Drivers of radicalisation and violent extremism-MOROCCO-CONNEKT H2020 (original) (raw)
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Morocco – Macro-drivers of radicalisation and violent extremism
Connekt H2020, 2022
This publication reflects only the views of the author(s); the European Commission and Research Executive Agency are not responsible for any information it contains. Its contents are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the European Institute of the Mediterranean (IEMed).
Morocco: Country Report on National Approaches to Extremism
radicalisme , 2021
The report sets out valuable data, figures and information regarding violent extremism in their specific contexts, and provide a brief overview of the main policies, strategies and initiatives regarding Prevention/Countering Violent Extremism in the country. Moreover, it also identifies the most relevant stakeholders in the field, both as source and target of such past and current visions and actions.
Moroccan Islamists Debate the Causes of Violent Extremism
Journal of Global Initiatives: Policy, Pedagogy, Perspective, 2019
Using Moroccan sources associated with the Islamist movement, this paper outlines the theological and political challenges facing Morocco in terms of violent extremism, especially those posed by certain Wahhabi and Salafist views that reject mainstream Moroccan Islam. It outlines the state’s response to terrorism and evaluates its causes as offered by several Islamist Moroccan intellectuals.
Official Islam's Involvement in Preventing Violent Extremism: Critical Insights from Morocco
The German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP), 2019
The Moroccan experience presents a typical case of how religion is intensively incorporated as a crucial component of a multi-pronged strategy to combat violent extremism. Morocco’s religion-based Prevention of Violent Extremism (PVE) strategy lies in its reliance on a well-structured religious bureaucracy that functions in line with a politically-oriented, inclusive vision using persuasive, sophisticated tools, and which supposedly operates in tandem the other socio-economic and security aspects that comprise the total national PVE strategy. Nevertheless, this religion-based strategy suffers from several challenges and deficiencies, including the ideological vision framing it, its instrumentalization to serve certain political interests, and the uncertain efficacy and effectiveness of its modes of functioning, outreach, and scope of action. In order to improve coordination between the different institutions involved in Morocco’s PVE strategy, an intergovernmental body should be created that can synergize their fragmented activities. In addition, state-run religious institutions should develop indicators to assess the impact of their activities. Finally, religious associations and scholars should be involved and provided with appropriate training to effectively contribute to Morocco’s PVE efforts.
2020
Similar to many other countries in the region, violent extremist groups and ideologies pose a significant threat to Moroccan society and the stability of the country. In response, the government has pursued a highly security-based approach, which has resulted in the arrest of over 3,000 (alleged) jihadis and the dismantling of 186 terrorist cells between 2002 and 2018. While the root causes are multi- faceted, Morocco’s ongoing socio-economic challenges, which have reinforced economic and political grievances, have fueled radicalization. For this reason, some have demanded that the government prioritize greater domestic engagement instead of increasing investment in countries south of the Sahara
2022
When ideology is all that matters! Exploring non-violent Islamism through Fetullah Gülen and Taqiuddin An-Nabhani Elisa Orofino, Anglia Ruskin University (UK) Yavuz Çobanoğlu, Munzur University (TR) Extremism goes far beyond the use of violence and the presence of long-living vocal (and non-violent) extremist groups tells us how complex this phenomenon is. Vocal extremists are characterised by strong anti-government and anti-establishment agendas but they do not use violence as a viable means to achieve their goals. Often labelled as “preachers of hate”, vocal extremists are hard to ban in Western democracies as they mostly stand as protest groups who are granted the freedom of speech and association. They are therefore free to disseminate their ideas, which have worked as a conveyor belt to violence for some individuals over the years. This paper aims to investigate this type of non-violent extremism and its problematic manifestations.
Violent Radicalization: Beyond Ideology or Religion
Workshop: The Narrative of Islamic violence in History. Creation, artifice and reality, 2018
Narratives that consider Islam as a violent religion have been reinforced in recent times by the rise of jihadism, i.e. those radical Islamist movements that advocate the use of violence through a distorted concept of jihad. At present, jihadism represents a global movement with a considerable popular base of followers even in secular Western societies. One of the characteristics of jihadist organizations is their ability to commit attacks in these Western societies, either directly and deliberately or through inspiring and encouraging the creation of autonomous cells. This fact, on the one hand, has led the respective governments to declare jihadist terrorism as one of the main threats to security. But, on the other hand, it has also contributed to the association between Islam and violence, a tendency that, although clearly erroneous and unjust, often becomes inevitable. However, recent research suggests that the process of violent radicalization of jihadist nature that some individuals experience in Western societies does not differ essentially from other processes based on political or nationalist ideologies. If this hypothesis is confirmed, the different political, religious, etc. contexts where the process of radicalization takes root would lose relevance in favor of the individual and the interpretation he makes of each of them. In other words, the arguments that support the consideration of Islam as a violent religion would lose weight in favor of the misuse, intentional or not, that some individuals make of religion to satisfy their own ends.