, published by the Century Foundation, a Corporation grantee, looks at a specific group of hybrid actors or “nonstate actors.” These armed entities sometimes operate in concert with the state and sometimes compete with it, represent “an enduring feature of the landscape in the Middle East and North Africa,” and act as possibly “the single greatest impediment to the reconstitution of state authority.”
The book develops the concept of the hybrid actor, explores case studies of armed groups and movements (like those of Hezbollah of Lebanon and the National Defense Forces of Syria), investigates the role of state sponsorship in the creation and evolution of these hybrid actors, and recommends how policymakers can use the hybrid concept to their benefit and incorporate these actors into their legal frameworks.