Osman Tariq

Graduate Research Assistant

Extremism in Religion

Mr. Tariq is currently a PhD candidate at Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution, George Mason University. My research interest is Extremism in Religion, while the topic of my dissertation is Evolution of Extremism in Religion in 20th-Century Afghanistan.

He holds an MA in Governance and Development from IDS-University of Sussex UK. Mr. Tariq was a senior advisor with the Religion and Peacebuilding team at USIP. He authored a book called Wasatiyah and E’tidaal the only Way towards Peacebuilding, Prevention and Resolution of Conflicts (in Dari and Pashto). He studied one-year professional Arabic course at Al-Azhar Egypt. He, recently, developed content for a nine-week training program on Women’s Rights Advocacy in Afghanistan. He conducted three rounds of training based on the contents developed on Women’s Rights Advocacy to a total of 210 women and girls inside Afghanistan in 2024 through virtual means. Prior to this training, he also developed a Peacebuilding, Conflict Prevention and Resolution training manual from religious perspective and a training manual/syllabus content on anti-corruption for imams and religious scholars in 2018. He facilitated several Training of Trainers (TOT) for Imams and female scholars, civil society activists as well as madrasas students and teachers in Afghanistan. Mr. Tariq was Deputy Minister Islamic Studies– for Ministry of Education and Deputy Minister for Policy and Planning at the Ministry of Hajj & Religious Affairs Afghanistan in 2020-2021. Mr. Tariq is a content developer, skilled trainer in Women’s rights and peace activist. Tariq worked as Sr. Advisor to High Peace Council Afghanistan funded by European Institute of Peace. He participated in several International Conferences/training. He was lead author of the Survey of the Afghan People (2010, 2011, 2012). He has published papers - Religious Institution Building in Afghanistan, Tribal Security System, and Community-based Security and Justice Systems in Afghanistan. Panelist at UNGA80th Official Side Event on September 26, 2025.

International Symposium on Hajj, Ankara, Turkey, April 2021 in this conference Tariq presented a research he conducted on the Hajj Processes in Afghanistan.

Contributed to the Documentary titled Rethink Afghanistan 2009 and talked about the new President Obama Strategy of Military Surge of in Afghanistan.