LTC Rudolph Atallah

Rudolph Atallah is a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council's Africa Center. Before retiring in 2009 with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel after twenty-one years of service in the US Air Force, Atallah's military career included aviation, special operations, intelligence, and counterterrorism. In his last military posting, he served in the Office of the Secretary of Defense as Africa Counterterrorism Director (2003-2009), while concurrently holding positions as East Africa Director (2003-2007) and Country Director for Morocco and Tunisia (2007-2009). His responsibilities included advising the Secretary of Defense and other senior US officials on counterterrorism policy and strategy while serving as an adviser to the US Department of State and numerous US embassies across Africa.