The Dark Social Capital of Religious Radicals

Choosing Where to Fight: Do Social Networks Distinguish American ISIS Foreign Fighters from ISIS-Inspired Terrorists?

“…Thus far, however, social networks have only been analyzed a handful of times in studies of foreign fighters. Saal's (2021) examination of travelers from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland is the most thorough investigation to date. Using social network analysis (SNA), the author finds that nearly 90% of the fighters from Germany and Austria, and more than 80% from Switzerland, who joined foreign terrorist groups between 1998-2018 had connections to other extremists.…”

“…Second, there is a greater chance that individuals in these types of networks will be connected to former fighters or have trusted relationships with local contacts who can provide expertise on how to travel successfully. Indeed, as Saal (2021) and Holman (2016) note, facilitators, including those who previously fought abroad, are often the keys to successful travel. These actors know how to avoid detection by law enforcement, they are familiar with travel routes and safe houses, and they act as gatekeepers who connect legitimate travelers to transnational networks of fighters.…”

“…Given their secretive nature and inability to openly recruit new members, terrorist groups often rely on personal connections to vet aspiring members. Thus, individuals who are tied to a network by kinship or friendship are more likely to be deemed trustworthy and to receive the help of fighters in conflict zones (Holman 2016;Saal 2021). Moreover, networks based on trust are less likely to be infiltrated by law enforcement or outside actors who might otherwise influence their members' decision-making.…”

Zwischen Ich-Gesellschaft und Wir-Nation. Religionszugehörigkeit, Religiosität und der Umgang mit religiöser Vielfalt in der Schweiz

“…Stellt man die Mehrheitsbevölkerung (definiert als Befragte ohne Zugehörigkeit zum Islam) gegen die muslimische Minderheit, steigt die Bedrohungswahrnehmung einerseits noch einmal leicht an, während andererseits die allermeisten Muslime (84 %) den Islam als nicht bedrohlich einstufen. Allerdings sehen immerhin 16 % der muslimischen Befragten ihre eigene Religion als Bedrohung an, was auf innermuslimische Konflikte um den Stellenwert ihrer Religion im Alltag und speziell den Umgang mit den Ansprüchen fundamentalistischer Minderheiten im Namen des Islam hinweisen dürfte (Saal 2021).…”