Radicalisation and Violent Extremism in United Kingdom Prisons

The mandate of prisons is to provide an enabling environment for the reformation of law breakers, but they are also increasingly doing the exact opposite, deepening, and contributing to the radicalisation of inmates and exposing them to extremist ideologies that ultimately lead them to terrorist activities upon release. Several accounts of convicted terrorists in European countries such as the United Kingdom (UK) and elsewhere point to this paradox. These accounts also call for serious questions on why and how prisons in the UK are sites for recruitment of inmates into radical ideology and violent extremist orientation. This study therefore posed several critical questions: What makes prison radicalisation distinct from other channels of radicalisation? What specific prisons administrative systems in the UK foster radicalisation and violent extremism? Why and how do certain inmates end up embracing radical ideologies in UK prisons while others do not? How is the UK government responding, and how should it respond, to the challenges of radicalisation in its prisons? Finally, how might a more holistic understanding of prison radicalisation in the UK assist in resolving the “upstream” puzzle of tackling global terrorism? Drawing critical insights from prisons in the UK, this study relied on extensive primary and secondary sources of data as well as perspectives from social network and contagion theories to understand and explain the causes, patterns, and trajectories of radicalisation in prisons in the United Kingdom. The study noted that even though the UK government has initiated a couple of legislative measures to combat radical and extremist behaviours within and outside prison estates, and as good as the legislation seems, it is not enough to achieve reformation of offenders, nor is it capable of changing behaviours of radicals. Arguably, a detailed understanding of prison radicalisation in the United Kingdom will assist policymakers to map out ways to curb the recruitment of inmates into extremist and radical activities and invariably help to curb the spread of violent ideology inside the UK prisons and beyond. Overall, combating radical ideas and violent Islamist extremism in prisons will stem the security threat this development poses, not only to the security and social cohesion in the United Kingdom in particular, but also to the global community in general. The study recommended that prisons in the UK and elsewhere should be maximised as environments for educational and human development platforms of inmates. It is argued that if Islamist radicals are leveraging prisons to recruit vulnerable inmates, then the UK government and governments of other nations could do better by leveraging correctional environments to educate inmates for human development purposes and thereby build their psychological and mental capacities against the poisonous ideologies being proliferated by Islamist radicals behind bars.Thesis (PhD (International Relations))--University of Pretoria, 2021.Jehovah Jireh Global Outreach; University of Pretoria Postgraduate Bursary Support; SSRC, New York; Commonwealth Commission London; Prof Christopher Isike's Funding; Jehovah Jireh Global OutreachPolitical SciencesPhD (International Relations)Unrestricte

Radicalisation of European Citizens and ISIS Terrorism

The growing numbers of terror attacks in Europe in recent times has made the concept of radicalization a sensitive phenomenon, most especially, Islamic radicalization. The activities of Islamic extremists and terrorists have been identified with a good number of European citizens, who have joined the Islamic State (IS) and engaged in acts of terror against their own citizens and governments. Radicalisation has been used as a weapon by the Islamic State to recruit some European citizens as its members in order to perpetuate its objectives in Europe. The objective of this project is to examine how the Islamic State has been able to radicalize some European citizens as its members and build its network across the continent. It seeks to critically analyse the influence of the Islamic State ideology on European citizens, which has consequently led and could further lead to the participation of some European citizens in terrorist engagements. This work seeks to respond to the puzzle: how is it possible for the Islamic State to secure the interest of some Europeans into terrorism, considering the distance between Europe and the Middle East and the high standard of living as well as education that is available in Europe? In this mini-dissertation, the relevance of the study is pointed out in today Europe as far as peace and security development of the continent is concerned. This research makes use of secondary sources of data collection to investigate the study and its theoretical analyses is drawn from social network and contagion theories in order to shed more light on the discourse of the radicalisation of European citizens as Islamic State members. Specifically, this mini-dissertation discusses a brief origin and objectives of the Islamic State, the ideological perspectives of the group, reasons behind the radicalization of Europeans citizens as well as channels of radicalizing European citizens.Mini Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2017.Modern European LanguagesMAUnrestricte

Securing world heritage sites: insurgency and the destruction of UNESCO’s world heritage sites in Timbuktu, Mali

Because of the political and religious disagreements in Mali, the protection of the country’s world heritage sites (WHSs) has been a constant agenda of state-parties to the World Heritage Convention (WHC). To avoid irreversible damage and loss of these valuable national heritages, appropriate action is needed at every level for their conservation and preservation. Significant attention has been directed at understanding the relevance and benefits of WHSs to the economic sector specifically, but, there has been relatively little academic and policy research on the destruction and looting of WHSs especially in Timbuktu, Mali. This is the gap this study intends to fill. This calls for serious questions regarding what precipitated and led to the destruction of Timbuktu’s cultural heritage. What is the significance of Timbuktu’s WHSs to the Malians? How should government authorities respond to the destruction of the sites? Finally, against the background of the destruction of the Timbuktu WHSs, how can the WHSs be preserved and protected? This study critically interrogates insurgents’ attacks on the WHSs, with the motive of developing a sustainable template suitable for forestalling potential attacks by Islamic/jihadist insurgents, or any other insurgents for that matter, in other locations in Mali, using the attacks in Timbuktu as a case study.http://link.springer.com/journal/10708hj2022Political Science