Germans Shocked by Young Jihadists

VOA, Germans Shocked by Young Jihadists, 11 Feb 2018 "Now, a top German official is calling for cancellation of laws restricting security surveillance of children under the age of 14. Hans-Georg Maassen is the head of the country’s domestic intelligence agency. He argues that Germany is facing serious risks from what the media calls “kindergarten jihadists.”"

New and Noted: 'Women, Gender and Daesh Radicalisation: A Milieu Approach'

Elizabeth Pearson & Emily Winterbotham, Women, Gender and Daesh Radicalisation: A Milieu Approach, RUSI Journal, 1-13, 28 Jul 2017 "In this article, Elizabeth Pearson and Emily Winterbotham explore the role of gender in radicalisation to Daesh (also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, ISIS). They discuss possible factors in female radicalisation, and how radicalisation differs between men and women. They find that the gender of the recruit affects the enabling factors, mechanisms and locations relating to radicalisation. The article challenges assertions that the recruitment of young men and women to Daesh follows identical patterns, as well as the narrative of women as innately peaceful, or as actors coerced into joining Daesh, revealing the importance of female empowerment in the group’s appeal."

‘In-Betweeners’ Are Part of a Rich Recruiting Pool for Jihadists

NYT, ‘In-Betweeners’ Are Part of a Rich Recruiting Pool for Jihadists "A rich recruiting pool for Al Qaeda and the Islamic State includes what psychologists call “in-betweeners,” young adults whose identities have not yet solidified. Their uncertainty makes them vulnerable, said J. Reid Meloy, a forensic psychologist and clinical professor at the University of California, San Diego. “It allows the individual to attach his identity to something that is larger and inflates his sense of himself,” he said." [not necessarily a gender specific issue, surely?]

Chattanooga

Rita Katz, SITEIntelGroup, Information about the Chattanooga Shooter is Disappearing from the Internet "Abdulazeez did what jihadists are asked to do prior to execution of their attacks: delete important information that could provide insight into their networks. Jihadi recruiters often advise prospects to “delete your social network accounts or stay inactive,” as well as “all the nasheed [Islamic chants], videos, pictures, messages” prior to their attacks or migration to jihad."

U.S. Muslims Take On ISIS’ Recruiting Machine

NYT, U.S. Muslims Take On ISIS’ Recruiting Machine "Imam Mohamed Magid tries to stay in regular contact with the teenager who came to him a few months ago, at his family’s urging, to discuss how he was being wooed by online recruiters working for the Islamic State, the extremist group in Syria and Iraq."

India: net as ISIS recruitment tool

NDTV, Instead of Jihadi, Was Used as Labour, Alleged IS Fighter Areeb Majeed Says net as recruitment tool "Majeed, according to investigators, says he was surfing the Internet to learn more about the conflict between Palestine and Israel when he began to watch orthodox Islamic preachers online.

""I was studying engineering but lost interest and began thinking about Islamic countries that followed the Shariat," he has reportedly said.

"With the other three men from his neighbourhood, he contacted a woman named Tahira Bhatt on Facebook who claimed to be a recruiter for IS. She asked the men to head to Iraq and gave them contact information for representatives who would meet them there."

Hyderabad techie arrested for allegedly trying to join the Islamic State

firstpost.com, Hyderabad techie arrested for allegedly trying to join the Islamic State, 29 Oct 2014 "Software engineer Munawad Salman, hailing from Tamil Nadu, got attracted to jihadist group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) through social media networks and had planned to join its forces, a senior police officer said today."

Child recruitment to ISIS

Bloomberg, Mosul’s Children Lured to Islamic State to Swell Ranks "The 13-year-old encountered fighters on his street who told him he should visit their new centers in the neighborhood. He then watched a video of Islamic State battles in a nearby house, which had been converted into a makeshift Internet cafe and cinema.

"One of the fighters “said we can be heroes just like the men in these videos and we can have a salary and a gun,” Abdullah, who registered his name, said in a phone interview conducted with his family’s consent. “I thought I will be a hero and help my family with money but my father told me this is a bad idea and I will have a job one day if I study and finish my school.”"

Malaysia - net recruitment

asianews.it, Malaysia Islamic state "recruiters" arrested: They include Internet experts and politicians "The group of 14 people arrested earlier this week include personalities active in the recruitment campaign for the militias of the Islamic State (IS). Police sources explain that they were organizing the movement in Syria and used the internet to attract new (and increasingly younger) supporters. In particular, three of them played a very personal and individual role to promote, organize and finance trips to Syria."

Disillusioned ‘jihadi’ gets death threats for exposing recruiters

arabnews.com, Disillusioned ‘jihadi’ gets death threats for exposing recruiters "Blurring the line between reality and fiction, a former member of a terrorist group has made a movie slamming those in the Kingdom who recruit young Saudis to fight abroad." I have yet to see the film (which is linked into this report).

