A master’s degree in English at Reichman University’s RRIS
First-Hand Exposure
To Middle East regional security issues
The Anna Sobol Levy Foundation provides fellowships to U.S. citizens who are college graduates to pursue a master’s degree in English at the prestigious Raphael Recanati International School (RRIS) of Reichman University (opens in a new tab), located near Tel Aviv. Historically, future U.S. military officers from ROTC programs have been the backbone of the program. We also accept civilian students who are committed to careers in the Foreign Service or the various national security and intelligence agencies. Reichman University is also home to the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT) (opens in a new tab), one of the world’s foremost academic institutes on counter-terrorism.
The Fellowship
The Fellowship covers tuition (up to $18,000 per year). Levy Fellows must enroll in one of the four following programs:
Counter-Terrorism & Intelligence
MA in Government1 Year
Diplomacy & Conflict Studies
MA in Government1 Year
Human-Computer Interaction
MA
Machine Learning & Data Science
MSc2 Years
By the Numbers
140
Fellows since 1990
80+
U.S. Colleges & Universities
12+
Marine Corps Officers
8+
Attained O-5 or Higher
Israel & U.S. Security
A rotating look at the security landscape our Fellows study firsthand.
Israel & U.S. Security
The Iron Dome
The Iron Dome is Israel's short-range aerial defense system. It has proven highly effective in intercepting rockets launched against Israel by Hamas and Hezbollah.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The F-35I “Adir”
The F-35I "Adir" is Israel's modified version of the U.S. F-35A fighter jet. Israel has reportedly produced removable conformal fuel tanks to extend the fighter's effective range.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
Jericho III
Jericho III is Israel’s intermediate-range ballistic missile. It has a range of 3,000 to 4,000 miles and a payload of 1,000 kg.
Israel Aerospace Industries · CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The Elbit Hermes 900
The Elbit Hermes 900 is Israel's medium-size, long-endurance drone. It can fly for 30 hours and reach a maximum altitude of 30,000 feet.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
Dolphin-Class Submarines
The Israeli navy operates five Dolphin class submarines, which are reportedly able to launch cruise missiles.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
Compulsory Military Service
Military service in Israel is compulsory at age 18 for most Jewish citizens and some others. Men generally serve 32 months and women serve 24 months.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
U.S.–Israel Joint Exercises
Austere Challenge, Juniper Cobra, Juniper Oak, and Juniper Falcon are code names for a series of combined exercises between Israel and the United States. Juniper Oak in 2023 focused on large-scale strike and air superiority.
IDF Spokesperson's Unit photographer · CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The Medal of Valor
Israel’s highest military decoration is the Medal of Valor. It has been awarded 40 times since the establishment of Israel in 1948.
Dan Reisinger · CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The Israeli Air Force
The Israeli Air Force (IAF) operates nearly 300 fighter jets and nearly 50 attack helicopters, along with other types of aircraft including trainers, tankers, transports, drones, and others.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The F-16I “Sufa”
The F-16I "Sufa" is Israel's modified version of the U.S. F-16 fighter jet. It features a two-seat configuration and is often fitted with removable conformal fuel tanks.
Image: Wikimedia Commons / Major Ofer, Israeli Air Force רס"ן עופר, חיל האוויר הישראלי (CC BY 4.0)
Israel & U.S. Security
Iron Beam
Iron Beam is Israel’s high-energy laser weapons system for air defense. It entered service in December 2025. The system features 100 kW class laser power and adaptive optics.
Spokesperson and Public Relations Division of the Ministry of Defense · CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
Site 512
Site 512 is the U.S. ballistic missile early warning radar installation on Har Qeren in Israel’s Negev region.
United States Army Institute of Heraldry · Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
Krav Maga
Krav Maga is the IDF-developed martial art for hand-to-hand combat. It features instinctive movements and aggressive counterattacks. It uses a colored-belt grading system based on the Judo ranking system.
Senior Airman Brittany Bateman · Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The Israel Space Agency
The Israel Space Agency has several satellite programs for tactical intelligence, communications, commercial high-resolution imagery, and scientific research. In 2019, a non-governmental organization (SpaceIL) unsuccessfully attempted a lunar landing with the Beresheet spacecraft.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
IDF Infantry Rifles
The IDF’s main infantry rifles are the IWI Tavor X95 and the Colt M4A1 carbine. Both use the NATO standard 5.56x45mm cartridge.
Dr. Zachi Evenor · CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The Merkava Tank
Israel’s main tank is the Merkava. It weighs 65 tons, carries a 120 mm smoothbore main gun, and has a top off-road speed of 34 mph. The latest version of the Merkava is called Barak.
Israel Defense Forces Spokesperson’s Unit · CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The Hebrew Language
Hebrew is Israel’s official language, though Arabic also has special status under Israeli law. Most Israelis can speak English.
