The Battle Against Extremism is Being Lost. Is it Time To Bail Out?

April 21, 2018 Article

For years, Faith Matters has been working to ensure that people and communities in our country, have a stake in their future and in decision making. We know full well, that disaffection and alienation are avenues by which extremists can manipulate young men and women in these vulnerable positions.

Both far right and Islamist extremists have been working for years to foment hatred and division in our communities. Yet, it is also clear that both have been feeding off each other and squeezing the middle ground of balanced opinion that is so much part of our country.

Take for example, the fact that the UK took in so many Islamist extremists who came from countries where torture and persecution were part of the norm, in places like Algeria, Libya and Syria. Whilst many fled because of persecution, by taking them into the UK, we effectively stored up problems for the future. Which leads to this question. Whilst we value the position of human rights, which is a fundamental part of the values of our country, did we truly believe that incoming Islamist extremists would be model citizens, given that many of them had bought into violent Jihad as a means of implementing their views? Did we think that they would stop their activities in the UK? Did we even consider that they would try and access Muslim communities in order to promote their sectarian, Jew-hatred and violent Jihad in our country? By allowing active Salafist Jihadists into our country, we let down the vast majority of British Muslims who were not part of this extremism and who wanted to simply practice and get on with their lives. 

We also let Islamist extremist proselytise and foment their hatred in Muslim communities and within time, their message and narrative overlaid any sense of attachment to the State within some sections of Muslim communities. It was a failed and disastrous policy that has led to social problems which many of us have had to tackle.

Muscular Liberalism

On the other side, the State has only started to use its ‘muscular liberalism’ against far right activists and groups. The Home Secretary has banned National Action and a handful of far right groups. Yet, the fact is that far right groups have splintered and are well organised and entrenched online. Their hatred of Muslims is spawning plots to harm Muslims and Muslim institutions and the State’s actions against these groups has been slow off the mark. This allied to the ‘anything goes’ attitude of social media companies, who held this position for years, meant that the hatred from far right groups consolidated the reciprocal hatred towards western values and society emanating from Islamist extremist groups. 

Faith Matters has been working to tackle both ends of the extremist spectrum for over a decade now. Yet, we cannot continue to push ahead if there is no real stomach by this and future governments who sit inactively whilst civil society groups are harassed, targeted and undermined in this battle against extremism. There comes a time when we must disengage and step out for the sake of our resources and frankly, our security. That time is coming close, unless this Government can clearly show that it is committed and has the stomach to push back in a concerted way against such groups. 

There is still a small window of hope. However, that hope is fading fast.

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Categories: Far Right groups, Government, Home Secretary, Muscular Liberalism, National Action, Opinions

French Muslims Want to Be Like Anyone Else, Just Not Victims

April 7, 2018 Article

We have spent a week in France meeting with key organisations and with people who understand how poisonous the tentacles of Islamist extremism have been and how they have also given rise to greater feelings of anti-Muslim hatred, which have been fuelled by a number of factors. We have spoken to Muslims who see the victim narrative pumped into French Muslims who have suffered anti-Muslim hate incidents and to those who have had their fears expanded because of the perpetual victim narrative that Islamist groups in the country have been promoting. 

What is happening in France is troubling. It is troubling since the State is grappling with extremism, disaffection within parts of its population, anti-migrant attitudes and a hardening of political stances to groups who talk about discrimination. Yet, there is another issue that is layered on top of this and it includes Islamist groups who talk about Islamophobia as if there is a perpetual battle between Muslims and the State. They take a ‘them and us’ approach which is constantly filtered into discussions and talks at a local level and the impression that Muslims come away with after listening to such groups is that they are being targeted for persecution by the State. This thinking and the re-enforcement of the belief that Muslims are being persecuted by the State, does the following. It re-enforces just the Muslim identity within those who accept this toxic message and it further alienates and marginalises them mentally to their surroundings and to those who are non-Muslim.

