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31. Pakistan Security Report 2019

Author:
Safdar Sial, Muhammad Amir Rana, Umar Farooq, Anam Fatima, Muhammad Akba Notezai, and Najam U Din
Publication Date:
01-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS)
Abstract:
In 2019, Pakistan witnessed a further decline in the number of terrorist incidents and consequent casualties. The statistics of Pakistan Security Report 2019 show that terrorist attacks this year decreased by around 13 percent as compared to 2018, and the number of people killed in these attacks plummeted by 40pc. Indeed, there has been a gradual decrease in terrorist attacks and casualties since 2009 (with the exception of 2013, when a surge in sectarian violence mainly contributed to a rise in attacks and casualties). Continuous anti-militant operational and surveillance campaigns by security forces and police counterterrorism departments, as well as some counter-extremism actions taken under the National Action Plan, have apparently helped sustain that declining trend 2013 onwards. However, these plummeting numbers do not suggest, in any way, that the threat of terrorism has been completely eliminated. Certainly, most terrorist groups have been weakened but they are still present in physical and virtual spaces.
Topic:
National Security, Terrorism, Violent Extremism, and Countering Violent Extremism
Political Geography:
Pakistan

32. Inside Extreme Left Wing Antifascist & Anarchist Group ‘The Set’

Author:
Julia Sweet
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
TRAC: Terrorism Research & Analysis Consortium
Abstract:
According to the authorities, The Set group planned to conduct revolts and terror attacks during the World Cup of 2018 and had plotted attacks to occur prior to the presidential election. Allegedly, its members plotted attacks on traffic police patrols, Post Office buildings, facilities of “United Russia” political party, etc. The Set’s main goal was the destabilization of the Russian state.
Topic:
Terrorism, Violent Extremism, Anarchism, Political Extremism, and Countering Violent Extremism
Political Geography:
Russia

33. ETHNIC EXTREMISM IN ETHIOPIA

Author:
Yonas Adeto
Publication Date:
07-2019
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
European Institute of Peace (EIP)
Abstract:
In his first year in office, Ethiopian Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed has executed sweeping political changes; nevertheless, Ethiopia faces daunting challenges. One the most pressing challenges is the spike in violence between the country’s many ethnic groups. In September 2018, scores were killed in Addis Ababa in clashes between Oromos and non-Oromos. Fighting has occurred along the border of the Oromia and the Somali regional states; Tigrayans have been forced out of Amhara; Amharas have been expelled from Oromia and Benishangul; and violent conflicts between the Oromo and Gedeo ethnic groups displaced approximately 970,000 people in the western Guji and Gedeo zones. Recently, federal forces were deployed as a coup attempt was thwarted in the Amhara regional state and protests over an independence referendum in Sadama turned violent. Many other incidents of ethnic violence go unreported in international media. To raise awareness about this issue, the European Institute of Peace has partnered with Dr. Yonas Adaye Adeto of the Institute for Peace and Security Studies (IPSS) at Addis Ababa University. The policy paper investigates the causes and drivers of ethnic extremism, and argues that it presents a clear and present danger for the survival of Ethiopia as a nation. Dr. Yonas offers various recommendations to address extremism through comprehensive government action, which would ensure the success of the ongoing political reforms and address one of the most formidable challenges Ethiopia will face in the years to come.
Topic:
Ethnic Conflict, Violent Extremism, Political Extremism, and Countering Violent Extremism
Political Geography:
Africa and Ethiopia

34. The SDG 16 and PVE Agendas: Different Currencies or Two Sides of the Same Coin?

Author:
Sanam Naraghi-Anderlini and Eric Rosand
Publication Date:
09-2019
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN)
Abstract:
With preventing violent extremism (PVE) and promoting inclusion, access to justice, and good governance (SDG 16) on the agenda of the opening of the 74th UNGA, this policy brief highlights key challenges impeding progress on the global PVE and SDG 16 agendas, underscoring how they are two sides of the same coin. The brief highlights practical ways policy and programming conversations around these two agendas at the global and national levels can strengthen and further empower, rather than, as is sometimes the case, impede progress on locally-led action to achieve these inter-related objectives.
Topic:
United Nations, Governance, Justice, Inclusion, and Countering Violent Extremism
Political Geography:
Global Focus