Image: Pixabay
Israel & U.S. Security
Ze’ev Jabotinsky
Ze'ev Jabotinsky was a right-wing Zionist. He was a fierce advocate for Jewish national self-determination and strong military self-defense. With Joseph Trumpeldor, he co-founded the Jewish Legion of the British Army in WWI.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
Joseph Trumpeldor
Joseph Trumpeldor was a Russian-born Zionist and soldier. He served in the Russo-Japanese War and later the Jewish Legion in World War I. He helped organize Jewish self-defense in Palestine and was killed in the Battle of Tel Hai in 1920, becoming a national hero and symbol of Zionist self-sacrifice.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The Yellow Badge
The Yellow Badge was a symbol that Jews have been required to wear at many times throughout history starting in the 8th Century. The most recent instance was the Yellow Star symbol that Jews were required to wear in Germany and Axis-controlled Europe during WWII.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
Israel’s War of Independence
Israel’s War of Independence started in May 1948 when Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon attacked it just hours before it came into existence with the end of the British Mandate in Palestine.
Mr. Edward J. Krasnoborski and Mr. Frank Martini, Department · Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The Size of Israel
Israel is a small country. It is roughly the size of New Jersey. It measures 263 miles North to South and 71 miles East to West at its widest. The population is around 9.5 million.
NASA · Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The Knesset
Israel’s government features a unitary parliament called the Knesset. The Knesset has 120 members and a system of proportional representation. The prime minister is the head of the government. There is a president (head of state) with mostly ceremonial functions.
Image: Government of Israel (Government source)
Israel & U.S. Security
Israel’s Legal System
Israel’s legal system is originally based on the British common law tradition but also embodies notable influences from civil law and religious law. There is no written constitution, but the country’s 13 “Basic Laws” effectively serve that function.
Image: Supreme Court of Israel (Government source)
Israel & U.S. Security
Yad Vashem
Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center, is entrusted with Holocaust commemoration, documentation, research and education remembering the six million Jews murdered by the Nazis in WWII.
Unknown author · Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
Moshe Dayan
Moshe Dayan was one of Israel’s most famous generals. He served as the IDF Chief of Staff (1953–1958) and as Minister of Defense during the 1967 Six-Day War.
IDF Spokesperson's Unit photographer · CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The Six-Day War
The June 1967 Six-Day War started with an Israeli preemptive strike against Egyptian forces in response to Egypt's closing of the Straits of Tiran. By June 11, the conflict had come to include Jordan and Syria. In the end, Israel gained control over the Golan Heights, the Sinai Peninsula, the Gaza Strip, and the West Bank.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The Liberation of the Western Wall
On June 7, 1967, during the Six-Day War, IDF paratroopers advanced through the Old City of Jerusalem toward the Temple Mount and the Western Wall, bringing Jerusalem’s holiest site under Israel’s control. Defense Minister Moshe Dayan went to the Western Wall and issued a statement indicating Israel’s peaceful intent and pledging to preserve religious freedom for all faiths in Jerusalem.
Image: Wikimedia Commons / Golasso (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Israel & U.S. Security
The Yom Kippur War
The Yom Kippur War occurred in October 1973 when Egypt and Syria launched coordinated surprise attacks. Israel managed to survive with considerable help from U.S. through Operation Nickel Grass. The conflict had lasting influence on U.S. military doctrine.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
Major Non-NATO Ally
The U.S. has designated Israel a “Major Non-NATO Ally.” The U.S. has provided generous military assistance to Israel for many decades and it has long been U.S. policy to help Israel maintain a “qualitative military edge” over its potential adversaries.
Image: Pixabay
Israel & U.S. Security
Israel’s Thirteenth Basic Law
Israel’s thirteenth Basic Law states that Israel is the historic homeland of the Jewish People. It provides that Israel is the nation-state of the Jewish People. Although another of the Basic Laws addresses human rights, the thirteenth Basic Law has been criticized as not providing for equality and non-discrimination.
Image: Bank of Israel (1958 ½-lira note, obverse)
Israel & U.S. Security
Master Sergeant Roddie Edmonds
When German guards ordered U.S. POWs to identify and separate Jewish soldiers in January 1945, Master Sergeant Roddie Edmonds refused, telling the captors “We are all Jews” and instructing all men to step forward, saving the lives of more than 200 Jewish comrades. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.
Photo courtesy of Chris Edmonds (via Wikipedia)
Israel & U.S. Security
The 1983 Beirut Barracks Bombing
On October 23, 1983, the terrorist organization Islamic Jihad used two truck bombs to attack buildings in Beirut housing U.S. and French members of the Multinational Force in Lebanon, killing 241 American servicemen and 58 French paratroopers.
Unknown · Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
September 11, 2001
On September 11, 2001, Al Qaeda terrorists hijacked four U.S. airliners. They crashed two into the World Trade Center towers in New York and one into the Pentagon. The fourth crashed in Pennsylvania. Nearly 3,000 Americans were killed in the attacks and many more died later from 9/11-related illnesses.
Flickr user TheMachineStops (Robert J. Fisch) · CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
October 7, 2023
On October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorists from the Gaza Strip launched an attack against Israel, killing at least 1,219 Israelis and taking 250 hostages. It was the worst antisemitic massacre since the Holocaust.
