Radical Islamic Groups Research Articles

Islamist Government in Malaysia under PAS: Ideology, Policies, and Competition

ABSTRACT Dominant approaches to understanding Islamist politics tend to assume a uniform polity. Most notably, inclusion–moderation hypotheses presume Islamist parties are simply in or out: that the lure of office persuades radical Islamist groups to moderate their behaviour and ideologies to participate in elections. We suggest a different dynamic, in which an Islamist party adapts its mien and messaging to appeal simultaneously to heterogeneous audiences, without compromising its core positions. We find an exemplary case in Malaysia, where Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party, PAS) contests both nationally and at the state level. At the federal level, PAS seeks support within a multi-ethnic, multi-religious polity, working in coalition with either secular, noncommunal parties, for whom an adamantly Islamist stance would be verboten, or Malay-ethnonationalist parties, for whom Islam is salient, but secondary. Meanwhile, PAS competes subnationally in its northeastern stronghold, where its confirmed Islamism confers strong advantage – but also in other states, with different approaches. Yet, across these stages, PAS sustains its underlying ideological consistency, especially on fraught social issues. We explore the extent to which electoral participation amid differing incentives reveals more a moderating effect on Islamist-party behaviour and ideology, or a capacity for strategic posturing.

Revolving Marriage Among the Radicals: An Analysis of Rotational Unrecorded Matrimonies within the Jemaah Islamiyyah Community

This article examines the practice of revolving marriage among the members of Jemaah Islamiyyah (JI), a clandestine radical Islamist group in Southeast Asia. Revolving marriage is a term coined by the author to describe the phenomenon of JI members marrying and divorcing multiple partners in a short span of time without registering their marriages with the state authorities. Employing the ethnographic method, this article argues that revolving marriage serves as a strategy of survival, resistance and recruitment for JI, as it enables them to evade detection, foster solidarity and attract new followers. This research reveals how such practices are rooted in a multicultural Fiqh perspective, reflecting the movement's adherence to traditional values while navigating a diverse cultural landscape.

Upaya Deradikalisme Dalam Lingkungan Sekolah Dan Implikasinya Terhadap Ketahanan Ideologi

This study aims to demonstrate that deradicalism in the environment will affect the resilience of students' ideologies in the current era. Radicalism is a problem that occurs in the world of education. Schools in Indonesia in recent years have become targets of radicalism. The notion of radicalism that dominates the ideology of students is a special concern for school components. Thus, it is necessary to take serious action to counteract radicalism in the school environment. This research is descriptive qualitative research accompanied by analysis with the support of secondary sources. The results of this study indicate that the strength of this ideology can be seen in the views and attitudes of activists who tend to be exclusive, placing pluralism as an understanding that must be avoided. This tendency continues to strengthen in line with the entry of the radical Islamic group cadre movement into schools. In his study of deradicalism, which contains characters that refer to Pancasila, it has implications for the ideological resilience of students, where this deradicalization effort directs students to become individuals with character in accordance with Pancasila, which is summarized in a Pancasila Student Profile.

Role and importance of Egypt in regional geopolitics

The article analyzes the role and significance of the Arab Republic of Egypt in regional geopolitics at the present stage. The author pays special attention to the specific role of its armed forces, which not only perform tasks to protect the state from external threats and combat terrorism,but also take an active part in the internal political and economic life of the country. The peaceful nature of Egypt's foreign policy is emphasized, Cairo's desire to take part in the work of the UN, Arab League, AU, OIC, BRICS, EU, other international and regional organizations, and to maintain mutually beneficial relations with leading world powers, Israel, Arab, African and Asian countries on a bilateral basis. Diversifi cation of Egypt's foreign policy and foreign economic relations with foreign countries, maintaining a balance of interests of all countries interested in Egypt ensure stability and progressive development of the state in all areas. The author also points out the continuing objective diffi culties and even crisis phenomena in the Egyptian economy: infl ation, devaluation of the national currency, large external borrowings, youth unemployment, loss of income from the operation of the Suez Canal, the tourism industry, etc. The next serious test for the country was the tragic events in the Gaza Strip, when the Israel Defense Forces launched a large-scale military operation against the militants of the radical Islamist groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad (the latter is recognized as terrorist and is banned in Russia). The threat of an uncontrolled exodus of hundreds of thousands of refugees from this Palestinian exclave to the Sinai Peninsula requires vigilance and preventive measures from Egypt's security forces. Along with this, Egypt remains one of the leaders in the Middle East, Africa, and among Muslim countries. Cairo's emphatically independent foreign policy and neutrality in regional conflicts allows it to maintain strategic partnerships with the United States while simultaneously developing relations with Russia and China in all areas.

