One man's journey away from radicalisation
A short, fifteen minute radio interview of Hanif Qadir on his journey:http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode...o_Hanif_Qadir/
I have assumed the link will work beyond the UK.
Hanif returned from Afghanistan to London and with his brother set up a youth club in a "hot-spot" Waltham Forest, Active Change Foundation:http://www.activechangefoundation.org/
How Young German Men Are Lured into Jihad
Quote:
Young Muslim men in Germany are systematically trying to recruit their peers for jihad using sophisticated rhetoric and psychology and by targeting vulnerable youths who are searching for direction in life. Two men who have quit the scene tell their story to SPIEGEL, providing a rare look into a dangerous underground.
Link:http://www.spiegel.de/international/...-a-851393.html
There are those who argue the group involved are not Jihadists:
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recruiting young men for the Hamburg branch of the Islamist organization Hizb ut-Tahrir. The group has been banned in Germany since 2003, but its members are still active underground.
Nevertheless an interesting read and one that is largely conducted in private and without any electronic communication.
US-Somali community & CVE
A report published a few weeks ago 'Building Resilience to Violent Extremism Among Somali-Americans in Minneapolis-St. Paul'; link to summary:http://www.start.umd.edu/start/annou...ent.asp?id=406
I found the context discovered via interviewing far more interesting than the models used, especially:
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A large epidemiological survey conducted in Minneapolis‐St.Paul in 2004 found that 37% of Somali women and 25% of Somali men had been tortured....Another study...found that nearly half of Somali mothers were torture survivors; more than a quarter had no formal education; and 70% were single parents..
War on Terror: Radicalization and Expansion of the Threats
War on Terror: Radicalization and Expansion of the Threats
Entry Excerpt:
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Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
ICST (Pittsburgh) Project
Just an outlive via Twitter 'Pathways, Processes, Roles and Factors for Terrorist Disengagement, Re-engagement and Recidivism':http://www.icst.psu.edu/docs/1.Outli...ng.Outline.pdf
Countering Online Radicalization in America
A new report:
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Over the past five months, we have studied dozens of cases and spoken to leading experts and policymakers. The result is an extensive report that will be released by the Bipartisan Policy Center on Tuesday. Our conclusion is clear: Online radicalization is here to stay, and future terrorist attacks against the homeland will involve individuals who have been radicalized — at least in part — on the Internet.
The White House agrees with us. In its 2011 counter-radicalization strategy, it promised to "develop a ... comprehensive strategy for countering and preventing violent extremism online." One year later, however, this still hasn't happened, and our first recommendation is for the administration to complete its work, make the strategy public and begin its implementation.
Link:http://www.politico.com/story/2012/1...84.html?hp=l10
Link to the report:http://www.politico.com/story/2012/1...84.html?hp=l10
I have skimmed through the report, which less than thirty pages; it has many good points and in places is IMHO rather weak.
There is a touch of "Big Brother" in some of the recommendations and several assumptions that all our enemies use electronic communications. Not to overlook a No. 151 Footnote:
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To our knowledge, there has not been a single terrorism prosecution in the United States in recent years that has not relied, to a greater or lesser extent, on defendants’ personal electronic communications.
Countering Radicalization in Europe
A new, so far un-read ICSR report on four countries experience, namely UK, Netherlands, Norway and Denmark:
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Since the mid-2000s, European countries have developed counter-radicalization strategies, seeking to de-radicalize committed militants and preventing the radicalization of vulnerable populations. What do these strategies entail? Where do they differ, and what do they have in common? How successful have they been?.....the most comprehensive and systematic report to date about counter-radicalization policy and practice. It sums up the experiences of four European countries, outlines key challenges and areas of convergence, and describes the lessons that have been learned in this new area of policymaking.
Link:http://icsr.info/2012/12/icsr-report...ion-in-europe/
US Strategy for CVE: An Assessment
A short, excellent article; full title being 'U.S. Strategy for Countering Violent Extremism: An Assessment' by Clint Watts (aka CWOT) and Will McCants:http://www.fpri.org/articles/2012/12...ism-assessment
They end with:
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we ask the U.S. government to take a hard look at the number of people who support terrorist groups. If their numbers are small and if their violent acts are few, a traditional law enforcement approach might be all that is required. We know that CVE is viewed by some as a more holistic approach to terrorism. But the downside of holistic approaches is that they can do a whole lot of harm and consume a disproportionate amount of resources. If CVE is required, identify sympathizers and supporters, select a limited set of actions, execute them through a few agencies and measure their effectiveness against defined objectives. Such measures might prevent a few people from pursuing a bad course in life, and if the measures fail, law enforcement knows what to do.
