Indonesian extremists have a long history of online activism, but links to the Islamic State (still better known in Indonesia by its former acronym ISIS) have raised questions about whether social media usage is significantly changing patterns of radicalisation and recruitment. The answer seems to be a qualified no, but…
Over the last two years, the Obama administration and Congress have promoted Countering Violent Extremism or “CVE” as a “soft” counterterrorism methodology designed to empower communities and build resilience to extremism. But CVE isn’t a new concept, and the flawed foundation on which these programs are built all but ensures…
Who would be the first to notice, and able to intervene, with individuals considering acts of violent extremism? Study 1 found evidence that those best positioned to notice early signs of individuals considering acts of violent extremism might be those individuals’ friends: perhaps more so than school counselors, clergy, or…
The Southeast Asia fighting unit of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), Katibah Nusantara (KN) continues to expand geographically within a year of its establishment. There are about 450 Indonesians and Malaysians, including children and women under fealty to ISIS in Iraq and Syria today. KN or Majmuah…
The purpose of this review is to offer a wide-ranging discussion of what causes violent extremism and how it develops and persists. Discussion of violent extremism is often fraught with assumptions and received wisdom that can potentially obscure underlying causes, with implications for government interventions and policy. This review therefore…
Link to the official UN Security Council Resolution 2242.
WORDE Specialists have developed a curriculum for teachers to guide students on using social media and other digital media in a responsible, respectful manner. The curriculum includes a teacher’s manual and a complementary multimedia PowerPoint presentation for each chapter, designed to inform students of potential threats associated with online activity…
At the Sixth Ministerial Plenary Meeting in New York on 27 September 2015, Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF) Ministers endorsed the launch of the GCTF’s Initiative to Address the Life Cycle of Radicalization to Violence (Life Cycle Initiative). As part of this new initiative, and in recognition of the complexity of…
Croatia’s National Strategy for the Prevention and Suppression of Terrorism aims to determine the strategic framework on counter-terrorism issues and to provide guidelines at the national level for upgrading existing and building new mechanisms and measures for preventing and combating terrorism. The strategy discuss national, transnational and international threats posed…
This Issue Paper is provided in support of the European Commission’s preparatory EU IT Forum, ‘Countering Violent Extremism: Online Communications’, held on 27 October 2015. The following questions are addressed: ?How do counter-narratives and alternative narratives1 play a role in prevention of radicalisation? ?What do successful counter-narrative and alternative narrative…
The report is an expansion of the July 2015 paper “The Virtual ‘Caliphate’: Understanding Islamic State’s Propaganda Strategy” and is based upon an exhaustive 30 day survey of Islamic State propaganda conducted across the Islamic month of Shawwal (17 July 2015 – 15 August 2015). The paper is a direct,…
This paper presents an overview of large-scale violence by Islamist extremists in key African countries. The paper builds on previous publications of the Institute for Security Studies on the nexus between development and conflict trends, and it seeks to provide an overview of the evolution of the associated terrorism through…
