Christina Foerch Saab

Christina Foerch Saab, a political scientist, journalist, and life coach

Saab is a political scientist, journalist, and life coach specializing in issues such as dealing with the past, violent extremism, and the reintegration of former fighters. Born and raised in West Germany during the Cold War, Saab became actively involved in the peace movement as a teenager in the 1980s. Her passion for international dialogue led her to attend the United World College (UWC). She later earned a diploma (equivalent to an M.A.) in Political Science from the Free University of Berlin, before embarking on a career in journalism.

In 2000, Christina received a scholarship to work as a journalist and documentary filmmaker in Lebanon, focusing on peace journalism. Following the Beirut street clashes in 2008, she dedicated her efforts to “Dealing with the Past” through the NGO Permanent Peace Movement. There, she led a six-year oral history project with youth, producing documentaries on Lebanon’s civil war aimed at breaking cycles of violence.

In 2014, Christina co-founded Fighters for Peace (FFP) alongside five former combatants of the Lebanese civil war. As the program director and international relations specialist at FFP, she works to promote peacebuilding, reconciliation, and addressing the legacies of conflict.

Saab also engages on national, regional, and international levels to advocate for arms control and peacebuilding. She has lobbied for the Arms Trade Treaty and has spoken at international conferences, including events at the UN headquarters in New York and Geneva, on peace in the MENA region, arms control, preventing violent extremism, and reconciliation processes. Christina’s work includes producing documentaries about former fighters and publishing articles and book chapters on topics like violent extremism and the reintegration of ex-combatants.

In addition to her political science degree, Saab holds certifications in Biography Work and Motivational Interviewing. These qualifications have supported her role as a life coach, where she helps former combatants in deradicalization and reintegration, as well as strengthens war victims. She is a member of the European-led Radicalization Awareness Network’s expert pool and serves on the advisory committee for preventing violent extremism at the University of Leeds. Saab is married and has one child.