This is not to take away from the state of emergency laws that were enacted in France after the massive terrorist attacks in Paris and which went on for two years, finally to be lifted in late 2017. There were real issues of infringements on civil liberties and life for some French Muslims is further complicated by abuse and racism. However, instead of raising the morale of French Muslims with hope, French Muslims are fed a diet of ‘raging Islamophobia’, a French State that does not care for them and a sense of being embattled that all plays into the hands of radicalisers. What women can and can’t wear is naturally a campaigning point for these groups, as is Islamophobia, something that we would term, anti-Muslim hate. Yet, the very defence of freedoms that these groups cite, they will not be willing to defend if, for example, a gay Muslim wanted to join them and speak about Islam openly. Or, if an Ahmadi Muslim wanted their open support, or if an ex-Muslim called for solidarity with them. Then these freedoms become a ‘pick and mix’ approach, something that shows how such groups discard democracy as soon as it does not suit them. 

France is in a complex and difficult place, though President Macron has made some really bold moves. The first of these is to reach out into the banlieues of France to try and reverse some of the deep unemployment and disaffection that is felt in these areas. He also has spoken of tackling the ‘slow burn of Islamist extremism’

France’s democratic values should not be at odds with Muslims. But with Islamists in the ascendance in Muslim communities in France, there is a risk that the very values that France defends, may become the ones that are attacked in the future.

 

 

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Categories: Banlieu, Egalite, Far Right groups, France, Fraternite, Liberte, Macron, Muslim, News

Rethinking Links Between Mental Health Issues and Extremism Towards a More Preventative Approach?

April 5, 2018 Article

 

In recent years, several high-profile terrorist attacks, emanating both from the Far Right and from religious extremists, have brought public attention to the link between mental instability and susceptibility to radicalisation. Often it has been the friends, co-workers and relatives of those who have committed violent acts who have then retrospectively voiced concerns about those individuals’ mental health.

READ THE FULL REPORT HERE

Overall, links between mental health issues and extremist acts, whether motivated by a Far-Right or Islamist ideology, were first suggested by the family and friends of those who had committed violence. However, academics and researchers have also noted the link. Connections between mental health issues and extremism merit further investigation, not least because findings can then be implemented as part of a strategy based upon prevention and catching such individuals early, rather than judicially punishing them after they have committed criminal acts. As Chief Constable Simon Cole said: “We cannot arrest our way out of a terrorist crisis”. Instead, a more effective strategy is to understand the basis of such acts and utilise this knowledge to identify potential future extremists. It should therefore be a cause of reassurance that academics have noted the need for partnerships between mental health professionals and counter-terrorism police, with schemes now permitting police to utilise the expertise of mental health specialists and embed them within their work. Despite families of extremists complaining of a lack of support from health services, whether for themselves or for their troubled relatives, that the police are uniting with mental health specialists to utilise their research and expertise is promising, as we look to the future.

You can download the report HERE

 

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Categories: far right extremism, Mental Health, Mental Health Issues, Publications / Reports, radicalisation

Parisian eyes on Brussels court as Bataclan suspect goes on trial

February 4, 2018 Article

More than two years after Islamist militants killed 130 people in their city, Parisians will be hoping for some new insight into the carnage when the sole surviving suspect appears in public for the first time on Monday.

But Salah Abdeslam, who goes on trial under high security in his native Brussels in relation to a shooting that preceded his capture and Islamic State suicide bombings there in March 2016, has so far shown little inclination to talk.

Kept under 24-hour suicide watch near Paris, 28, the 28-year-old has been transferred to a high-security prison close to France’s northern border so that he can be ferried to the Belgian capital’s Palace of Justice daily. Hearings are scheduled to last all week in a case related to events four months after the Paris attacks of November 2015.

With a French trial not expected until next year, his Belgian appearance, along with alleged accomplice Sofien Ayari, a 24-year-old Tunisian, will be his first moment in public since his arrest on March 18, 2016, close to his family home in the poor, western Brussels borough of Molenbeek.

