“Obviously it was happenstance, but it did change my opinion of human nature. I now saw war as a constant, akin to wildfires. They break out unless you work actively to prevent them. It’s an atavistic thing, buried deep in our DNA.”

American journalist and author

Richard Engel is an American journalist and author, best known as the chief foreign correspondent for NBC News. He was appointed to that role in 2008, after working as the network’s Middle East correspondent and Beirut bureau chief. Before joining NBC in 2003, Engel covered the opening of the Iraq War for ABC News as a freelance reporter based in Baghdad. His work has focused on international reporting, especially the Middle East and major conflict zones.