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This Research Paper aims to analyse in depth the global propaganda strategy of the so-called “Islamic State” (IS) by looking at the methods through which this grand strategy is carried out as well as the objectives that IS wants to achieve through it. The authors first discuss IS’ growth model, explaining why global expansion and recruitment of foreign fighters are pivotal to IS success. Having in mind this critical role, the authors then explore the narratives and themes used by the group to mobilise foreign fighters and jihadists groups. Third, the paper analyses how IS deploys its narratives in those territories where it has established a foothold. Fourth, it outlines IS’ direct engagement strategy and how it is used to facilitate allegiance of other jihadist groups. The final section of the paper offers a menu of policy options that stakeholders can implement to counter IS’ global propaganda efforts.

It is an undeniable fact that the issue of terrorism, both as a theoretical
area of analysis and as a practical phenomenon, has grown exponentially
in significance over the past few decades. Indeed, terrorism has for some
time stopped being a term solely discussed in academic settings and in
strategic documents, but has recently been introduced in our everyday
lexicon in ways that are far more profound than in the past. Put more
simply, in understanding the extremely intricate nature of today’s international
affairs, the analysis of the concept and praxis of terrorism no
longer belongs to an obscure area of study, and has developed into an
urgent necessity, as a means of exploring how to respond to the phenomenon
in an appropriate manner.
As the illustrative examples of the rise of al-Qaeda and Daesh and
their expanded global landscape of terrorist attacks indicate, this dual
realisation that terrorism has unequivocally become a part of our reality
and that its analysis has become more urgent than ever is particularly
true of what has been widely termed as “Islamic fundamentalist terrorism”.
Due to the kaleidoscopic interests involved in it, the multifarious
dynamics that have been at play in the region from which it has primarily
originated, and the multiplicity of its actors, methods and cause, Islamic
terrorism has come to the fore of our attention in spectacular fashion,
necessitating consistent and rigorous analysis.
8 Daesh and the terrorist threat: from the Middle East to Europe
This book is focused precisely on this area. Covering a wide range of
pertinent aspects and referring to the causal links and history behind this
strand of terrorism in various countries of the world, this book intends to
provide an in-depth look at the rise and evolution of Islamic fundamentalist
terrorism. Divided into three parts, the first one focusing on the
Middle East and Africa region, the second one on the recruiting methods,
financing and propaganda instruments used by Islamic terrorist organisations,
and the last part on the evolution of the phenomenon in a select
few European countries, it attempts to answer some of the very basic
questions surrounding this very important topic.
What are the causes behind the phenomenon? What are its principal
methods of recruiting and financing? What are the primary challenges in
designing and implementing a comprehensive strategy to tackle it? Why
has it spread in the Middle East and Africa? What explains its presence in
Europe? These are all relevant questions into which this book attempts to
offer much needed insights, aimed to aid our shared understanding concerning
the past, present and future of Islamic terrorism. What is more,
and perhaps more crucially, drawing from the analysis, it also provides a
set of conclusions with a view to assisting the reader to better comprehend
what is needed in order to minimise the future ramifications of this
strand of terrorism and severely undermine its future dynamics.

Is the U.S. making headway in the fight against the Islamic State group? Judy Woodruff talks to retired Col. Derek Harvey, a former Army intelligence officer, and Brendan Koerner of Wired Magazine about the military offensive against ISIS, including the killing of a senior leader, and the resiliency of the group on social media.

There is an emerging consensus that ideologically-based narratives play a central role in encouraging and sustaining radicalization to violence, and that preventing, arresting, or reversing radicalization requires some means by which to address the effects of these narratives. Countering violent extremism (CVE) is a broad umbrella phrase that covers a wide array of approaches that have been advanced to reduce the radicalizing effects of extremist narratives. There is considerably less agreement, however, regarding the most appropriate means by which the mitigation of extremist narratives might best be accomplished. An important emerging area of interest is the role of the Internet, both as a forum through which narratives are transmitted and as an avenue for delivering CVE programs. At present, very little is known about which principles and practices should inform online CVE initiatives. This study attempts to establish a foundation and framework for these programs: first, by identifying the concepts and constructs which may be most relevant to countering violent extremism online, and second, by examining the available material from six online CVE programs in relation to these concepts. This examination suggests that these programs are lacking strong theoretical foundations and do not address important elements of radicalization, such as contextual factors or identity issues. It is important that future iterations of CVE programs consider not just the specific content of the narratives, but also take into account why these narratives have resonance for particular individuals.

Session 3 – Understanding and Supporting the Role of Youth in the Prevention of Violent Extremism:
This session place young people at the centre of the discussion, focusing on understanding the positive contribution of young women and men in preventing violent extremism in different contexts. We explore the linkages between youth radicalization and political violence, discuss evidence and data, and hear about the impressive work young champions are already leading in Somalia, Cameroon and Pakistan. We also discuss how the international community could effectively recognize, support and promote youth-led efforts and support the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2250.

On 24th July 2013, feminist campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez’s petition to the Bank of England to have Elizabeth Fry’s image on the UK’s £5 note replaced with the image of another woman was successful. The petition challenged the Bank of England’s original plan to replace Fry with Winston Churchill, which would have meant that no woman aside from the Queen would be represented on any UK banknote. Following this, Criado-Perez was subjected to ongoing misogynistic abuse on Twitter, a microblogging social network, including threats of rape and death. This paper investigates this increasingly prominent phenomenon of rape threats made via social networks. Specifically, we investigate the sustained period of abuse directed towards the Twitter account of feminist campaigner and journalist, Caroline Criado-Perez. We then turn our attention to the formation of online discourse communities as they respond to and participate in forms of extreme online misogyny on Twitter. We take a corpus of 76,275 tweets collected during a three month period in which the events occurred (July to September 2013), which comprises 912,901 words. We then employ an interdisciplinary approach to the analysis of language in the context of this social network. Our approach combines quantitative approaches from the fields of corpus linguistics to detect emerging discourse communities, and then qualitative approaches from discourse analysis to analyse how these communities construct their identities.