goldstein is a New York City-based human rights attorney, author, and award-winning filmmaker. She serves as director of The Lawfare Project, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness about and facilitating a response to the abuse of Western legal systems and human rights law. Brooke is also the founder and director of the Children’s Rights Institute (CRI), a nonprofit organization whose mission is to track, spotlight, and legally combat violations of children’s basic human rights around the world. Canadian born, Brooke earned her B.A. from McGill University and received her J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. She also attended Columbia University and University of Toronto’s exchange programs.
Alberto R. Gonzales
Former US Attorney General
Alberto R. Gonzales is the Doyle Rogers Distinguished Chair of Law at Belmont University School of Law and was the 80th United States Attorney General, appointed in February 2005 by President George W. Bush. Gonzales, the son of Mexican migrant workers, was raised in Houston, Texas. After high school, he joined the U.S. Air Force and studied at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Prior to serving as the United States’ chief law enforcement officer, Mr. Gonzales served as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas, as the Texas Secretary of State, and former Governor Bush’s chief liaison to Mexico. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Rice University and a law degree from Harvard University.
Robert James Woolsey Jr.
Former Director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency
Robert James Woolsey Jr. is a national security and energy specialist and former Director of the US Central Intelligence Agency (1993-1995). Amongst serving in many other positions, Mr. Woolsey is a Venture Partner with Lux Capital Management, Distinguished Advisor for the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Vice President at Booz Allen & Hamilton for Global Strategic Security and member of the advisory board for the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs. Mr. Woolsey is also a former Rhodes Scholar, a graduate of Stanford University and a 1968 graduate of Yale Law School.
Raymond Kelly
Former Commissioner of the New York City Police Department
Raymond Kelly was the longest serving Commissioner of the New York City Police Department and the first person to hold the post for two non-consecutive tenures. Hecreated the first counterterrorism bureau of any municipal police department in the US and established a new global intelligence program. Amongst numerous other accomplishments, Mr. Kelly established a state-of-the-art Real Time Crime Center that uses data mining to search millions of computer records. Mr. Kelly, also served as senior managing director of global corporate security at Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc. He holds a BBA from Manhattan College, a JD from St. John's University School of Law, an LLM from New York University Graduate School of Law, and an MPA from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
Ram Ben-Barak
President of "Fifth Dimension" Mass Data Analytics Based on Deep Learning AI & former Deputy Head of the Mossad
Mr. Ben Barak has over 20 years of experience in a variety of senior managerial positions in the public sector and security agencies. Most significantly, he held a number of operational command roles, including as the deputy head of the Mossad. He was a guest Research Associate at Brookings Research Institute in Washington D.C. Mr. Barak currently serves as director general of Israel’s new, combined Strategic and Intelligence Affairs Ministry. He also serves as chairman on the board of several companies and as a consultant to various technological business ventures.
Brynt "Guy" Parmeter is a retired US Army Infantry Officer. He deployed multiple times to Iraq, and served in areas now under ISIS control, as a Battalion Commander and Brigade Operations Planner. He is currently a consultant and partner at BMNT, a San Francisco-area consulting firm.
COL Brynt Guy Parmeter
Consultant & Partner @BMNT & Former Battalion Commander & Brigade Operations Planner @US Army
Donald Rumsfeld
Former U.S. Secretary of Defense
Donald Rumsfeld is an American politician and businessman who served as the 13th Secretary of Defense under President Gerald Ford, and as the 21st Secretary of Defense under President George W. Bush. Following the 9/11 attacks, Rumsfeld oversaw the U.S.-led military campaign against the Taliban in Afghanistan, and the toppling of Saddam Hussein’s regime in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Prior to serving as Secretary of Defense in the Ford Administration, Rumsfeld served as a three-term U.S. Congressman for the State of Illinois. He has also served in other prominent governmental roles including as the United States Permanent Representative to NATO (1973–1974), and White House Chief of Staff (1974–1975). In addition to his government roles, Rumsfeld has worked as CEO of the pharmaceutical corporation G. D. Searle & Company, CEO of General Instrument, and chairman of Gilead Sciences. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Princeton University.
Kent Yalowitz
Partner @Arnold & Porter LLP
Kent Yalowitz is a partner at Arnold & Porter LLP, where he has practiced for 25 years. He has recovered more than $1 billion in judgments and settlements for clients and has led many trial teams. He has experience in a variety of fields, including constitutional law and civil rights in the context of free speech, voting rights, reproductive rights and employment. Mr. Yalowitz appeared on behalf of the State of Israel in the Swiss Bank Holocaust Era Assets case, advocating for support of survivors from excess settlement funds. Most recently, he led the trial team that secured a $655 million jury verdict against the Palestinian Authority and the PLO in favor of 10 American families injured in terrorist attacks. This was the largest personal-injury jury verdict ever in the Southern District of New York. Mr. Yalowitz holds a law degree from Columbia Law School and a bachelor's degree from Yale College.
B.G. (Res.) Gal Hirsch
Chairman @Defensive-Shield Holdings & Author of "Defensive Shield", Gefen Publishing
Brigadier-General Gal Hirsch is one of the most experienced in the IDF in the areas of Counter Terrorism, Counter Insurgency and Guerilla Warfare. He spearheaded Israel’s fight against terror for 34 years in all fronts as a commander of several elite units and as a field officer. He is a decorated soldier were his overt activities are well known and highly acclaimed in the security circles in Israel and its allies.
Michael S. Smith II
Principal & COO @Kronos Advisory, LLC
Michael S. Smith II is COO of Kronos Advisory. A terrorism analyst who specializes in the influence operations of al-Qa’ida and the Islamic State, Smith has served as a contributing expert to the Congressional Anti-Terrorism Caucus and the Congressional Taskforce on Terrorism and Unconventional Warfare. Since 2014, Smith has been involved with a variety of high-profile efforts focused on tracking the Islamic State’s online recruitment and incitement programs, including collaboration with hactivist groups that infiltrate the Islamic State’s social media networks and cyber infrastructure to identify recruitment programs and attack plots.
Capt. Nativ
Chief of an Intelligence Section in The IDF’s Central Command
Captain Nativ is the chief of an intelligence section in the IDF’s Central Command, where his primary focus is identifying and neutralizing daily terror threats from Judea and Samaria.
Capt. Nativ previously served as the personal aid to Brigadier General Dror Shalom, Commander of the Research and Analyis Division (RAD), for which he received a certificate of excellence for outstanding performance.
Capt. Nativ was first recruited to the Israel Defense Forces Intelligence Directorate in 2009 as a cadet in the elite military intelligence Officers Training program. Upon completing that program, Capt. Nativ served for a number of years as a professional analyst in the RAD Division.
Shurat HaDin is a world-renowned law center at the forefront of anti-terror litigation, helping to bring justice to victims of international terror. We pioneered the field of terror victim litigation and have achieved many court victories and precedential decisions.
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This inaugural conference in New York City will focus on present issues of deep concern for policy makers, scholars and attorneys who specialize in international humanitarian law. We expect to discuss the financing of terror, Cyberwarfare, the use of Social Media as a tool for incitement, and the new danger posed by “lone wolf” attacks.
We anticipate that this counter-terrorism conference will initiate new dialogue and robust debate about combating the threats which the United States, Israel and its allies face. In this and in many areas, Shurat HaDin’s legal work is pioneering.
