Jihadist networks have become a serious threat to Europe’s internal security and are therefore a policy priority. But what do we know about these networks and how should we counter them? This study focuses on the modus operandi of jihadist networks between 2000 and 2013 and gives an empirical insight in the organizational structures, activities, and involvement mechanisms of jihadist networks in the Netherlands. The data are derived from 28 police investigations, 51 interviews with police investigators, public prosecutors, lawyers, imams, and staff members from Asylum and Detention Centers. The findings show how jihadist networks have changed over the years and how this development has affected the way jihadists operate.

Many of the common academic explanations for radicalization and extremism are present among Turkish-Dutch youngsters. Based on qualitative research among 150 youngsters with a Turkish background, the authors describe how these youngsters are catching up with their disadvantaged socioeconomic position in the areas of education and labor. These Muslim youngsters feel that they and Islam are increasingly met with distrust and exclusion in mainstream society. In the sociocultural domain of incorporation, Turkish-Dutch youngsters are very diverse, but within this diversity focussed on their own ethnic group. Although these characteristics as deprivation, exclusion and strong internal orientation are commonly used as risks for radicalization, these Turkish-Dutch youngsters seem not to be attracted to Islamic radicalism nor extremism. The authors explain this through the opportunities for political participation within their communities and the specific Turkish secular Islam that offers room for a more individualized religious interpretation. In addition the strong internal focus of these youngsters and the solidity of the Turkish communities create strain between different Turkish religious or political groups, but also offer them a very strong, positive identity and feelings of belonging.

In order to understand why people can turn to violence to achieve political or societal changes, it is important to examine factors that can trigger a process of radicalization. In this article the authors outline such a model of trigger factors. In this model they specify trigger factors at the micro level (individual level), meso level (group level), and macro level (societal level). In addition, the authors argue that it is important to take into account personal characteristics, such as age, gender, and the type of motivation, behind a radicalization process. With respect to these types of motivation, the authors distinguish between sensation seekers, justice seekers, identity seekers, and meaning seekers. This model enables to discern triggers in the radicalization process of specific people in specific contexts.

Islamic State uses an age old apocalyptic narrative to attract followers and legitimatize its existence. The author shows which narrative elements were used during earlier stages of violence-inciting apocalyptic manifestations in Christianity and Western ideology and how they can be retraced in the communications and enactments of Islamic State. The use of such a narrative explains why the movement has been so much more powerful in attracting followers than al-Qaeda.

Over the last decades the number of people who have been detained on the suspicion of terrorism has significantly grown. This has resulted in an increased scholarly interest in the topic of prisons and terrorism. However, the main focus of academic research has been the period of incarceration. Especially the question whether terrorists should be isolated from other prisoners has received considerable scientific attention. What happens after their release still remains opaque. In this article some preliminary insights will be shared on particular aspects of the societal reintegration of former suspected terrorist detainees. It presents some of the obstacles, dilemmas and opportunities. These insights where obtained through semi-structured interviews with both professionals and former detainees with a jihadist background.

Research into radicalization and terrorism assumes that violent individuals have political or religious intentions and motivations. However, what ‘political or religious motivations’ exactly are changes through time. A rigorous conceptual demarcation of ‘radicalization’ and ‘terrorism’ runs the risk of overlooking societal and political changes leading to a variety of violent outbursts that may have more in common than assumed at forehand. Hans Magnus Enzensberger’s concept of ‘the radical loser’ is used as an example of a broader conceptualization that can function as a category enabling interconnected and interdisciplinary research into different manifestations of violence, both in their differences and their similarities. Whether or not terrorists, school shooters and violent lone actors are fundamentally different categories should be a topic of academic enquiry instead of being taken for granted.