Lo scopo del libro è quello di presentare i risultati di una survey che ha visto coinvolti i membri di alcune Law Enforcement Agency europee e un gruppo di esperti in materia di terrorismo e radicalizzazione che sono stati interrogati sul presente e il futuro della radicalizzazione violenta in Europa. Questa ricerca è stata condotta nell’ambito del progetto TRIVALENT. Dopo una descrizione del background teorico della ricerca e della metodologia utilizzata, saranno presentati i risultati delle interviste qualitative e del questionario Delphi. La principale conclusione di questo studio è l’idea che la radicalizzazione e il terrorismo siano processi complessi e articolati in più livelli che coinvolgono sia i singoli individui sia le macro-strutture.

This book provides a detailed insight into the complex dynamics of radicalization that are in play amongst contemporary society. The authors focus on understanding emerging trends and models that can be used to analyse and understand modern violent extremist and xenophobic discourse. The chapters cover multiple regions, providing a collective analysis of country-specific case studies for the formulation of best practices, recommendations and learning material. It is recommended that this book may serve as a compendium for practitioners, academics, teachers and students wishing to gain state-of-the art knowledge. Topics covered by the authors vary from hands-on practical information to tactical, operational, strategic and ethical guidance. This book provides a holistic, harmonized approach based upon European internal security strategies recognizing that internal security cannot be achieved in isolation from the rest of the world. Additionally, this material resonates with the EU’s commitment to fight extremism in a rational manner, alongside promoting human rights, democracy, peace and stability within the EU Member States. Presents a comprehensive understanding of the interconnectivities and trends behind emerging radicalisation patterns; Features newest conceptual and practical knowledge to monitor, analyse and respond to radicalization around the world; Provides a comprehensive view into the methodologies for analysis, through visualizations, case studies and applications.

Radicalization is a major challenge of contemporary global security. It conjures up images of violent ideologies, “homegrown” terrorists and jihad in both the academic sphere and among security and defense experts. While the first instances of religious radicalization were initially limited to second-generation Muslim immigrants, significant changes are currently impacting this phenomenon. Technology is said to amplify the dissemination of radicalism, though there remains uncertainty as to the exact weight of technology on radical behaviors. Moreover, far from being restricted to young men of Muslim heritage suffering from a feeling of social relegation, radicalism concerns a significant number of converted Muslims, women and more heterogeneous profiles (social, academic and geographic), as well as individuals that give the appearance of being fully integrated in the host society. These new and striking dynamics require innovative conceptual lenses. Radicalization in Theory and Practice identifies the mechanisms that explicitly link radical religious beliefs and radical actions. It describes its nature, singles out the mechanisms that enable radicalism to produce its effects, and develops a conceptual architecture to help scholars and policy-makers to address and evaluate radicalism—or what often passes as such. A variety of empirical chapters fed by first-hand data probe the relevance of theoretical perspectives that shape radicalization studies. By giving a prominent role to first-hand empirical investigations, the authors create a new framework of analysis from the ground up. This book enhances the quality of theorizing in this area, consolidates the quality of methodological enquiries, and articulates security studies insights with broader theoretical debates in different fields including sociology, social psychology, economics, and religious studies.

This is the first book to address in depth the interplay between radicalisation and political violence in Europe, as well as the effectiveness of counter-measures. As evidenced from the multitude of intercepted plots across several European cities since 2001, the threat level and the intensity of the desire to perpetrate mass-casualty attacks within Europe is not diminishing. While violent radicalization has gradually moved to the top of the EU counterterrorism agenda, it has been accompanied by a relatively embryonic understanding about the processes and interplay of factors that contribute to radicalization, which are played out differently in cities like Paris, Rome, London and Copenhagen. Undoubtedly, there are common factors at the global and regional levels that facilitate radicalization, but it is also clear that radicalization is very context dependent. This book provides crucial insights into different ways to understand violent radicalization within national contexts and the challenges addressing the many pathways into terrorism inspired by al-Qaeda and other forms of Islamic extremism. This book will be of great interest to students of terrorism studies and political violence, counter-terrorism, EU politics, security studies and IR in general. Magnus Ranstorp is Research Director of the Center for Asymmetric Threat Studies at the Swedish National Defence College and a Member of EU Expert Groups on (Violent) Radicalisation. He has twenty years of experience in research on counterterrorism issues and testified at the 9/11 Commission Hearing.