35. Pakistan Security Report 2018

Author:
Muhammad Amir Rana, Safdar Sial, Ihsan Ghani, Ali Sher Khalti, Farhan Zahid, Zia Ur Rehman, Najam U Din, Ershad Mahmud, and Muhammad Akba Notezai
Publication Date:
01-2019
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS)
Abstract:
Despite a 29% decline in terrorist attacks in 2018, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and its associated groups, which now includes ISIS’s local chapter, remains the most potent threat. They were followed by nationalist-insurgent groups, especially in Balochistan. Two suicide attacks by a Baloch secessionist group in 2018 are alarming, but these should not forego attempts of reconciling them, which National Action Plan (NAP) clearly calls upon. Any attempt of mainstreaming banned outfits should be undertaken by a proper mechanism, so as not to be seen as excluding those already mainstreamed. These are some of the major findings of the Pakistan Security Report 2018.
Topic:
Security, Terrorism, Violent Extremism, and Countering Violent Extremism
Political Geography:
Pakistan

36. Countering the myths of IS: How to counter the IS narrative online? The case of Albanian speaking countries

Author:
Rudina Jakupi and Vesë Kelmendi
Publication Date:
03-2019
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Kosovar Centre for Security Studies (KCSS)
Abstract:
The report identifies three major themes weaved in the violent extremist narrative of the “Islamic State” as delivered to audiences in Kosovo and other Albanian-speaking countries. They are: political, religious and gender power relations The report finds that government agencies have not put forth a strategic communication effort to counter violent extremism despite the centrality that they accorded to it in the Strategy. No consistent counter-narrative sponsored by public institutions or NGOs that continually are implementing projects to prevent violent extremism at the local level and central level Kosovo has been found. The Islamic Community of Kosovo (BIK), the body that regulates the religious affairs for the Muslim followers in Kosovo, lacks a coordinated, unison platform to provide with counter – narratives against extremist groups. Several imams of BIK have independently published their sermons and lectures on their personal social media platforms that could serve as counter – narratives. An effective counter message to the violent extremist narrative identified through this research is the narrative that can be provided by the jaded returned former fighters of the “Islamic State” and their family members. The report finds that platforms such as Fol Tash, a counter-narrative portal run by a group of community imams and Not in My Name, a social media endeavor of Radio Free Europe, did not gain traction in the websites and chat groups that continue to promote propaganda and advocate support for the “Islamic State.” As part of this study researchers tracked the habits of violent extremist sympathizers on social media. Out of 80 profiles and 100 pages of extremist groups monitored on Facebook neither “like” or “follow” or “share” any of the videos, texts or photos from the two counter - narrative sites. This signals that while these platforms may act as a preventative measure with the general public, they have failed to reach the supporters of extremist groups that continue to generate and spread extremist content in social media.
Topic:
Security, Violent Extremism, Islamic State, and Countering Violent Extremism
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe and Kosovo

37. Pakistan Security Report 2017

Author:
Muhammad Amir Rana, Safdar Sial, Anam Fatima, Muhammad Mumtaz Ali Khan, Shahzada Irfan Ahmed, Maaz Khan, and Najam U Din
Publication Date:
01-2018
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS)
Abstract:
Despite a 16% decline in terrorist attacks in 2017, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and its associated groups remained the most potent threat; they were followed by nationalist-insurgent groups, especially Balochistan Liberation Army and Balochistan Liberation Front. What has been quite alarming is the increasing footprints of Daesh, especially in Balochistan and northern Sindh, carrying out the deadliest attacks. These realities require concerted effort and a revision of the National Action Plan, country’s counter-terror plan for yet ambiguity remains about who is responsible for NAP. It will be much better that parliament provides oversight to not only NAP, help revise it in light of new realities, but also lay down criteria for mainstreaming militants – which drew debate in 2017. These are some of the major findings of the Pakistan Security Report 2017.
Topic:
Security, Terrorism, Violent Extremism, and Countering Violent Extremism
Political Geography:
Pakistan

