Josh Paul served for more than 11 years as director of the Office of Political-Military Affairs, responsible for U.S. defense diplomacy, security assistance, and arms transfers. In October 2023, he resigned from the State Department because of his disagreement with the Biden administration’s decision to rush lethal military assistance to Israel in its war against Gaza. He previously worked on security sector reform in both Iraq and the West Bank, with additional roles in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the U.S. Army Staff, and as a congressional aide to Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY). He is currently a Non-Resident Fellow at DAWN and received the Callaway 2023 award for civic courage.