scholarly journals Making Sense of Radicalization

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 139-152
Author(s):  
Farid Senzai
Keyword(s):  
The Self ◽  
Terrorist Group ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
International Media ◽  
Making Sense ◽  
Terrorist Organization

The self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and Syria’s (ISIS) burning to deathof Jordanian pilot Moaz al-Kasasba and beheading of twenty-one Egyptiansin Libya are just the latest incidents in a series of escalating acts of violencethat epitomize the seemingly senseless carnage that so often results from thepolitical radicalization of individual Muslims. As the international media zeroesin on such instances, one often struggles to make sense of the perpetrators’true motives. But understanding the circumstances that lead up to such viciousnessis key if governments are to minimize such acts in the future.What motivates an individual to join a terrorist organization? Is it ideology,politics, poverty, or something else? What might be done to de-radicalize anindividual who has joined a terrorist group? The reality is that there is no singlepathway toward radicalization. In a May 2010 report entitled “Why Youth Joinal-Qaeda,”1 U.S. Army Colonel Matt Venhaus suggested that those seeking tojoin jihadist networks can be divided into revenge seekers needing an outletfor their frustration, status seekers needing recognition, identity seekers in needof a group to join, and thrill seekers looking for adventure.2 Clearly the motivesfor terrorism are differentiated and complex, as opposed to uniform and simple.Thus identifying an overarching pattern to understanding how individualsmight become susceptible to terrorist recruiters and what intervention strategiescan be employed to stop it becomes a very difficult task ...

The Al-Qaeda Revival in Pakistan: Challenges and Prospects

1970 ◽  
Author(s):  
Farhan Zahid
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
Terrorist Group ◽  
Al Qaeda ◽  
Vital Importance ◽  
High Profile ◽  
Current State ◽  
The Us ◽  
Terrorist Organization ◽  
State Of Affairs ◽  
Tribal Areas

Pakistan remains a country of vital importance for Al-Qaeda. It is primarily because of Al-Qaeda’s advent, rise and shelter and not to mention the support the terrorist organization found at the landscape of Pakistan during the last two decades. The emergence of in Pakistan can be traced back to the Afghan War (1979-89), with a brief sabbatical in Sudan the Islamist terrorist group rose to gain prominence after shifting back to Afghanistan. It then became a global ‘Islamist’ terrorist entity while based in neighboring Afghanistan and found safe havens in the erstwhile tribal areas of Pakistan in the aftermath of the US invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. Prior to its formation in 1988 in Peshawar (Pakistan), it had worked as Maktab al-Khidmat (Services Bureau) during the Afghan War.2 It had its roots in Pakistan, which had become a transit point of extremists en route to Afghanistan during the War. All high profile Al-Qaeda leaders, later becoming high-value targets, and members of its central Shura had lived in Pakistan at one point in their lives. That is the very reason the Al-Qaeda in Pakistan is termed as Al-Qaeda Core or Central among law enforcement practitioners and intelligence communities. Without going into details of Al-Qaeda’s past in Pakistan the aim of this article is to focus on its current state of affairs and what future lies ahead of it in Pakistan.

scholarly journals The construction of leadership practice: Making sense of leader competencies

Leadership ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 174271502199649
Author(s):  
Dag Jansson ◽  
Erik Døving ◽  
Beate Elstad
Keyword(s):  
Professional Practice ◽  
Leadership Competencies ◽  
The Self ◽  
Leadership Practice ◽  
Choral Conductors ◽  
Making Sense ◽  
Sensemaking Process ◽  
The Face ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Selection Of

The notion of leadership competencies is a much-debated issue. In this article, we propose that how the leader makes sense of his or her competencies is key to leadership practice. Specifically, we look at how leaders reconcile discrepancies between the self-perceived proficiency of various competencies and their corresponding importance. Empirically, we study leaders within the music domain – how choral conductors make sense of their competencies in the shaping of their professional practice. We investigated how choral leaders in Scandinavia ( N = 638) made sense of their competencies in the face of demands in their working situations. A mixed methodology was used, comprising a quantitative survey with qualitative comments and in-depth interviews with a selection of the respondents. The results show that when choral leaders shape their practice, they frequently face competency gaps that compel them to act or adjust their identity. The key to this sensemaking process is how they move competency elements they master to the foreground and wanting elements to the background. The concept of ‘sensemaking affordance’ is introduced to account for how various leader competency categories are negotiated to safeguard overall efficacy.