38. Lessons from the Past: Women, Political Violence, and CVE

Author:
Kelly M. McFarland
Publication Date:
04-2018
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS)
Abstract:
In the Malaysian jungles in the mid-1950s, it would have been conceivable for a Malayan Communist Party insurgent – battling the Malayan government and British counter-insurgency forces – to hear the voice of his mother. During 1956, over “600 separate voice messages were recorded and more than 2,200 flights were made by aircraft broadcasting” messages to insurgents calling on them to surrender. Often, the wives or mothers of insurgents recorded these messages. Years later, in 1985 “the first female suicide bomber, a seventeen-year-old Lebanese girl named Sana’a Mehaydali, was sent by the Syrian Socialist National Party…to blow herself up near an Israeli convoy in Lebanon,” leading to the death of five Israeli soldiers. These disparate events reveal the long and often forgotten history of women’s engagement with violent extremism – a history that can provide key lessons for current attempts to formulate and enact countering violent extremism (CVE) policies. Over the past decade, CVE has become a key component of broader counterterrorism initiatives, and, increasingly, of academic research agendas. As Owen Frazier and Christian Nunlist point out, “The idea underpinning CVE is that violent extremists should not be fought exclusively with intelligence, police, and military means. The structural causes of violent extremism must also be tackled, including intolerance, government failure, and political, economic, and social marginalization.” Yet the roles women play in relation to CVE have been vastly overlooked and understudied. Most research in this area focuses heavily on the most recent examples of political violence and terrorism and few focus on women’s roles specifically. Indeed, while CVE as a distinct tool of policy and research is recent, political violence, terrorism, and efforts to combat these forces are not. This study engages with historical case studies of political violence and terrorism and their concurrent counter-insurgency and CVE programs to bring a grounded historical perspective into CVE policy-making. This study aims to better understand how women participate in, counteract, and prevent violent extremism by examining the historical evidence for how they have previously done so. Ultimately, this study seeks to find ways for those working on CVE to use historical evidence in their work in order to create more effective CVE policies.
Topic:
Political Violence, Terrorism, History, Women, and Countering Violent Extremism
Political Geography:
Malaysia, Philippines, Colombia, Cyprus, and Northern Ireland

39. Women, Deradicalization, and Rehabilitation: Lessons from an Expert Workshop

Author:
Rebecca Turkington and Agathe Christien
Publication Date:
04-2018
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS)
Abstract:
With the rise of violent extremist groups around the world, questions around how to disengage and reintegrate participants from these groups back into their societies have become urgent. To date, most deradicalization programs have been designed for men, and there have been few efforts to create programs that specifically address the needs of women returnees. The underlying assumption that women lack agency permeates legal and policy responses to extremism and can have serious consequences. Though women remain relatively neglected, their participation in violent extremism is only growing. Women represent up to 20% of Western recruits to the Islamic State, and Boko Haram has used female suicide bombers at unprecedented levels. As greater numbers of women are joining extremist groups, failing to investigate and prosecute them upon their return risks creating a dangerous gap in security processes.
Topic:
Security, Women, Radicalization, Rehabilitation, and Countering Violent Extremism
Political Geography:
Global Focus

40. Mapping the Experiences of Formers to Streamline the Process of Engaging in CVE

Author:
Hedayah
Publication Date:
01-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Hedayah
Abstract:
This report maps a Former extremist’s journey from disengagement to CVE involvement, while also outlining implementable initiatives that can help governments and NGOs tackle some of the concerns Formers prior to becoming involved in CVE.
Topic:
Government, Violent Extremism, Psychology, NGOs, Identity, and Countering Violent Extremism
Political Geography:
Global Focus