Joost Hiltermann is Middle East Project Director for the International Crisis Group. Based in Amman, Jordan, Hiltermann manages a team of analysts conducting research in countries of the Middle East and writing policy-focused reports on the factors that increase the risk of and drive armed conflict. In the past he served as Executive Director of the Arms Division of Human Rights Watch and Director of the Iraq Documents Project, also at HRW. Prior to that he was Research Director at Al Haqq in Ramallah.

Hiltermann has published articles in the New York Times, the Boston Globe, and the Christian Science Monitor, among others. He is frequently interviewed by outlets including the BBC, CNN, the New York Times, and the Financial Times. Hiltermann holds a PhD in sociology from the University of California at Santa Cruz.