Islamic State: Understanding the Nature of the Beast and Its Funding

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michaela Martin ◽  
Hussein Solomon
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Terrorist Group ◽  
Al Qaeda ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Annual Income ◽  
International Peace ◽  
Holy War ◽  
World Today ◽  
The World ◽  
Peace And Security

The Islamic State (IS) took the global stage in June 2014 and since has become one of the greatest threats to international peace and security. While initially closely affiliated with Al-Qaeda, the IS has proved itself to be a distinct phenomenon of horror—more dangerous than Al-Qaeda. The group essentially established itself in the volatile Middle East, but has infiltrated many parts of the world with the aim of expanding Islam’s Holy War. What certainly makes the IS different from its predecessors is that the group has been labeled the wealthiest terrorist group in the world today. By the fall of 2015, IS generated an annual income of US$2.4 billion. The question for many analysts observing the situation in Syria is: where does the IS gets its money? The aim of this article is to critically observe the nature of IS and its funding requirements and the measures pursued in curtailing the group’s funding.

scholarly journals The sacredness of the self, of society and of the human body: the case of a Finnish transgender pastor Marja-Sisko Aalto

2011 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
pp. 13-27
Author(s):  
Veikko Anttonen
Keyword(s):  
Human Body ◽  
Life Story ◽  
The Body ◽  
The Self ◽  
Public Image ◽  
Religious Traditions ◽  
The Public ◽  
Making Sense ◽  
Folk Biology ◽  
The Town

In 2008 the change of sex of a Finnish transgender pastor attracted media attention to Lutheran Christianity on a worldwide scale, which compared to other religious traditions seldom makes it to the world news. This article­ discusses the sex reassignment undergone by Marja-Sisko Aalto, a Lutheran pastor from the town of Imatra, in south eastern Finland, who in 2008, at the age of 54, was transformed into a woman. First some remarks on the relation between religion and the body are made and terminological issues are discussed briefly. The second part of the article presents Aalto's life story based on the author's interview with her in April 2010. In the last section the author discusses the Finnish cognitive scholar Ilkka Pyysiäinen’s reflection on folk biology as an explanation for making sense of the public image regarding a priest’s gender. The article concludes by looking at Marja-Sisko Aalto’s case from the perspective of marking boundaries between the categories of the self, the society and the human body. 

scholarly journals Jihadist war or a challenge of disintegration?

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 233-250
Author(s):  
Péter Balogh
Keyword(s):  
Developed Countries ◽  
Actual State ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Global Context ◽  
Terrorist Organization ◽  
Socio Demographic Factors ◽  
The Developed Countries ◽  
The One ◽  
Foreign Fighters

In this paper we introduce some relevant research results about the role of social embeddedness and social resources in the sphere of social conflicts and violence. In accordance with the actual state of the investigation process the outcomes presented in this analysis are focusing on the activities of the so called ‘Islamic State’or ISIS – considered to be a rather effective terrorism exporter recently. After briefly outlining the broader – global – context of terrorist organizations, the particular characteristics of the activities of ISIS and some elements of the conceptual frame, the study highlights empirically two potential explaining factors of the success of the terrorist organization. On the one hand the influencing network – primarily linked to the cyber sphere – of the Islamic State is explored, demonstrating a notable focus on the developed countries of Europe. On the other hand the paper summarizes the main conclusions from a case study on the recruitment base of the militants in Brussels of the terrorist organization investigating the relationship between the territorial distribution of the ISIS foreign fighters in city and the extent of segregation of the Islamic population in the different districts, including also certain socio-demographic factors to shed light on the significance of the broader – unfavourable – social context.

scholarly journals International terrorist organization "Islamic State": history, contemporaneity, future

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladislav Vyacheslavovich Krasinsky ◽  
Vladislav Valerevich Mashko
Keyword(s):  
Islamic State ◽  
State History ◽  
Terrorist Organization

scholarly journals Peculiarities of Mental and Behavioral Disorders in Children Released from Iraqi Prison

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 225-235
Author(s):  
N.M. Zakharova ◽  
A.V. Milekhina
Keyword(s):  
Behavioral Disorders ◽  
Dynamic Monitoring ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Military Conflict ◽  
Psychological Examination ◽  
Terrorist Organization ◽  
Long Time ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Mental And Behavioral Disorders

The article provides data from a survey of 61 children (members of families of militants of the Islamic State terrorist organization) released from an Iraqi prison. Mental, psychological and behavioral disorders identified during clinical and psychological examination are described. The role of multiple psycho-traumatic factors in the construction of mental disorders in children who are forced to stay in a zone of local military conflict for a long time and survived heavy losses is shown. Based on the results, 6 groups were identified, united by similar symptoms and gender-age characteristics. It is noted that such general psychodynamic trends as a delay in psychophysical development and pedagogical neglect come to the fore, accompanied by situationally caused anxiety-depressive reactions provoked by additional psycho-traumatic factors (separation from mother, change of habitual settings and environment). The necessity of taking into account the religious, ethical and ethno-cultural characteristics in the examination and development of a set of rehabilitation measures for these children is shown. Attention is focused on the difficulties of adaptation and rehabilitation of this population in a society which is new for them, constant dynamic monitoring of the examined is justified.