'‘My Afro Is Melting’: Syrian Rebels Want Hair Products and iPads'

Time.com, ‘My Afro Is Melting’: Syrian Rebels Want Hair Products and iPads "In comparison to the ascetic 1980s jihad in Afghanistan, sleeping quarters in Syria are provided with Internet connections, allowing fighters to chat to family members abroad and play online games."

Also see alarabiya.net, Changing the face of Jihad in Syria

al-Shabaab 'recruit': ongoing trial

baltimoresun.com, Ex-soldier from Laurel charged with trying to join terrorist group in Somalia, 9 Jan 2012 "The soldier from Laurel had never been particularly religious. But with his deployment and his time in the military coming to an end, prosecutors say, an online article about Judgment Day spoke to him. When he returned to Maryland, they say, he began to make plans to live out his life in a land governed by Sharia law."

Royal Canadian Mounted Police report - Youth Online and at Risk: Radicalization Facilitated by the Internet

The National, Extremists using web tools to recruit kids: RCMP, 6 Jun 2011 "A new RCMP report says extremist groups — from Muslim radicals to violent animal rights activists to white supremacists — are employing increasingly sophisticated multimedia tools to attract a young, computer-savvy generation of followers."

Here's the link page for the report:

Royal Canadian Mounted Police report - Youth Online and at Risk: Radicalization Facilitated by the Internet 

I have yet to read this report.

"Ex-Taliban fighter in 'jihad recruitment bid'"

BBC News, Ex-Taliban fighter in 'jihad recruitment bid', 5 May 2011 "The court heard how Mr Farooqi and his son used the basement of the family's four-bed terrace house to produce DVDs and CDs about radical Islam."

"The Lure of Radicalism and Extremism Amongst Muslim Youth" article/op-ed

Discussion piece: Yasir Qadhi, Muslim Matters, The Lure of Radicalism and Extremism Amongst Muslim Youth, 18 Oct 2010 "Not hearing anything from his local or national scholars in the physical world around him, he scours the virtual world instead, looking on the net for voices that will speak to his concerns and address his anger. And in this virtual world, he stumbles across chat-rooms and forums where, for the first time, he finds people who see the world his way. These people, aided by the anonymity of the internet and empowered by the false bravado that only a fake alias can give, finally make our young man feel home, and that he was right all along in his assessment."

This article is generating comment elsewhere on forum postings.

Also see Mind, Body, Soul, Yasir Qadhi - misses the boat on radicalism, 18 Oct 2010 "Qadhi is not able to transcend the philosophical high chair of an academic to understand how these youth think, and in-so-doing, he falls into the same rhetoric which distances them in the first place."

al-Shabaab analysis

Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, Threat Matrix, Critical questions regarding the role of foreign fighters in Shabaab, 27 Sep 2010 "The idea of al Qaeda fighters as force multipliers is not made up. There is a science to measuring TTP’s (military tactics, techniques, and procedures), and the migration of TTP's from one theater of combat to another is rigorously measured. If bomb-making techniques that were perfected in Iraq are found in Somalia, that strongly suggests that foreign fighters are making an impact. (It’s also possible that these TTP’s were transmitted via the Internet, but my strong inclination is that in-person training is more valuable than "virtual" training.)

Women and 'jihad'

Tuty Raihanah Mostarom and Nur Azlin Mohamed Yasin, RSIS/eurasiareview.com, The Internet: Avenue For Women Jihadi 'Participation', 10 Aug 2010 "Analysts of online extremist websites have noticed a recurrent trend of jihadist attempts to engage women in the cyberworld. There also appears to be more women supporters utilising the virtual domain to express their activism."

aQ English language sites

Daniel Williams, Bloomberg, Terrorists Seek Next ‘Jihad Jane’ on English-Language Web Sites, 19 Apr 2010, "Al-Qaeda and its ideological allies are using English-language Web sites and forums to encourage non-Arabic speakers to make war on the West as terrorists seek the next Ft. Hood shooters and “Jihad Janes.”"

'Jihadi Cool'

Dina Temple-Raston, NPR, Jihadi Cool: Terrorist Recruiters' Latest Weapon, 26 Mar 2010

"With so many terrorism cases emerging in the U.S. in the past nine months, experts are trying to understand why so much is happening now. One explanation has less to do with religion than with adventure. The latest wave of jihadists traveling to Pakistan and elsewhere for training may have been motivated by a sense of jihadi cool."

I have referred to this concept in iMuslims and elsewhere. The link has audio, transcript and report.

John Esposito op-ed

Middle East Online, How to Fight Rather than Feed the Beast, 7 Jan 2010

"Many recent terrorism cases have not resulted from a top down process of recruitment and radicalization initiated by al-Qaeda and its affiliates or radical preachers but rather from a bottom up dynamic. Today, individuals initiate. They become alienated and radicalized due to their own experiences and perceptions. They are profoundly affected and changed by what they see as endless oppression, corruption and injustice, notes John L. Esposito."