Journal for Deradicalization
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‘Muhajirun’ from Austria. Why they left to join ISIS and why they don’t return.
Get PDFAfter the proclamation of the so-called Islamic State in June 2014 thousands of Europeans, including hundreds of Austrian residents, went to fight and live with ISIS or other extremist groups in Syria or Iraq. Austria is one of the European countries with the highest per-capita share of foreign fighters. The article gives a broad overview of the situation in Austria: Who are the different groups relevant in this field? How did young people who grew up in Austria become radicalised, and what is their current status? The data from two Austrian commissioned research projects and one EU-funded project are supplemented by the findings of recent research in northern Syria focusing on the current situation of Austrian foreign fighters and their families and supporters in the region
Harassment and Threats, Concern and Fear: the Experiences of Local Politicians in Ludvika, Sweden
Get PDFSweden has a history of a stable party system, democracy, consensus, welfare and few labour market conflicts. But after the election in 2014, the Ludvika municipality in Sweden found itself in an unusual situation: a representative from a neo-Nazi party – the Nordic Resistance Movement (NRM) – held a seat in its local political council. The party, and its movement, are the most prominent representative of violent white supremacy in Sweden, known not least for its fear-mongering tactics. Between November 1, 2017 and August 31, 2018, Dalarna University conducted a study using questionnaires and interviews within the Ludvika municipality to investigate the sense of safety felt by elected representatives of both the political council and the municipal boards. An anticipated result might have been that the NRM presence in the municipal assembly has strongly impacted on the politicians’ sense of safety – and also has increased political tensions. To a certain extent, this proved to be the case. However, Ludvika politicians must also contend with other sources of and reasons for mockery, harassment and threats: predominantly “angry citizens” due to controversial decisions, personal conflicts within established parties relating to the choice of personnel, and a contempt for in particular some extreme right wing political opinions.. The results regarding the sense of safety and vulnerability are very much in line with national figures. Even overall, Swedish politicians at the national, regional and local levels are aware of pressure from right-wing extremists, who distribute propaganda that often incorporates blame, an exposing of individuals and violent language. The result from Ludvika should therefore be seen as one of degree rather than of type, as the situation is worse here than in other municipal councils in Sweden. A conclusion that can be drawn from the study is that the political debate is heading in an increasingly antagonistic direction, where ideological adversaries are regarded more as enemies than as legitimate opponents. While in the long term this can pose a threat to democracy, positive counter-responses were found in Ludvika that can serve to support the democratic position
Research Note: ‘How Can I Get Them Offstage?’ – Critical Reflections on a Researcher’s Approach to Qualitative Data Collection with Social Workers Involved in Preventing Violent Extremism in Norway
Get PDFResearching sensitive topics, such as individuals about whom concern for radicalisation and violent extremism has been raised, demands a thoroughly contemplated approach. This is necessary for establishing trust with and accessing the research project’s target group. As many projects are directed at professionals involved in the efforts to prevent violent extremism, and some of these workers have been found to struggle with this issue, the question should also be raised of how to approach these individuals in research. This paper draws on my experience from fieldwork throughout 2018, during which qualitative research was carried out through 17 in-depth interviews and two focus group interviews with experienced social workers involved in preventing radicalisation and violent extremism in Norway. This reflection started early in the data collection from the observation of participants being ‘onstage’ during interviews, appearing disconnected from their story. Applying Fook and Gardner’s framework for critically reflective practice throughout the research process brought forth insights into researcher behaviour and sensitivity. ‘Warming them up’ and the ‘specificity of practitioner experience’ emerged as methodological themes from this reflective analytical process. These findings share commonalities with sensitive client work and research targeting individuals at risk of radicalisation; the researcher must be patient and thoughtful before he or she starts digging. The responsibility for the lack of rich descriptions therefore belongs to the researcher, who must cast a critical eye on his or her own research practice. In addition, asking specific questions raises concerns about the findings’ validity if probing and closed-ended questions are not balanced with open-ended ones