Both men face up to 40 years in prison for attempted murder linked to terrorism for shooting at Belgian and French police who raided a suspected hideout in the southern Brussels borough of Forest on March 15, 2016.

Prosecutors say Abdeslam and Ayari slipped away, leaving a third gunman holding out until he was killed by police marksmen.

Lawyers for Abdeslam, a French citizen born to and raised by Moroccan immigrant parents in Brussels, accept he was in Paris on Friday, Nov. 13, when gunmen and suicide bombers killed 130 at a rock concert, near the national stadium and outside cafes.

His elder brother, with whom he ran a bar in Brussels, was among those who blew himself up. Prosecutors believe the younger Abdeslam, whom they accuse of running logistics for the attack including ferrying fighters from Syria across Europe, would have met the same fate had his explosive vest not malfunctioned.

How the pair, from a broadly secular background with a history of petty crime, were transformed into alleged cogs within extensive Islamic State cells operating in Belgium and France is unclear. A third brother, who has visited Abdeslam in prison, told a Belgian newspaper in December that he might be preparing to talk, inspired by a devout religious faith.

The trial had been due to start in late December but was delayed after Abdeslam belatedly reappointed a defence counsel, who then requested more time to prepare the case. Lawyers do not rule out that there could be further adjournments this week.

The trial has triggered a high alert in a city where 32 people were killed in suicide bombings at its airport and on its metro system by members of the same Islamic State-inspired group on March 22, 2016. That came four days after Abdeslam’s arrest and was prompted, officials believe, by fears among the Brussels cell that he might betray their plan under interrogation.

More than 100 police are expected to be deployed in and around Brussels’ mammoth 19th-century Palace of Justice, which dominates the skyline over the Renaissance city centre.

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Categories: Brussels, France, Islamic State, News, Parisians, Salam Abdeslam, terrorism

Pakistan plans takeover of charities run by Islamist figure U.S. has targeted

January 4, 2018 Article

Pakistan’s government plans to seize control of charities and financial assets linked to Islamist leader Hafiz Saeed, who Washington has designated a terrorist, according to officials and documents reviewed by Reuters.

Pakistan’s civilian government detailed its plans in a secret order to various provincial and federal government departments on Dec. 19, three officials who attended one of several high-level meeting discussing the crackdown told Reuters.

Marked “secret”, a Dec. 19 document from the finance ministry directed law enforcement and governments in Pakistan’s five provinces to submit an action plan by Dec. 28 for a “takeover” of Saeed’s two charities, Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) and the Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation. 

The United States has labelled JuD and FIF “terrorist fronts” for Lashkar-e-Taiba (“Army of the Pure” or LeT), a group Saeed founded in 1987 and which Washington and India blame for the 2008 attacks in Mumbai that killed 166 people.

 Saeed has repeatedly denied involvement in the Mumbai attacks and a Pakistani court saw insufficient evidence to convict him. The LeT could not be reached for comment. 

The Dec. 19 document, which refers to “Financial Action Task Force (FATF) issues”, names only Saeed’s two charities and “actions to be taken” against them.

The FATF, an international body that combats money laundering and terrorist financing, has warned Pakistan it faces inclusion on a watch list for failing to crack down on financing terrorism.

Asked about a crackdown on JuD and FIF, Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal, who co-chaired one of the meetings on the plan, responded only generally, saying he has ordered authorities “to choke the fundraising of all proscribed outfits in Pakistan”.

In a written reply to Reuters, he also said Pakistan wasn’t taking action under U.S. pressure. “We’re not pleasing anyone. We’re working as a responsible nation to fulfil our obligations to our people and international community.”

In response to the Reuters article, JuD spokesman Yahya Mujahid said the organisation will go to court if the government decides to take over JuD and FIF.