Unresolvation of the Palestine problem — the main threat to regional security

The article analyzes the situation in the Middle East in connection with a new largescale armed confl ict between Israel and radical Islamist groups. The author reminds readers of the origins and causes of the Palestinian-Israeli confl ict and gives a detailed picture of the dynamics of events in the former British mandate territory of Palestine after 1948. The main reason for the ongoing tension in Israel's relations with the Arab and Muslim world is the disregard by the Israeli authorities and the leaders of a number of Arab countries of the relevant resolutions of the UN General Assembly on the creation of the State of Palestine. The ongoing occupation of the Syrian Golan Heights and Lebanese Shebaa farms by the Israeli armed forces does not help to strengthen confi dence in Tel Aviv on the part of neighboring Arab countries. The author believes that the main goals of the attack on Israel by Hamas militants and Islamic Jihad (banned in the Russian Federation) on October 7, 2023 were, fi rstly, to attract the attention of regional and global players to the Palestinian problem, and secondly, to demonstrate the increased military capabilities of Hamas and the vulnerability of Israel, and thirdly, a slowdown or complete disruption of the process of further normalization of Israel’s relations with Arab countries. In addition, Palestinian radicals believed that a successful military operation against Israel could lead to an increase in fi nancial, economic, political and military assistance to Hamas from its supporters and sponsors. The author notes the growing involvement of a number of regional and extra-regional players in the armed confl ict in the Gaza Strip (Lebanese Hezbollah, Yemeni Houthis, Iran, Qatar, Turkey, USA, EU countries). The article also notes the limited capabilities of UN institutions and other international organizations at this stage for a comprehensive and fair Middle East settlement.

Konsep Moderasi Beragama dalam Islam Perspektif Habib ‘Ali al-Jufri

The rise of socio-religious conflicts that have occurred in Indonesia in recent years has caused the condition of Indonesian society to be threatened. Such as the case of acts of terrorism by ISIS networks and radical Islamic groups. Also the movement against pancasila by the leader of the Jemaah Islamiyah group, Abu Bakar Ba'asyir. One of the factors causing the emergence of religious social conflicts is the existence of differences in views and beliefs about something. Overcoming this, religious moderation is conceptualized as a powerful solution in controlling radical and extreme ideas. In this study, researchers felt the need to reexamine the concept of religious moderation from the frame of Islam in the view of Habib 'Ali al-Jufri. This research uses descriptive qualitative research methods with the type of literature research. The focus of research by researchers is taken from two points, namely; a) the concept of religious moderation in the Islamic perspective of Habib 'Ali al-Jufri; b) the relevance of the concept of religious moderation in Islam from Habib 'Ali al-Jufri's perspective to the religious diversity of Indonesian society. Religious moderation according to Habib 'Ali al-Jufri is a person's religious perspective or attitude while still maintaining human values. In such conditions, the similarity of form as a creature of Allah SWT becomes a factor to be generous with various differences. The concept of religious moderation by Habib 'Ali al-Jufri is very important and very relevant to be applied in Indonesia. Considering Indonesia with a Muslim majority and various mass organizations in it. Thus, the concept of humanizing humans is the main indicator in realizing the glory and glory of Muslims in Indonesia.

