Richard Ghazal is IDC’s Executive Director. He is responsible for the organization’s strategic planning, the implementation of policy priorities, and advocacy initiatives in the legislative and executive branches of government. Richard is a retired U.S. Air Force Judge Advocate and intelligence officer. He has served as legal advisor to the Secretary of the Air Force, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, and federal criminal prosecutor. As an intelligence officer, Richard was the U.S. Air Force in Europe’s Chief of Levant political-military intelligence, with special focus on Hezbollah. As Mission Operations Commander, he commanded over 1,500 hours of intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) operations. Richard began his career in advocacy for Middle Eastern Christians in 2003, as a Syriac Universal Alliance delegate at the UN Human Rights Council, Geneva, Switzerland. He completed his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and philosophy at Rhode Island College, and is a distinguished graduate of the U.S. Air Force Intelligence Officer School. As an active duty Airman, Richard earned a Master of Arts degree in organizational leadership at Regent University, and Juris Doctorate at New England School of Law. Richard is an ordained Reader in the Syriac Orthodox Church, and speaks the Turoyo dialect of Aramaic.
