By Erin Marie Saltman and Melanie Smith
The following is the introduction to the latest Women and Extremism report from ISD. A link to the full report can be found here. Launched 28 May 2015
Although often assumed to be passive agents, women have played significant roles in a number of contemporary terrorist organizations. Violent extremist groups across the political and ideological spectrum have utilised female forces for a range of activities including logistics, recruitment, political safeguarding, operations, suicide bombing and combat. However, the recent unprecedented surge in female recruits to the terrorist organization Islamic State (ISIS) has brought this phenomenon into sharp focus. For many there remain misperceptions and misunderstandings concerning the role women play within these violent networks, often paired with engendered responses to the radicalisation of women. By analysing how terrorist organisations choose to utilise women, we are able to better understand the decision-making processes of terrorists and the inner-workings of the organization itself. Continue reading
By Erin Marie Saltman and Jake Barker
Originally Published by New World UNA-UK 24 February 2015. Original linked here.
The need for cohesive and effective counter-terrorism policy among UN member states is as crucial as ever. Transnational terrorist organisations, like Islamic State (IS), are territorially expanding in the Middle East, while the foreign fighter phenomenon is affecting a number of countries. With the continuation of this crisis, international gaps within counter-terrorism strategies have shown themselves. There is scope for improvement in UN strategies in terms of increasing its soft power capabilities through enhancing the infrastructure around counter-extremism. Continue reading
Report by Dr Erin Marie Saltman and Charlie Winter
This report was launched by Quilliam (November 2014). The link to the full report can be found here. The following is the Executive Summary to the report: Continue reading
Originally Published by Progress: 30 September 2014. Original linked here.
In today’s speech by home secretary Theresa May at the Conservative party conference, audiences were left with the overall sense that extremism, in its broadest sense, would be directly confronted by the Conservative government’s manifesto. Continue reading
Originally Published by Left Foot Forward: 11 July 2014. Original linked here.
Britain’s widespread surveillance is already broader than the majority of other European countries.
On Wednesday, David Cameron announced that there is an urgent need for the introduction of new surveillance legislation before the end of the parliamentary term, justified as a means of ensuring that UK law enforcement can maintain its ability to access the telecommunications data most important for security forces.