Interesting to note how the UK experience in this field has had so much effect, a classic case of "selling" a bad product.
A Digger's journey & rebound
A curious article from a previously unknown blogsite, but one writer is known to me, so I followed a link to find this on an Australian convert who was radicalised:http://extremisproject.org/2013/01/t...ist-extremism/
I use curious as only one person was interviewed.
It concludes:
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Roche’s case also highlights that religion is not necessarily the primary motivator for violent extremism. Roche’s jihadist activities were less a result of his conversion and commitment to Islam and more a factor of his commitment to the group: it was not religious beliefs that prompted and sustained Roche’s level of activity but group loyalty and the personal benefits associated with group membership.
Roche’s trajectory from ‘moderate’ Muslim convert to active JI member suggests that individuals are not necessarily predisposed to radicalisation by virtue of their religious beliefs. Rather, sustained exposure to extremist ideologies and close interaction with radical social groups are the key drivers of radicalisation.
The Canadians add something
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Violent Canadian extremists are more likely to be citizens than immigrants, according to a “secret” study by the federal intelligence service. And these radicals tend to be relatively young and well-integrated members of society.
These findings appear in “A Study of Radicalization: The Making of Islamist Extremists in Canada Today,” a 21-page study released to The Globe and Mail under the Access to Information Act.
Link to CSIS paper (heavily redacted, more like reading an incomplete jigsaw):http://www.theglobeandmail.com/incom...dicals_001.pdf and press story:http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...rticle8149887/
Looking for knowledge start here
A seventy page long Dutch report (in English) by Alex Schmid 'Radicalisation, De-Radicalisation, Counter-Radicalisation: A Conceptual Discussion and Literature Review'.
In summary:
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Based on an in-depth literature review, ICCT Visiting Research Fellow Dr. Alex P. Schmid explores the terms ‘radicalisation’, ‘de-radicalisation’ and ‘counter-radicalisation’ and the discourses surrounding
them. Much of the literature on radicalisation focuses on Islamist extremism and jihadist terrorism. This is also reflected in this Research Paper which explores the relationship between radicalisation, extremism and terrorism. Historically, ‘radicalism’ – contrary to ‘extremism’ – does not necessarily have negative connotations, nor is it a synonym for terrorism. Schmid argues that both extremism and radicalism can only be properly assessed in relation to what is mainstream political thought in a given period. The paper further explores what we know well and what we know less well about radicalisation. It proposes to explore radicalisation not only on the micro-level of ‘vulnerable individuals’ but also on the meso-level of the ‘radical milieu’ and the macro-level of ‘radicalising public opinion and political parties’. The author reconceptualises radicalisation as a process that can occur on both sides of conflict dyads and challenges several widespread assumptions. The final section examines various counter-radicalisation and deradicalisation programmes. It concludes with a series of policy recommendations.
I went straight to the conclusion, which is worth reading and this point really need to be hammered home, hence my emphasis:
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....a goal which has not been reached despite more than ten years of CT efforts, is the formulation of an effective counter-narrative to the single narrative of al-Qaeda and its affiliates which claim that Islam is under attack and defensive Jihad against the West is the obligation of every Muslim.
Link:http://www.icct.nl/download/file/ICC...March-2013.pdf
De-rad doesn't always work
The effectiveness of official, state sponsored de-radicalization schemes is rarely in the public domain and even more so when it is Singapore, which has had a comprehensive scheme in place for the individuals, with family support:
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Susan Sim, noted security analyst from Singapore recently quoted the case of Yazid Sufaat, originally arrested and sentenced for harbouring two 9/11 hijackers in Malaysia prior to the actual attack. He was again arrested in February this year for recruiting Malayans for suicide missions in Syria although he was considered "rehabilitated" after his prison term.
Link:http://www.sunday-guardian.com/analy...-hinder-terror
It takes more than a beard
One of the better comments on the, assumed, radicalization of the two suspects by Daveed Gartenstein-Ross:http://thewasat.wordpress.com/2013/0...adicalization/
Why this was written:
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I wanted to introduce these radicalization models because they will help us to think about the points that follow. But my goal in this entry is not to discuss the merits or shortcomings of existing radicalization models. Rather, I want to outline some aspects of this case that strike me as significant.
This point is often lost in post-attack discussions:
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.. it is worth noting that there is a difference between someone holding extremist views and someone being likely to undertake violence.
The author's own website:http://www.daveedgr.com/ and on Wikipedia:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daveed_Gartenstein-Ross