Saskatchewan Federation of Police Officers 53 have a desire to take action and do something significant, at the same time, they see the world in black-and-white terms and seek to align themselves with a virtuous cause” (Maclean’s, 2013). Alternatively, some young men, as was the case with the Tsarnaev brothers in Boston bombing last April, turn to radical ideology in order to project the blame for their internal suffering on the society around them (Reitman, 2013). The demise of their parents’ marriage and the subsequent abandonment of the teenagers in America left the brothers without financial or social support in rapidly deteriorating conditions (Reitman, 2013). Radical Islamist ideology offered an outlet for their anger at the country that supposedly failed them and set in motion the chain of events that led to the deadly end of Boston Marathon. Sageman’s (2004) argument supports this proposition, underlining that the reason for joining Salafi jihad is the alienation young men felt while living in foreign countries and not having gainful employment. Joining the jihad gave them an escape from personal sense of grievance and humiliation. In sum, the causes for radicalization can range from identity crisis, personal trauma, discrimination, segregation, and alienation to misinformation about Islam and Western foreign policy. However, there are other important factors that need to be present for the process of radicalization to take root. PROCESS OF RADICALIZATION According to Precht (2007), in Western Europe, for many, the process of radicalization begins when they are teenagers looking for a cause and a stronger Muslim identity and increasingly finding the answer in the ideology of radical Islam. Often people are rather secular before they enter the radicalization process and, in general, radicalization is taking place within loose social networks of friends and peers (Precht, 2007). An important factor in radicalization is the presence of a charismatic person who can easily deliver persuasive speeches not only in Mosques but also in schools, universities, or even prisons. “Official sources indicate that many American homegrown Islamists have also been radicalized while incarcerated, including the members of the prisonformed Jamiyat al-Islam al-Sahih cell in California that was convicted in 2007 for its plans to attack not only synagogues but also the Israeli consulate in Los Angeles” (Benraad, 2009). Many of young potential radicals are not fully aware of their country’s history, as well, they lack proper knowledge of Islam and have not read the Quran to see that Islam is actually one of the more peaceful religions. The fact that preachers of Wahhabi Islam find to their advantage is that many young disenchanted individuals are not knowledgeable about the entire scope of religion they are trying to embrace. Another important factor to consider is the role of social networks in the process of radicalization. “Social links are key to the dynamics of terror networks” (Sageman, 2004). Group phenomenon is a strong factor in creating such network, because the potential jihadists were close friends or relatives when joining terrorist network and have done so not individually but as a group. Many youth enter the circles of radicals after the society rejected Radicalization of Youth as a Growing Concern for Counter-Terrorism Policy ...continued Fotosearch continued...
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTM0NTk1OA==