Since the start of the Syrian conflict in 2011, estimates are that upwards of 38,000 foreign fighters have joined Sunni militant groups, such as ISIS and al-Qaeda, in Iraq and Syria. As of mid-October 2016, the Balkan country of Kosovo had 316 confirmed cases of individuals who have traveled since 2012 to Syria and Iraq, with some joining ISIS. In fact, Kosovo has the unique distinction of having the highest per capita number of citizens of any country in wider Europe who left for Syria and Iraq since 2011. Forty-four women and 29 children from Kosovo are also believed to have traveled to the conflict zones in Iraq and Syria.

While many other radicalizing factors and vulnerabilities exist in Kosovo, the long-term psychological legacy of the Kosovo war in the late 90s remains the most salient radicalizing factor in recent years. The findings in this report also serves to raise further awareness of women’s roles in both propagating and countering violent extremism in Kosovo. Despite being portrayed as traditional wives obedient to their husbands and without much personal agency on their movement into joining a terrorist group in Iraq and Syria, this research revealed instances of women willing to defy cultural norms and embrace the adventurous path to extremism and violence, including spiritual and materialistic rewards promised in Syria and Iraq.

This report is divided into three sections. The first section consists of an examination of drivers or radicalization, including radicalization leading to violent extremism, in Kosovo. The second section introduces a discussion on Kosovar women’s specific vulnerabilities and roles in violent extremism. The last sections offer specific policy recommendations.