“We will not keep silent. We will fight a legal battle,” Mujahid said in statement, terming the government move illegal.

Saeed could not be reached for comment. He has frequently denied having ties to militants and says the charitable organisations he founded and controls have no terrorism ties. He says he promotes an Islamic-oriented government through doing good works.

On Monday, some of the first directives from the proposed crackdown were put in place.

The country’s financial regulator, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), issued an order that “prohibits” all companies from donating money to Saeed, LeT, JuD, FiF and other groups and individuals who are named on the U.N. Security Council sanctions lists.

In the capital Islamabad, the district magistrate banned proscribed organisations from “fund-raising in any kind and social, political, welfare and religious activities by these groups”, according to an order reviewed by Reuters.

The two-month ban, which can be extended, was put into place “to curb the terrorist acts and assistance activities carried out by the proscribed organisations and their subsidiary welfare wings,” the document said.

FIRST MAJOR MOVE

If the government follows through with the plan, it would mark the first time Pakistan has made a major move against Saeed’s network, which includes 300 seminaries and schools, hospitals, a publishing house and ambulance services. The JuD and FIF alone have about 50,000 volunteers and hundreds of other paid workers, according to two counter-terrorism officials.

Participants at the meeting raised the possibility that the government’s failure to act against the charities could lead to U.N. sanctions, one of the three officials said. A U.N. Security Council team is due to visit Pakistan in late January to review progress against U.N.-designated “terrorist” groups.

“Any adverse comments or action suggested by the team can have far-reaching implications for Pakistan,” the official said.

The Dec. 19 document gave few details about how the state would take over Saeed’s charities, pending the plans submitted from the provincial governments. It did say it would involve government entities taking over ambulance services and accounting for other vehicles used by the charities.

It says law enforcement agencies will coordinate with Pakistan’s intelligence agencies to identify the assets of the two charities and examine how they raise money.

The document also directs that the name of JuD’s 200-acre headquarters, Markaz-e-Taiba, near the eastern city of Lahore be changed to something else “to make it known that the Government of “Punjab (province) solely manages and operates the Markaz(headquarters)”.

The move to seize the charities could spark some concern from the powerful military, which has proposed plans to steer Saeed and the JuD into mainstream politics. The military did not respond to a request for comment.

In August, JuD officials formed a new political party, the Milli Muslim League, and backed candidates who fared relatively strongly in two key parliamentary by-elections.

The JuD publicly disavows armed militancy inside Pakistan, but offers vocal support for the cause of rebel fighters in Indian-administered Kashmir and has called for Pakistan to retake Kashmir. Nuclear-armed India and Pakistan have fought two wars over the disputed region.

Washington, which has offered a $10 million reward for information leading to Saeed’s conviction over the Mumbai attacks, warned Islamabad of repercussions after a Pakistani court in late November released him from house arrest.

Punjab’s provincial government had put Saeed under house arrest for 10 months this year for violating anti-terrorism laws.

Writing on Twitter on Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States has “foolishly” handed Pakistan more than $33 billion in aid over the last 15 years while getting nothing in return and pledged to put a stop to it.

 

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Categories: charities, Falah-e-Insaniat, Hafiz Saeed, Jamaat-ud-Dahwa, JuD, Milli Muslim League, News, Pakistan

Attacks on Christians – Be They in Pakistan or Cairo is an Affront to Humanity

December 29, 2017 Article

We have been highlighting the attacks and incitement against minority communities form some time. Just within the last 2 months, we highlighted Islamist extremism targeting members of Ahmaddiya communities in Pakistan. A few days ago, the small Christian community in Quetta, who were celebrating mass in the coming days to Christmas, were attacked and 9 people were killed in an Islamic State inspired attack. 

A few days ago, Iraq’s Christian communities in Telesqaf could celebrate mass for the first time after the Islamic State’s defeat. Then today, a devastating attack, once again, on the Coptic Christian community on the outskirts of Cairo. 

