This Peace Brief examines the relationship between radicalization and institutional dysfunctions in Bangladesh and addresses how strengthening political and social institutions, and making them more inclusive, can help prevent violent extremism and related conflict dynamics. Geoffrey Macdonald, PhD is a consultant at the United States Institute of Peace.
Despite government denials, Bangladesh has increasingly become fertile ground for al-Qa`ida and the Islamic State. Both groups have taken advantage of an upsurge in Islamist militancy in the country over anger at the execution of Islamist political leaders in 2013, and both hope to expand their footprint there by building…
Bangladesh has attracted international media attention for heightened militant activities in 2015, particularly after a series of killings of bloggers by a local militant group allegedly associated with Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and after murders of foreign nationals, responsibility of which was claimed by the Islamic State…
On December 17, 2015, representatives from Libya’s rival governments in Tobruk and Tripoli signed a UN-brokered agreement in Morocco, pledging to form a unity government within 40 days. The international community heralded the agreement as a new beginning for Libya, and expressed hope for the country’s future. On January 19,…
Using the Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) as a case study, we explore the process by which children evolve from novice recruits to fully fledged members of a violent extremist movement. From currently available data, we propose six stages of child socialization to ISIS—Seduction, Schooling, Selection, Subjugation, Specialization,…
Bataclan. San Bernadino. One need not read any further to understand how radicalization is crucial to counterterrorism and national security. Some states have implemented counter-radicalization strategies to cull terrorism at its root. These tactics fall within two broad groups: the North American method, which emphasizes behavioral radicalization, and the European…
In 2012, the Government decided on the preparation of the first national programme of measures – an Action Plan – for the prevention of violent extremism. Now the Plan has been revised. In accordance with international best practices the prevention of violent radicalisation refers to the specific measures focused on…
Preventing violent extremism is a priority of Swiss foreign policy. Switzerland stands for dialogue and a culture of compromise, all-embracing solutions, democracy, human rights, humanitarian principles, the rule of law and the force of justice. Preventing violent extremism lies at the point where peace, security, sustainable development, the rule of…
This paper is the eighth publication in the Countering Lone-Actor Terrorism (CLAT) project, which aims to improve understanding of, and responses to, the phenomenon of (potentially) violent lone actors through analysis of comprehensive data on cases from across Europe. The eighteen-month project is co-funded by the Prevention of and Fight…
This is the Somali National Counter-Terrorism Plan, for 2016.
The publication is a collection of short essays from various perspectives reflecting on the questions of what roles women play in terrorism, violent extremism and efforts to prevent and counter violent extremism.
The overarching goal of this research is to deepen understandings of underlying structural causes of radicalization in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also to discern the individual social and psychological factors that drive radicalization. Since September 11th, and especially with the rise of ISIL, this has been a growing feld of…
