In a few words, can you tell us about yourself and how you found your way to the academic field?
I was born and raised in Jerusalem. My original career plan was to become a simultaneous translator, but following my military service in a military court in the West Bank I decided to study international law. I acquired an LLB and LLM at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. After graduation I joined the Ministry of Foreign Affair and served as a diplomat for many years. In the course of my work I participated in the negotiations with the Palestinians on the Interim Agreement, represented Israel in the UN General Assembly, and served in the Israeli embassy in New Delhi, India for two years. I left the foreign service and returned to academia for many reasons, one of which was that I found the law to be the most interesting and lasting element in foreign relations. I studied for a PhD in international law at the University of Cambridge, England, and the rest is history.
What is the main core of your research? Can you give an example or two? How is it related to cyber security?
One of may areas of interest is non-state actors in international law. Initially I researched (and still do) entities that resemble states but are not recognised as such. My interest has widened to other questions of the relations between states and non-states. Cyber security is an area that involves international law aspects, but where non-state actors are significant players. My research is on the relationship between states and non state actors, in particular the means of attributing (where appropriate) the conduct of a non-state actor to an actor.
Why did you choose this area over all others? Did your personal or professional background lead you to it?
My personal background is the direct reason for my having taken up international law During my military service I was exposed to the government and particularly legal system operating under the Israeli occupation. While I did not know it at the time, that system is governed by international law. When I was discharged I had the aspiration of bringing justice to the world…
Do you think that in this cyber age these issues are even more complex compared to other times in history? If so – in what ways?
In many respects the issues that we deal today are familiar, but their scale – volume, speed – are different because of cyber capacities. While this may seem to be merely a quantitative difference, it has qualitative implications that are new. For example, surveillance is not a new phenomenon. But the extent and pervasiveness which are possible today are. These developments require us to make moral choices that earlier we either need not have made, and entrenching them in the law.
After explaining the main core of your research, what do you think is the solution? What is the proper model for that? Is it applicable?
States and non-state actors are both categories of actors that are not going to disappear. We need to familiarize ourselves with the various ways in which they interact and create the appropriate legal nuances to address these relationships.
What is the next phase in your professional life?
Stay tuned!
What is your message to the public?
The cyber world sometimes gives us a feeling that we no longer have control. Maybe we have lost some of the control we were used to, but we can regain it in other ways. Don't lose hope!