In March 2017, UNDP commissioned an assessment of returned foreign terrorist fighters, currently
serving their sentences in Kosovo1, either in prison or under house arrest, as well as their
families. The objective of this research assessment is to understand better the pull and push factors
that make Kosovars join foreign terrorist groups, and support Kosovo institutions and international
stakeholders in developing better policies and programmes for the prevention of violent
extremism, as well as rehabilitation and reintegration programmes for returned foreign fighters.2
Through analysis of the interviews and a literature review, the researchers have identified a
series of push and pull factors that drove Kosovars to travel to conflict zones in Syria and Iraq.
However, this does not mean that there is one specific path to radicalization or one particular
profile of a radicalized individual. Such generalizations are impossible to make and could lead
to ineffective policies.