Prevent Tragedies: A case study in female-targeted strategic communications in the United Kingdom’s Prevent counter-terrorism policy
Get PDFWhile international revolutionary groups have frequently attracted international support, the declaration of the caliphate by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2014 and the subsequent growth of foreign fighters leaving their home countries to fight in Syria created a significant concern for Western governments. The United Kingdom was a major source of this foreign fighter flow, becoming a significant concern in 2014 and by 2015 accounting for some 700-760 fighters with the majority affiliated to the Islamic State and with a growing amount of females joining the group. While Prevent, the preventative pillar of the United Kingdom’s counter-terrorism strategy, was in 2014 already well accustomed to intervening in cases of male radicalization, it was not well prepared to handle female radicalization. This article provides a case study of the UK police response to the above concerns. In 2014 the Metropolitan Police and Counter-Terrorism Policing HQ began work on the Prevent Tragedies campaign, a strategic communications campaign. The campaign sought to encourage women, primarily mothers, to talk with younger women and discourage them from travelling to Syria. It also sought to make these women aware of the government’s Prevent policy, and to encourage them to submit reports to Prevent should be they concerned about the radicalization of persons close to them. Using documents obtained by Freedom of Information requests, and material gathered from the Prevent Tragedies website, this article explores how the idea of the “mother” as a nurturing and caring subject was utilized to try and counter female radicalization. It analyses how stereotypical ideas about pacific femininity and female political naivety were utilized to further the narrative of “groomed” women who were unaware of the brutal nature of Islamic state, and therefore could not have ideologically supported the organization when they travelled to Syria. While this undermines ideological support for Islamic State, it simultaneously draws on – and exposes – a current in U.K. counter-terrorism that underplays female radicalism, hampering our full understanding of gendered radicalization
Youth Resilience to Violent Extremism: An Evaluation of a Mentorship Intervention in Kenya
Get PDFIn response to the rise in extremist violence within Kenya, the Strengthening Resilience to Violent Extremism Programme was launched to counter the threat of violent extremism (VE) and prevent the radicalisation and recruitment of vulnerable youth. To assess the extent to which the Programme was able to achieve its objective, an evaluation of the Programme's key component – a mentoring and counselling-based project intervention, was conducted between 2017-19. In total, 347 youth, identified as being 'at risk', were included as part of the evaluation. This paper presents the principal findings of the evaluation and assesses the effect of the intervention on three key dimensions: the youth's attitudes, their social networks and levels of awareness of the risks of VE and the strategies for countering violent extremist activities. Using logit models and controlling for any confounding effects of socio-demographic differences, the evaluation finds evidence of improvements in the at-risk groups' knowledge of the risks posed by VE groups as well as the strategies for countering VE. However, mixed results were noted in the groups' attitudes towards violence, their levels of self-confidence and the extent and diversity of their social networks. Across two of the dimensions, more significant effects were also observed among 'at-risk' groups who were employed versus those who were unemployed. Some variability in outcomes was also found among at-risk groups who had been exposed to the intervention for longer compared to those who had been in the Project for shorter periods. Taken together, these findings underscore the need for extending the Project's existing engagements and incorporating a nuanced and sustained approach for engendering more long-term change. The analytical insights presented also offer critical lessons for designing and implementing similar interventions in Kenya and in the wider global context
The Emergence of Transnational Street Militancy: A Comparative Case Study of the Nordic Resistance Movement and Generation Identity
Get PDFStreet-based militant groups on the far right usually emerge within nation-states and only rarely operate transnationally. However, over the past decade, there have been two notable exceptions to this rule in Europe: The Nordic Resistance Movement, originating in Sweden; and Generation Identity, originating in France. Both groups are regularly described as some of the most influential of their kind but have received limited academic attention and are often portrayed rather crudely by the media. Thus, to inform future research, policy-making, and preventive work, this article outlines the ideological foundation of each group, traces their national origins and transnational evolution, compares their ideologies, strategies, organization, and types of action, and discusses how government and local authorities can deal with militant protest groups in a way that discourages violence and extremism, while at the same time safeguarding liberal democratic principles