The attack at the church in Mar Mina, on the outskirts of Cairo, has left 9 people dead and with 2 gunmen opening fire on the church. Egyptian security forces are stepping up their patrols and visibility as Coptic Christians celebrate Christmas on January 7th 2018. 

This is not the first time that such attacks have been targeted at Egypt’s Coptic community and sadly, it may not be the last. There is a connection with all of these attacks since Islamist extremism has been the driving force. In Pakistan, Iraq and Egypt, groups inspired by it have attacked churches and congregations at prayer. Yet, Islamist extremism does not only attack other faiths, it attacks minorities within – such as Shia and Ahmaddiya communities. In fact, anyone beyond what Islamist extremists regard as being ‘true Muslims’ is in their eyes, liable to be attacked. 

As we move into 2018, it is essential that civil society groups who value human rights, challenge not only the causes of all forms of extremism, but also the ideology that drives them. The latter is essential given that extremism turns on the most vulnerable communities in society.

 

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Categories: Attack, Christians, Egypt, Iraq, News, Pakistan, terrorism

CCTV footage shows gunmen attacking Pakistan church

December 18, 2017 Article

Two suicide bombers attacked a packed Christian church in Quetta, capital of Baluchistan province, in south-western Pakistan on Sunday (December 17), killing at least nine people and wounding up to 56, officials said.

CCTV footage released by the police showed the attackers, both carrying guns, at the church gates. One climbed over the gate and let the other one into the compound. The footage showed people sitting at tables outside the church running from the scene.

Police guards stationed at the church entrance and on its roof killed one of the bombers but the second attacker detonated his explosives-filled vest outside the prayer hall just after Sunday services began, said Sarfraz Bugti, the provincial home minister.

Baluchistan police chief Moazzam Jah said there were nearly 400 worshippers in the church for the pre-Christmas service. The death toll could have been much higher if the gunmen had forced their way into the sanctuary, he said.

Jah said the venue – Bethel Memorial Methodist Church – was on high alert as Christian places of worship are often targeted by Islamist extremists over the Christmas season.

Islamic State claimed the attack, the group’s Amaq news agency said in an online statement, without providing any evidence for its claim.

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Categories: Amaq, Baluchistan, Bethel Memorial Methodist Church, News, Pakistan Church, Quetta

Thousands of children referred to UK’s counter-terrorism scheme, figures show

November 17, 2017 Article

Thousands of children and teenagers, including large numbers of girls, were referred to Britain’s often-criticised counter-terrorism programme Prevent, new official figures showed on Thursday.
Prevent is a key strand of Britain’s security strategy which was launched in 2003 to combat extremism after the Sept 11 attacks on the United States. It has grown in prominence since the 2005 suicide attack on London’s transport network which killed 52 people and the rise of the Islamic State in recent years.
It has been dogged since its inception by claims that it is used to spy on Muslim communities and a 2015 government edict  instructing public bodies such as schools, health workers and universities to report concerns further exacerbated those fears.
The first official Prevent figures from Britain’s Home Office (interior ministry) showed that of the 7,631 individuals thought to be at risk of being drawn into terrorism from April 2015 to March 2016, almost a third were children.
Of all those referred, only five percent, the 381 assessed to be the most at risk, were eventually deemed to need support from specialist mentors in the voluntary, de-radicalisation scheme known as Channel.
Some 63 individuals withdrew from the process and the Home Office said there was no data about whether they or any others who had been referred to Prevent or gone through the Channel process had later gone on to be involved in extremism.
Two-thirds of Prevent referrals were made over fears of Islamist extremism and 10 percent because of far-right concerns. The vast bulk came from the education sector and police, with 2,127 aged under 15, including 532 girls, and 2,147 aged 15 to 20, with 420 female.
A senior Home Office official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, cited the case of a nine-year-old boy who had been referred to Prevent after he stood up in class and said he supported Islamic State.
The boy, who had been bullied at school, had been watching IS execution videos after searching for news coverage after the Paris attacks. After a year of support, his life was turned around, the official said.
“NOT IDEOLOGICAL”
“In the last two years the number of teenagers has spiked and the number of teenagers that I’ve had who are on the autistic spectrum has also spiked,” one of Channel’s Islamist mentors, told reporters.
“What IS and these groups have understood is young people need narratives and they’ve created narratives which make a very complex world seem very simple.”
Britain suffered four militant attacks this year that killed 36 people – the deadliest spate since the London “7/7” bombings of 2005.
Britain’s Home Secretary has been meeting representatives of leading U.S. tech firms Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Twitter in Washington this week as part of her ongoing effort for them to do more to tackle online extremism.
A Prevent coordinator said the proliferation of extremist online content was an accelerant rather than a cause.
“It’s the petrol going on the fire, but it’s not the tinder which sparks the flame in the first place,” he said.

