Critical Studies on Terrorism 2024 Conference - event review - Critical Studies on Terrorism (CST)

The Critical Studies on Terrorism Annual Conference took place on 3-4 September at the University of Sheffield in a hybrid format. Over two days, the conference brought together 87 academics, postgraduate and early career researchers, undergraduate students, and practitioners representing 54 institutions from 18 countries.

The conference started with a plenary roundtable entitled ‘Palestine and the permissibility of violence’ featuring insights from Dr Malaka Shwaikh (St Andrews University), Dr Lisa Stampnitzky (University of Sheffield), Dr Nijmeh Ali (The Middle East Studies Association Global Academy), and Namir Shabibi (University of Westminster). The keynote address was delivered by Dr Jasmine Gani (London School of Economics) who provided a genealogical account of the British Mandate and the Zionist Movement. Along with panels on media censorship and complicity, pedagogy and accountability, resistance and liberation, and counter-terrorism logics, the conference also featured the book launch of Methodologies in Critical Terrorism Studies: Gaps and Interdisciplinary Perspectives attended by the editors Dr Alice Finden, Dr Carlos Yebra López, Dr Tarela Ike, Dr Ugo Gaudino, and Dr Samwel Oando along with other contributors. On both days, we hosted an exhibit by Michael Livesey (University of Sheffield) showcasing a visual artwork display comprising photographs/data visualisations of the so-called 'peace walls' in Belfast. The conference concluded with a zine workshop on Security and Resistance by Lilly Barker (Nottingham Trent University).