Femme Fatale: Analyzing the Visual Representation of the Radical(ized) Woman in Danish Media
Get PDFIs there a visual discursive space for the radical(ized) woman or is she invisible? The following paper develops an analytical framework to further the understanding of the interplay between gender and security in radicalization studies. Drawing on visuality research and feminism in security studies, this paper provides a new perspective on the visual representation of female agency. The agency of the violent extremist woman is, for the most part, visually (re)constructed through or with a masculine gaze - as defiance, allure and/or coercion. We argue that the connotations of images are shaped within and by an intervisual and intertextual dynamic that (re)produces understandings of female violence as pathologized, victimized and/or sensationalized and contingent on/in relation to male politics. Using this framework, we analyze the interplay between a textual and visual representation of Hasna Ait Boulahcen labeled ‘The first Europan female suicide bomber’ in Danish media following a violent incident in Paris in 2015. Our analysis illustrates how gendered markers of identity continuously reproduce what is possible in securitized discursive realms insofar that a process of Othering Hasna is gendered. This gendered discursive approach contributes to the understanding of deradicalization by underscoring the role of Silencing and Othering of violent extremist women in shaping and narrowing the discursive realm of political opportunities. The paper thus highlights the role of media representations in limiting the discursive possibilities within and therefore efficacy of deradicalization research, policy and programs
Disengaging and Rehabilitating High-Value Detainees: A Small-Scale Qualitative Study
Get PDFIn an era of international terrorism, interviews with high-value detainees may have the dual purpose of extracting useful information and of disengagement. We conducted a small-scale, qualitative study using in-depth, individual interviews with 11 experienced interviewers in the Southeast Asia region and Australia, in order to provide insights into the types of interviewing strategies employed in terrorist rehabilitation. Our findings highlight the potential efficacy of creating a physically comfortable and relaxed interview setting, and of using interview strategies that focus on rapport-building, principles of social persuasion and elements of procedural justice, along with a patient and flexible stance to questioning. We suggest that interviewers performing rehabilitation interviews with high-value detainees ought to be trained to use the social approach to interviewing
Child’s Play: Cooperative Gaming as a Tool of Deradicalization
Get PDFResearch in the field of countering violent extremism (CVE) has grown significantly in the last few decades. This research project contributes to the CVE literature by studying narratives as tools of reflections on self-identity designed intentionally within gaming exercises to help contextualize and account for as much environmental complexity as possible. This paper provides theoretical understandings of narratives (and their role in our lives), discusses narratives as they relate to violent extremist ideologies, and proposes how narrative reflections may serve as a deradicalization tool within cooperative games. Additionally, this article highlights elements of narrative reflection within current CVE resources and provides a list of exercises (games) that can be used in the field to promote narrative reflections
‘Many Sisters Wish They Were Men’: Gendered Discourse and Themes in pro-ISIS Online Communities
Get PDFThough official Islamic State propaganda maintained narratives about women and the appropriate societal roles they were expected to fill, unofficial online content and behavioral patterns of online supporters both amplified and strayed from the official party line. Excellent scholarship has focused on gender dynamics and female membership in the Islamic State however, with the exception of Twitter studies, not as much research has been conducted in the online realm on other platforms. This paper hopes to contribute towards filling the gap by 1) examining 22 conversation exchanges in private pro-ISIS groups; some of which include interactions between male and female members and 2) analyzing prominent themes and narratives displayed in unofficial propaganda about women by addressing how these elements may or may not reflect the official narratives of the Islamic State. The findings are drawn from qualitative and quantitative data gathered from the online platforms of Hoop, Riot (Element), RocketChat, TamTam and Telegram which were selected for their wide popularity among ISIS supporters during a period ranging from 2018-2020