Minnesota is home to the largest number of Somali immigrants in the United States. The largest concentration is located in Hennepin County. This community has overcome many challenges since they began immigrating to Minnesota in the 1990s. Minnesota offered a strong economy and immigration-friendly programs. Today, the Somali community is…

This paper examines the EU counterterrorism policy responses to the attacks in Paris, 7-9 January 2015. It provides an overview of the main EU-level initiatives that have been put forward in the weeks following the events and that will be discussed in the informal European Council meeting of 12 February…

This policy brief explores the history of cultural diplomacy and use of sports in conflict situations and draws on discussions at the May 2014 workshop, as well as desk research, to examine relevant lessons learned and good practices for integrating sports, arts, and culture into CVE efforts.

One of the difficult tasks in the social sciences is integrative, interdisciplinary work. There are many commonalities across the social sciences in method, theory, and policy. The study of gangs has a tradition in the U.S. that dates back nearly 100 years, with an emerging focus in Europe and other…

The National Action Plan of Portugal is based on the necessity of combating terrorism in all its forms respecting the European Convention on Human Rights. The objectives of the plan are: deterrence, prevention, protection, persecution, and response.

In this report, the United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI) documents instances of torture carried out by the United States in the past several years at various black-site prison locations throughout the world. It was at these sites where techniques such as “waterboarding, keeping a prisoner naked in a cold…

The Islamic State (IS) is attracting Central Asians to Syria and fostering new links among radicals within the region. Unless the five Central Asian governments develop a credible, coordinated counter-action plan, including improved security measures but also social, political and economic reforms, growing radicalism will eventually pose a serious threat…

This document summarizes the recommendations advanced by participants in an international workshop on “Supporting Civil Society Initiatives to Empower Women’s Roles in Countering Violent Extremism and Radicalization that Lead to Terrorism”, which was jointly organized by the OSCE Secretariat’s Transnational Threats Department and the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF) on 13-14…

In 2014, counter-terrorism is once again a major focus of national attention in Britain. A raft of new initiatives are being announced by government ministers while journalists and commentators placed the issues of radicalisation and extremism firmly on the media agenda. At the centre of this process is the fear…

The landmark Global Study on resolution 1325 (2000) reviews the challenges and lessons learned across regions in implementing the Women, Peace and Security agenda over the past 15 years. The Study provides a comprehensive evidence base demonstrating that women’s equal and meaningful participation in peace and security efforts is vital…

For over a decade, the U.S. and international community has focused on countering violent extremism (CVE) in Pakistan, working closely with both the Government of Pakistan (GoP) and civil society. Based on the experience of senior U.S. government officials in Washington, D.C. and Islamabad, international development organizations, and diaspora community…

Every year, Western donors deploy vast sums of development assistance to dampen the appeal, among the world’s youth, of militias, pirates and terrorists. But guided by little in the way of empirical evidence, it is an enterprise plagued by unclear payoffs and unintended consequences. At the heart of these efforts…