Политический ислам в мусульманском мире

The article is devoted to the study and analysis of the influence of political Islam on the political situation in the Muslim world. It is shown that the influence of political Islam in the field of politics of the Muslim world is limited, but the influence of the terrorist activities of radical Islamic groups and organizations should not be underestimated. Radical, traditional and moderate political Islam directly affects the political situation only in thirteen Islamic states with stable ruling regimes, as well as in secular Turkey. At the same time, in all these states, except for the theocratic Islamic dictatorships - Afghanistan and Iran, as well as the Emirate of Qatar, the authorities severely suppress any manifestations of radical political Islam. In twenty quasi-Islamic and secular Muslim states, political Islam does not have a significant impact on the political situation and processes. In some states of this part of the Muslim world, the authorities are forced to actively combat the cross-border terrorist activities of radical Islamic organizations. In almost a quarter of the states of the Muslim world, the political situation is currently unstable, which does not allow us to fully adequately assess the influence of political Islam in these states.

The Intersection between Islamic Populism and Radicalism in Indonesia: The Rise and Fall of Aksi Bela Islam Movement

This article discusses the role of radical Islamist groups – the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI), and the Salafis - in spearheading the populist Islamist 212 Movement. It examines why they were such effective forces in leading the movement and why their role diminished over time, which contributed to the decline of the movement. Drawing on political process theory and the literature on populism, this article argues that the movement faltered because they could no longer play an instrumental role due to the unsupportive structure of political opportunities, disorganized social movement, less relevant framing, and greater social and political pressure to the social movement.

MINORITY GROUP IN URBAN SOCIETY CONFLICT AND THREATS TO RELIGIOUS FREEDOM A CASE STUDY OF SYMBOLIC VIOLENCE AGAINST AHMADIYYA IN URBAN SOCIETY

This study explores the experiences of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community in the context of urban society, focusing on the manifestation of symbolic violence against this minority group and its implications for religious freedom. Symbolic violence encompasses various forms of discrimination, prejudice, and non-physical harm that target religious minorities. This research delves into the multifaceted dynamics surrounding the Ahmadiyya community's presence in urban areas and how they navigate challenges related to their faith and religious identity. The study is qualitative. The data were collected through online questionnaires and in-depth interviews with the Ahmadiyya congregations in three urban society as representatives of Indonesia namely Bandung (West Java), Makassar (South Sulawesi) and Lombok (West Nusa Tenggara) with the aim to examine the nature of symbolic violence against the Ahmadiyya community in urban society, highlight the broader implications for religious freedom in diverse societies as well as to find out the principle ​​adhered by the Ahmadiyya group in maintaining its existence amid the pressure of the transnational radical Islamic groups. The research results show that apart from experiencing physical violence, the Ahmadiyya followers also experienced symbolic violence whose impacts were felt to be much more painful than physical violence. The symbolic violence occurs in Capital and Habitus domain. Despite undergoing the acts of violence, the Ahmadiyya congregation is still able to survive by adhering to the values that have been their principle, that is “Love for all and hatred for none”.

The Dynamics of Islamic Radicalization in Bangladesh: Confronting the Crisis

This article examines the implications of banning Bangladesh’s largest Islamist party, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, from running in elections and the effect of the Bangladesh government’s co-optation of the radical Islamic group Hefazat-e-Islam. The article contends that more Islamic radicalization occurs as the opportunity for moderate Islamist parties decreases. Using a variety of qualitative methods, the article finds that banning Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami led to a rise in perceptions of the Bangladesh government as anti-Islamic. To counter that sentiment, the Awami League (AL) government co-opted the more radical Islamist organization Hefazat-e-Islam. Such acts increased Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami’s tendency to engage in violence. Moreover, radical Islamists working under Hefazat-e-Islam secured a window of opportunity for country-wide Islamic radicalization. Together these findings illuminate the tradeoffs faced by the Bangladesh government when confronted with religious radicalization in the political sphere, offering insights into how the Bangladesh government can better manage such tradeoffs in the future.

