Radicalization – recruitment of young minds for terrorism

Jihad, as difficult as it may seem for us to believe, does hold an ideological appeal for some. Six years after 26/11, we are still woefully unequipped to deal with this menacing mindset. We need a fundamental culture shift if the radicalization of a small but significant number of Indian youth is to be prevented. “Allah ke kaam par gaya tha.” (I had gone for the work of Allah) is what Arif Majeed, one of the four youths from Kalyan near Mumbai who joined terrorist organization ISIS.

As far as India is concerned, all the prominent Indian Muslims including clerics from all major Muslim organizations have denounced the activities of ISIS. After the Kalyan youths case, it is clear that the biggest danger India faces from jihadist groups is the radicalization of part of its Muslim population. ISIS had released a recruitment video titled “The Chosen Few of Different Lands” in at least three Indian languages: Urdu, Hindi and Tamil. It clearly indicates that it looks at India as a promising target to induct more members into the organization. Though majority of Indian Muslims have refused the ISIS, but there are youths who have shown some inclination to join the ISIS. Recent NIA (National Investigation Agency) dossier reveals that although an official estimate of Indian nationals who have joined ISIS is exactly a dozen (five from Mumbai and seven from Hyderabad), officials now admit that this number has crossed into the four-figure range.

Radicalization – the recruitment face of terrorism

Radicalization is not a threat to society if it is not connected to violence or other unlawful acts. Radicalization can actually be a force for beneficial change. For instance, people advocating the abolition of slavery were at one time considered to be radical as they stood in opposition to the prevailing views in their societies.

Terrorist radicalization is a dynamic process whereby an individual comes to accept terrorist violence as a possible, perhaps even legitimate, course of action. It refers to the process by which a person comes to support terrorism and forms of extremism leading to terrorism. There is no obvious profile of anyone likely to become involved in extremism or a single indicator of when a person might move to adopt violence in support of extremist ideas. The process of radicalization is different for every individual and can take place over an extended period or within a very short time frame.

Extremists will always target the vulnerable in a bid to spread their firmly held, but flawed, ideologies; their continued existence relies on recruiting others to their cause. It is becoming more apparent that people are being radicalized in their bedrooms rather than in places of worship. One of the things that [Islamic State] has been incredibly successful at has been using the internet and social networking spaces for their own propaganda. Security and intelligence officials have been concerned about educated young people getting drawn into Islamic State propaganda on social media chat-rooms.

The challenge ahead: Security agencies, authorities and policy makers have long struggled with how best to combat homegrown terrorism and prevent radicalization.

The ISIS militant (the masked man) responsible for decapitating American journalist James Foley in a gruesome video who is called by his nickname "Jihadi John" is found to be a British citizen. This raises important questions:

• Why would a young man who grew up in the West become attracted to militant Islamism?
• What causes someone to become violently radicalized and perpetuate acts of terror against members of the society in which they were raised?

As Foley's death shows, these questions are not just academic, they are also critical to developing counter-terrorism policies and preventing future Jihadi Johns.

Author: John Paul Manickam, a gold medallist in Criminology & Criminal Justice Science with close to 10 yrs of diversified work experience as a Security Professional & consultant in hospitality, IT and Private Security sectors in Chennai. A passionate trainer in the field of Life Safety, Fire Safety, Security & Risk Management, has trained over 5000 personnel in life saving skills. John is currently with FLSmidth as Travel Security Advisor for India and is part of the vibrant group of Security Managers in Chennai.