Ecrusized, influenced by user Rr016. · CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The 2004 Madrid Bombing
On March 11, 2004, a group including terrorists from Morocco, Syria, and Algeria executed a series of coordinated bombings of the commuter train system in Madrid, Spain. The attack killed 193 people and injured roughly another 2,500.
Ramón Peco (desdetasmania) · CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The 1983 U.S. Embassy Bombing (Beirut)
On April 18, 1983, a suicide bomber from the Islamic Jihad Organization drove a van packed with 2,000 pounds of explosives into the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, collapsing the central facade and killing 63 people.
Image: U.S. Department of State (Government source)
Israel & U.S. Security
The Shabak (Shin Bet)
The Shabak (or Shin Bet) is Israel’s internal security and counterintelligence service.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
The International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT)
The International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT) conducts research, policy analysis, and training to inform and support governments, security agencies, and the public on counterterrorism and homeland security challenges. It also convenes conferences, publishes threat assessments and policy reports, and provides expert consultations to shape prevention, response, and strategic policymaking.
Image: Pixabay
Israel & U.S. Security
The Mossad
The Mossad is Israel’s vaunted spy agency. It has executed many daring and highly effective operations. Examples (allegedly) include the 1960 capture of Adolf Eichmann, the 1976 rescue of 102 hostages from Entebbe Airport, the 2009 Stuxnet cyber attack on uranium enrichment centrifuges in Iran, the 2024 exploding pager and walkie-talkie attacks in Lebanon, and the 2025 clandestine operations to destroy Iranian weapons systems during the twelve-day Iran-Israel War.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
Talking Counter-terrorism
Israel's counter-terrorism strategy has included the construction of a controversial security fence to prevent infiltration of terrorists (mainly suicide bombers) into Israeli cities and towns. The security fence has been effective at reducing certain types of terrorist violence. However, it has sparked heated controversy by including certain areas captured by Israel in 1967 on the Israeli side of the fence.
Kyle Taylor · CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Israel & U.S. Security
Why Israel Dominates in Cyber Security
Few nations rival Israel's standing in cybersecurity. A small country facing constant threats on its borders has turned necessity and self-reliance into a national strength, building world-leading expertise in network defense, threat detection, and secure software. The same hard-won, hands-on experience that guards Israel in the physical world has made it a global center for the technologies that protect the digital one.
Image: Pixabay
Israel & U.S. Security
FBI Counterterrorism Division
The Counterterrorism Division is the arm of the Federal Bureau of Investigation responsible for investigating and disrupting terrorist threats within the United States. It coordinates the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Forces, which unite federal, state, and local agencies in a shared effort to detect and prevent terrorist activity.
Federal Bureau of Investigation · Public domain (U.S. Government work)
Israel & U.S. Security
State Dept. Bureau of Counterterrorism
The Bureau of Counterterrorism leads the U.S. Department of State's efforts to counter terrorism abroad through diplomacy. It coordinates international counterterrorism policy, builds partnerships with foreign governments, and administers programs that strengthen partner nations' ability to prevent and respond to terrorism.
U.S. Department of State · Public domain (U.S. Government work)
Israel & U.S. Security
National Counterterrorism Center
Established after the September 11 attacks, the National Counterterrorism Center is the U.S. government's central organization for integrating and analyzing terrorism intelligence. It draws together information from across the intelligence community to support national counterterrorism strategy, operations, and planning.
U.S. National Counterterrorism Center · Public domain (U.S. Government work)
Israel & U.S. Security
Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
The Combating Terrorism Center is an academic institution at the United States Military Academy at West Point. It conducts research and educates cadets and national-security professionals on terrorism and counterterrorism, and publishes the widely read CTC Sentinel.
Combating Terrorism Center, West Point · Public domain (U.S. Government work)
Israel & U.S. Security
CIA Counterterrorism Mission Center
The Counterterrorism Mission Center coordinates the Central Intelligence Agency's work to identify and disrupt terrorist threats to the United States and its interests overseas, integrating intelligence collection and analysis focused on terrorist organizations.
Central Intelligence Agency · Public domain (U.S. Government work)
Israel & U.S. Security
U.S. Treasury FinCEN
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network is a bureau of the U.S. Department of the Treasury that protects the financial system from illicit use. It counters money laundering and terrorist financing by collecting and analyzing financial intelligence and administering the nation's anti-money-laundering laws.
U.S. Dept. of the Treasury (FinCEN) · Public domain (U.S. Government work)
Israel & U.S. Security
Countering Violent Extremism Task Force
The Countering Violent Extremism Task Force was an interagency body that coordinated U.S. government efforts to prevent radicalization to violence. It brought together the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, and other partners to support community-based prevention programs.
U.S. Government · Public domain (U.S. Government work)
Ready To Make a Difference?
Start your ASL Fellowship application through our rolling admissions, or reach out with any questions. We would be glad to hear from you.