Влияние фактора политического ислама в современном мире

The article is devoted to the problem of the influence of the factor of political Islam in the modern conditions. In order to reveal such influence, the author examines the situation in 45 UN member stat es, where more than 50% of the population adheres to Islam, tentatively subdividing these states into Islamic, quasi-Islamic and secular. His analysis shows that the influence of the factor of political Islam in the field of politics of the Muslim world, and, consequently, in the global political space, is limited. The direct impact of political Islam on political processes is visible only in 12 Islamic states with stable political regimes and secular Turkey. In all these states, except for theocratic Islamic dictatorships Afghanistan and Iran, as well as Qatar, the authorities severely suppress any manifestations of radical political Islam. The interreligious Sunni-Shia conflict exerts a significant impact on the political situation in a number of Islamic states. In 20 quasi-Islamic and secular Muslim states with stable political regimes, political Islam, if present, is only on the periphery of the political field. At the same time, in some of the states in this group, the authorities have to fight cross-border terrorist activity of radical Islamic organizations. In almost a quarter of the states of the Muslim world, the political situation is currently unstable. Herewith, one of the factors of political turbulence in these states, along with ethnic and clan conflicts, is the terrorist activities of both international and national radical Islamic groups and movements.

The Last Jihadist Battle in Syria: Externalisation and the Regional and International Responses to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham in Idlib

When Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) seized Idlib, it alarmed and disturbed international observers. However, HTS is only one among a number of radical Islamist groups in a part of Syria that has become an incubator of Jihadism. As the last remaining redoubt of the armed opposition in the country, the governorate has become an international concern. Events have now reached an impasse, and the time is thus right for a reappraisal that steps back and considers contemporary developments in the wider context of ongoing events in the governorate. This article also places local developments in a wider context in another sense by considering how regional and international interventions contributed to HTS’s rise in the Idlib governorate. This is particularly important as external interventions by Turkey, Iran, Russia and the US have not only failed to establish a sustainable basis for peace by addressing the root causes of violence but have actually inflamed hostilities and exacerbated the various challenges involved in ending the conflict, which has at times taken on the appearance of a proxy war. In seeking to better theorise externalisation, this article draws on peacebuilding theory. This historical and political contextualisation seeks to contribute to an improved understanding of HTS’s rise and the means through which it can be most effectively combated in the future.

Construction of Political Identity on Instagram: Unveiling the Kadrun Hashtag Movement in Indonesia's 2024 Presidential Election


 
 
 
 
 
 This scientific article investigates the construction of political identity through hashtag movements on Instagram, focusing on the "#kadrun" hashtag related to Anies Baswedan, a presidential candidate for the 2024 election in Indonesia. Using the framing analysis method by Zhong Dang Pan and Gerald M. Kosicky, the study examines the structural dimensions of political identity content by observing and analyzing the hashtag from October 3, 2022, to May 3, 2023. The results reveal three Instagram accounts actively contributing and acting as political identity buzzers, uploading 89 to 92 contents within seven months. The hashtag frames Anies Baswedan and his supporters as a radical Islamic group, seeking to establish a caliphate, and intolerant, potentially leading to political polarization based on religion, community, and ethnicity in the upcoming election. These findings hold implications for understanding the impact of social media content on political discourse and polarization, especially among young active voters who rely on Instagram as a source of information during elections.
 Highlight:
 
 
 Research Scope: The study explores the construction of political identity on social media, particularly through hashtag movements on Instagram related to the 2024 presidential candidate in Indonesia, Anies Baswedan, and the "#kadrun" hashtag.
 
 
 Framing Analysis: Utilizing the framing analysis method by Zhong Dang Pan and Gerald M. Kosicky, the research examines the structural dimensions of political identity content on Instagram, focusing on message characteristics and content design from October 3, 2022, to May 3, 2023.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 The hashtag spreads messages identifying Anies Baswedan as a radical Islamic group, causing potential religious-based political polarization, as seen in the 2019 Election. Additionally, ethnic elements now contribute to polarization based on religion, community, and ethnicity in the 2024 elections.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Keyword: Political Identity, Social Media, Hashtag Movements, Instagram, Political Polarization.
 
