Ahmad Shah Mohibi
Ahmad Shah Mohibi is the founder of Rise to Peace, a U.S.-based nonprofit focused on countering terrorism through education and research. Born in Afghanistan amidst the Soviet-Afghan War, he grew up in the 1990s Afghan Civil War. At just 16, during Operation Enduring Freedom, he supported U.S. military and intelligence operations in Afghanistan—helping train the Afghan National Army and engaging in counterinsurgency operations.
He later served as an advisor with the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs at the U.S. Department of State and with Joint Task Force 435. There, he supported the prosecution of over 120 terrorism cases, working closely with the Afghan Attorney General’s Office and U.S. officials—including DOJ’s Michael R. Sherwin—to prosecute detainees involved in violent extremist activities, many of whom were young and radicalized.
After years of service in Afghanistan, Shah earned a Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) and moved to the United States—committed to continuing his mission as an “American proud.” As a federal employee, he worked on critical national security matters, political transitions, and U.S. foreign policy engagement. He also provided subject matter expertise to the U.S. Department of Defense and Pentagon leadership—traveling across multiple U.S. military bases to train senior military and civilian personnel deploying to conflict zones.
In 2016, Shah founded Rise to Peace to bring battlefield-tested knowledge into education, policy, and peacebuilding. The organization has since become a force for global impact—hosting more than 30 international conferences, training 500+ professionals from 34 countries, and publishing over 560 reports on terrorism, radicalization, and global security. Shah’s unparalleled ability to help, coach, and train—mentoring students, leaders, and soldiers with hard-earned wisdom—builds a network spanning governments and sectors, making Rise to Peace a peacebuilding powerhouse.
He holds academic degrees from George Mason University and George Washington University, focused on international relations, government, and national security. Since 2017, Shah has become a recognized political commentator, appearing on CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, Al Jazeera, and TRT World. His analysis of terrorism, war, and U.S. foreign policy has reached international audiences, with notable segments covering the Kabul airport evacuation. He is the author of Inside the Terrorist Mind: Exploring the Psychosocial Drivers of Violent Extremism and contributed to NATO’s volume From Territorial Defeat to Global ISIS: Lessons Learned (IOS Press), including his article The Afghan Peace Talks: Feasible or Futile? published in the Washington Examiner.
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