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Categories: children, counter-extremism, counter-terrorism, far right extremism, Far Right groups, News, Prevent

Extremism is a Cancer That We Must All Confront

May 23, 2017 Article

22 people have lost their lives after the terrible suicide attack in the early hours of the morning in Manchester. Last night, emergency services, the police and communities came together to try and support those who were targeted. The end result was that the nation woke up to see emergency procedures kick in within Manchester and with investigations underway.

People sit next to a police cordon near to the Manchester Arena, Britain May 23, 2017. REUTERS/Andrew Yates

There is intersectionality between extremism and hate crime. Far right anti-Muslim hate has extremist rhetoric that is associated with it, as does Islamist extremism which promotes a separationist view of people and communities. There is a strong likelihood that the suicide bomber involved in the terrorist attack in Manchester, was influenced by Islamist extremist narratives and rhetoric. This is why this rhetoric must be challenged and robustly challenged, when there are groups feeding into it and fanning the flames of views which include ‘Muslims being targeted by the State’ and ‘Islam being under attack’. Such rhetoric is toxic and is poured out by some groups.

Hate crime work involves empowering the victim. Only by empowering people, can extremist narratives be challenged. Those who play to fears and paranoia in our country are not part of the solution, but are part of the problem.

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Categories: far right extremism, hate crime, Manchester, Opinions, terrorism

Briton who promoted Islamic State with special cufflinks jailed for 8 years

May 2, 2017 Article

A British man who stored material about missile systems on data sticks disguised as cufflinks and created an extensive online manual for members of Islamic State was sentenced to eight years’ jail on Tuesday.

Samata Ullah, 34, an unemployed man from Cardiff in Wales, had admitted five terrorism charges including membership of Islamic State (IS).

Police recovered 30 pairs of USB sticks disguised as cufflinks, which contained a guide to missile systems and instructions on how to avoid detection online.

Counter Terrorism Commander Dean Haydon said Ullah had set up an online self-help library which contained IS propaganda, guidance on encryption and anti-surveillance techniques.   

“He’s created a one-stop shop for terrorists,” said Haydon in a statement, adding that Ullah used techniques the police had never seen before. “He was very technically competent… he was a very dangerous individual.”

Ullah posted video logs on his website to demonstrate his anti-detection techniques, featuring his gloved hand and voice-distortion technology to hide his strong Welsh accent.

In all, police recovered over half a million internet files and 150 digital devices.

Haydon said an investigation in Kenya had led police to Ullah, who had adopted multiple online personas, operating from dozens of email addresses and Twitter accounts.

The use of encryption by some internet companies “allows terrorists to operate with impunity”, Haydon said, a situation which he described as frustrating.   

Ullah had been able to conduct most of his activities by himself in his bedroom in Cardiff.   

“We found him quite a solitary character,” Haydon said.    “His character in the virtual world was very different from the one in the real world.”

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Categories: Islamic State, News, Samatah Ullah, terrorism, USB cufflinks, Wales