 
 
 
 

War on Terror in Afghanistan; an Analysis of U.S Failed Policy

Bush's presidency begins with Al Qaeda attack on US territory, they adopted new strategies to counter radical Islamist groups and ensure American security, and the new setup established a new central agency, known as 'The Department of Homeland Security.' Secondly, they decided to keep the war out of American territory and invaded Afghanistan and quash the sanctuaries of Al-Qaeda and get rid of the government in Afghanistan. Another strategy was 'the doctrine of Preventive war' and the last action was against Saddam Hussain about whom they used to claim that Iraq possessed "Weapon of Mass Destruction." They pursued Afghan Taliban, too, as the enemies of the United States. The reason for such war was that the Bush administration or war policy makers had no understanding of Afghan society. To such an ignorant invader over the complex society, the ethnically diverse and religiously traditional fault lines caused tremendous trouble.

Kajian Tafsir Lisan tentang non-Muslim Perspektif Kiai Haji Maimun Zubair

On social media, there is a lot of hate speech and discriminatory behavior against non-Muslims carried out by radical Islamic groups. Even though it is contrary to what was taught by the Prophet and Ulama such as Walisongo. This if left unchecked will have an impact on disharmony and the development of intolerant behavior. This study examines the oral interpretations of scholars who have a depth of knowledge and are recognized for their wisdom by other scholars, especially Kiai Haji Maimun Zubair. A great Ulama caregiver PP. Al-Anwar Rembang regularly held an interpretation recitation during his lifetime with his students and the general public. The method used is to watch, listen and take notes, meaning that the researcher watches the video interpretation of Kiai Haji Maimun Zubair on YouTube which is uploaded by the official account of the pesantren (PP al-Anwar), then the researcher listens to what is conveyed and notes several important points for further study. deeper through discourse analysis. The results of the research on the oral interpretation of Kiai Haji Maimun Zubair in QS. Al-Isra: 53 on youtube shows that: 1) To communicate with nonMuslims, the best step is not to offend him as an expert in hell or make fun of his Lord. 2) believe that the concept of religious people is good, meaning that religious people are obedient to their religion which has five basic legal rules for marriage, cannot recognize property rights, cannot kill, cannot damage reason, can not damage other people's honor.

Are Muslims Intolerant of Non-Muslim Minorities? The Case of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

In the wake of terrorist attacks carried out by radical Islamist groups such as Al Qaida, Bocco Haram and ISIS, there has been a growing tendency in the western societies to dub Muslims as illiberal and intolerant of religious minorities and Islam as a religion of terror. Muslims are presented as people oppressing cultures which they disapprove of. In this article, this negative portrayal of Muslims as intolerant, non-accommodative and discriminative is questioned in the context of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Pakistan. The paper, firstly, surveys the liberal theories of multiculturalism and secondly, evaluates the attitudes of religious groups in KP towards religious differences by collecting 2977 questionnaires and conducting 80 personal interviews from four religious groups. The paper shows that as a Muslim majority entity, KP society is tolerant, accommodative and non-discriminative with majority of the respondents supporting state neutrality in term of religion.

Kontribusi Jaringan Sekolah Islam Terpadu (JSIT) dalam Pengembangan Pendidikan Islam di Indonesia

