Nadia Oweidat is a Research Associate at the RAND Corporation. Since joining RAND, Ms. Oweidat has researched and written about Islamic extremism and counterterrorism strategies, the ideological evolution of al-Qaeda from 1984-1996, Salafist jihadi networks, jihadi strategies in Iraq, Iranian ascendancy in the Arab world, radicalization of Muslim youth, and democracy initiatives in Egypt. Ms. Oweidat, who was born and raised in Jordan, immigrated to the United States in 1999. Before joining RAND, Ms. Oweidat worked with the law firm of Motley Rice, LLC, supporting a number of cases to expose the financiers of al-Qaeda and other terrorist organizations. She has also worked with a government contractor to help develop software used to familiarize government agents with the Arabic language and culture as well as Muslim beliefs and practices. She is fluent in Arabic and English and proficient in French. Ms. Oweidat has a B.A. from the University of Jordan in Arabic and English languages, and an M.A. with two honors from the University of Wyoming in International Studies with a concentration on the Middle East.