ICCT Papers
Developing Effective Counter-Narrative Frameworks for Countering Violent Extremism
Meeting Note | 23 September 2014The Islamic State (IS), with its violent attacks, strong uprise and even stronger media campaign, shows the need for an effective counter-narrative strategy to prevent the spread of violent extremism and radicalisation. To address these issues, Hedayah (the International Center of Excellence for Countering Violent Extremism) and ICCT organised a roundtable. meeting on 'Developing Effective Counter-Narrative Frameworks For Countering Violent Extremism'.
Read more >>Transitioning from Military Interventions to a Long-Term Counter-Terrorism Policy
Research Paper | 6 August 2014The past two decades have shown that it is arguably easier to start a military intervention than to end one. In this Research Paper ICCT Research Fellow Mr. Sergei Boeke looks at exit strategies from a counter-terrorism perspective, focussing on the link between the end of military interventions and the establishment and implementation of a long term counter-terrorism strategy.
Read more >>Returning Western foreign fighters: The case of Afghanistan, Bosnia and Somalia
Background Note | 20 June 2014Authorities are increasingly worried about the large number of Western foreign fighters present in Syria. The fear is that these fighters will return radicalised, battle hardened and with extensive radical networks that might encourage them to commit a terrorist attack in the home country. The recent attack on the Jewish Museum in Brussels – allegedly by a returned foreign fighter from Syria – seems to be a case in point. However, the conflict in Syria is not the first to attract foreign fighters. In this Background Note, Jeanine de Roy van Zuijdewijn and Edwin Bakker investigate three historical cases of foreign fighting: Afghanistan (1980s), Bosnia (1990s) and Somalia (2000s). In this paper they aim to give insight into what happened to these foreign fighters after their fight abroad had ended. The authors distinguish eight possible pathways for foreign fighters that can help to contribute to a more nuanced understanding of this complex phenomenon.
Read more >>Violent and Non-Violent Extremism: Two Sides of the Same Coin?
Research Paper | 12 May 2014In this Research Paper, ICCT Visiting Research Fellow Dr. Alex P. Schmid seeks to clarify some conceptual issues that tend to obscure the debate about how best to counter violent extremism. The main focus of this Research Paper is on obtaining a clearer understanding of what “Islamist extremism” entails in the context of the ongoing debate on allegedly “acceptable” non-violent extremists and “unacceptable” violent extremists. The author discusses a number of conceptualisations of religious extremism in the context of liberal democracies and also distinguishes, inter alia, between merely “not (yet) violent” militancy and principled non-violent political activism in the Gandhian tradition. The author argues that the distinction between “non-violent extremism” and “violent extremism” is not a valid one. The paper provides a set of twenty indicators of extremism that can be used as an instrument for monitoring extremist statements and actions, with an eye to challenging and countering such non-democratic manifestations.
Read more >>Afghan Women and the Taliban: An Exploratory Assessment
Policy Brief | 10 April 2014Recent years have seen an increase in visible and sometimes even prominent roles for women in terrorist organisations. In this Policy Brief, Leiden University researcher Seran de Leede examines the position of women in Afghanistan towards the Taliban. Ultimately, her research aims to contribute to a better understanding of the role of women in (countering) political violence in Afghanistan.
Read more >>Security in the Sinai: Present and Future
Research Paper | 27 March 2014In this ICCT Research Paper, Zack Gold analyses the current threat emanating from the Sinai Peninsula by mapping the various violent actors and their international connections. He looks at the policies of the current and past regimes in Egypt towards the peninsula, and the responses by regional and international actors. In the concluding section, Gold offers four possible scenarios for the trend of terrorism in the Sinai peninsula and Egypt, advocating a focused response by both the Egyptian government and the international community.
Read more >>Ansar al-Sharia in Tunisia's Shift to Jihad
Research Paper | 18 February 2014Since the fall of Tunisian dictator Ben Ali in January 2011, the country has been challenged by the growth of a domestic jihadist movement. This ICCT Research Paper analyses the likely future of the conflict between the most significant salafi jihadist group in the country, Ansar al-Sharia in Tunisia, and the Tunisian state.
Read more >>Towards a Theory of Fear Management in the Counter-Terrorism Domain
Research Paper | 16 January 2014Since 9/11, the state of the art in counter-terrorism (CT) research, CT measures and CT impacts has taken off. Nevertheless, countering terrorism as a branch of fear management is still a discipline to be developed. In this ICCT Research Paper, authors Prof. Dr. Edwin Bakker and Prof. Dr. Beatrice de Graaf attempt to lessen this gap. The Paper identifies and analyses governmental approaches to managing fear in relation to terrorist incidents. It is a stocktaking approach, offering a preliminary oversight of some central aspects and pointers on the way forward when constructing and testing such a theory.
Read more >>Al Qaeda’s “Single Narrative†and Attempts to Develop Counter-Narratives
Research Paper | 14 January 2014Al Qaeda's survival is tied to the credibility of its narrative "story" rather than the physical survival of its leadership. ICCT Visiting Fellow Dr. Alex P. Schmid discusses various efforts by governments and non-governmental bodies to challenge this integrative narrative. He argues that current counter-narratives often fall short of reaching their objectives and that both counter- and alternative narratives are necessary to maximise effectiveness.
Read more >>Dealing with European Foreign Fighters in Syria: Governance Challenges and Legal Implications
Research Paper | 16 December 2013The number of European foreign fighters with a jihadist political agenda participating in the Syrian civil war has increased exponentially over the past months and has become an ever-growing concern for European policymakers. It is particularly the possibility that returned foreign fighters have radicalised that makes them a potential threat – if only to themselves and their direct surroundings. In this ICCT Research Paper, Edwin Bakker, Christophe Paulussen and Eva Entenmann examine some of the challenges, as well as possible strategies and legal mechanisms available for European policymakers to address the foreign fighters phenomenon.
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