ḤUDŪDPUNISHMENTS IN THE FOREFRONT: APPLICATION OF ISLAMIC CRIMINAL LAW BY HARAKAT AL-SHABAAB AL-MUJAHIDEEN

2014 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 317-329 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Skjelderup
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Law ◽  
Current Practice ◽  
Islamic Law ◽  
State Power ◽  
Muslim World ◽  
Terrorist Group ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Law And Order ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
Muslim Scholars

AbstractHarakat al-Shabaab al-Mujahideen, usually referred to as al-Shabaab (the youth), is known primarily as a Somali terrorist group. But since the end of 2008, it has functioned as a state power in large parts of Southern and Central Somalia. In this article, I analyze the main legal body of the group: theqāḍīcourt. In order to establish law and order in their territories, al-Shabaab has applied their own version ofsharī'a. The article reveals that al-Shabaab's application of criminal law follows the inherent logic of classical Islamic legal doctrines on several points. However, the al-Shabaab courts tend to overlook many of the strict requirements regarding evidence and procedure that were outlined by the medieval Muslim scholars in order to humanize Islamic law. Therefore, the legal reality of al-Shabaab's regime is far more brutal than that of most other Islamic-inspired regimes in the contemporary Muslim world. Al-Shabaab's practice of Islamic criminal law may be seen not only as a means to exercise control through fear but also as an effective way of filling the vacuum of insecurity and instability that has followed twenty years of violence and the absence of state institutions in its territories. I argue that, in order to understand al-Shabaab's current practice of criminal law, one has to take into consideration the group's jihadi-Salafi affiliation. According to Salafi notions,sharī'ais not only a means to an end, but an end in itself. As such,sharī'a(i.e., God's divine law) is the visual symbol of an Islamic state. Consequently, the application of Islamic criminal law, and especially of theḥudūdpunishments, provides al-Shabaab with political-religious legitimacy.

Hegel’s Philosophy of History as the Metaphysics of Agency

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terry Pinkard
Keyword(s):  
Essential Role ◽  
Philosophy Of History ◽  
The Self ◽  
Sense Making ◽  
Making Sense ◽  
Human Enterprise

Rather than understanding history as a process guided by an entity (Geist) that is aiming at the goal of coming to a full self-consciousness, this chapter argues that Hegel’s philosophy should be understood against the background of his Aristotelian- and Kantian-inspired metaphysics. Using his Logic as the background, the author argues that his philosophy of history is an examination of the metaphysical contours of subjectivity and how the self-interpreting, self-developing collective human enterprise has moved from one such shape to another in terms of deeper logic of sense-making, and how this has meant that subjectivity itself has reshaped itself over the course of history. The role of the “infinite end” of justice thereby is shown to play an essential role in making sense of history.

Shia-centric State-Building and Sunni Rejection in Post-2003 Iraq

2018 ◽  
pp. 115-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fanar Haddad
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Regime Change ◽  
Political Skill ◽  
Nation Building ◽  
State Building ◽  
The Self ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Mass Mobilization ◽  
Cumulative Processes ◽  
Basic Services

Both Shia-centric state building and Sunni rejection of the post-2003 order are the result of cumulative processes that have unfolded over the course of the twentieth century. These developments ranged from the homogenizing nation building propagated by successive Iraqi regimes to the rise of a sect-centric Shia opposition in exile. The sectarianization of Iraq was not inevitable, but regime change in 2003 accelerated the empowerment of new and preexisting sect-centric actors. The necessary will, vision, and political skill to avert the sectarianization of Iraq were absent among Iraqi and U.S. decisionmakers at the time. The failure of the occupation forces and the new political classes to construct a functioning state that could deliver basic services exacerbated the problem. Sunni opponents of the post-2003 order became as sect-centric as the system they once derided for its Shia-centricity. Sectarianization will continue to define Iraqi politics. The spread of the self-proclaimed Islamic State across much of Iraq in 2014 represents the most extreme form of Sunni rejection,while the state-sanctioned Hashd al-Shaabi, the term given to the mass mobilization of volunteers to repel the Islamic State, embodies the most serious defense of Shia-centric state building as of late 2015.

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