Jaringan Sekolah Islam Terpadu (JSIT) is a new phenomenon in the discourse of Islamic education in Indonesia, which developed rapidly in the Reformation era after the fall of the New Order government in 1998. This article is partly derived from the results of research on the development of JSIT in Indonesia, especially in Lampung and Banten. The results of the study show that the emergence of JSIT was initially pioneered by the Tarbiyah Movement (Gerakan Tarbiyah) which became the embryo of the emergence of the Integrated Islamic School. This movement was originally a da'wah movement that emphasized the individual piety of its members and then moved politically after the fall of the New Order regime in 1998 by establishing the political party PKS (Partai Keadilan Sejahtera), while at the same time engaged in education by establishing JSIT which developed an integrated Islamic education system, and growing rapidly. The emergence of these integrated Islamic schools also gave rise to pro and contra responses, because of their connection with the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood (Ikhwanul Muslimin), which is considered a representation of radical Islamic groups. However, the learning model developed by JSIT became a new thing which was later adopted by educational institutions outside of JSIT which also established integrated Islamic schools. JSIT has progressed and developed quite massively in Indonesia, although these schools are expensive, but it has not stopped the community from sending their children to school, and most of them come from well-established and educated socio-economic class families. This research also shows that the existence of JSIT has significantly contributed to the development of Human Resources (HR) who are superior in science and religion, because the curriculum is designed to combine general knowledge and religious knowledge at the same time. JSIT in its work has contributed to creating a new educated Muslim group in Indonesia in this contemporary era.

Deradicalizing YouTube: Characterization, Detection, and Personalization of Religiously Intolerant Arabic Videos

Growing evidence suggests that YouTube's recommendation algorithm plays a role in online radicalization via surfacing extreme content. Radical Islamist groups, in particular, have been profiting from the global appeal of YouTube to disseminate hate and jihadist propaganda. In this quantitative, data-driven study, we investigate the prevalence of religiously intolerant Arabic YouTube videos, the tendency of the platform to recommend such videos, and how these recommendations are affected by demographics and watch history. Based on our deep learning classifier developed to detect hateful videos and a large-scale dataset of over 350K videos, we find that Arabic videos targeting religious minorities are particularly prevalent in search results (30%) and first-level recommendations (21%), and that 15% of overall captured recommendations point to hateful videos. Our personalized audit experiments suggest that gender and religious identity can substantially affect the extent of exposure to hateful content. Our results contribute vital insights into the phenomenon of online radicalization and facilitate curbing online harmful content.

Shedding Light on the Dark Web: Authorship Attribution in Radical Forums

Online users tend to hide their real identities by adopting different names on the Internet. On Facebook or LinkedIn, for example, people usually appear with their real names. On other standard websites, such as forums, people often use nicknames to protect their real identities. Aliases are used when users are trying to protect their anonymity. This can be a challenge to law enforcement trying to identify users who often change nicknames. In unmonitored contexts, such as the dark web, users expect strong identity protection. Thus, without censorship, these users may create parallel social networks where they can engage in potentially malicious activities that could pose security threats. In this paper, we propose a solution to the need to recognize people who anonymize themselves behind nicknames—the authorship attribution (AA) task—in the challenging context of the dark web: specifically, an English-language Islamic forum dedicated to discussions of issues related to the Islamic world and Islam, in which members of radical Islamic groups are present. We provide extensive analysis by testing models based on transformers, styles, and syntactic features. Downstream of the experiments, we show how models that analyze syntax and style perform better than pre-trained universal language models.

Trends in Political Islam: Transition towards Liberalization

The evolution of Islamism/political Islam as an ideological system is analyzed. This system was formed in the 1970s‒1980s and initially played the role of a progressive and alternative model, replacing the previously dominant ideas of Arab nationalism. However, the Islamists failed to fully achieve one of their main goals—the creation of an Islamic state—because of the deterrence of secular authoritarian states. The events in the Persian Gulf and the temporary drop in oil prices in the late 1990s aggravated the ideological crisis of Islamism and led to its rethinking. As a solution, a more liberal version of Islamism was proposed in the form of post-Islamism, which combined Islamic and democratic principles and was focused on duties rather than human rights. The next milestone in liberalizing Islamist ideas was the events of the Arab Spring, which led to a rethinking of post-Islamist ideas, as well as the liberalization and politization of the Salafi doctrine. Moreover, the failures of a number of Islamist parties in achieving political power, as well as the activities of radical Islamist groups, discredited Islamism among the population of the Middle East and North Africa. It is likely that the next crisis of Islamism will lead to its further liberalization or the formation of a new ideological model.