This is part of a major series called Advancing Australia, in which leading academics examine the key issues facing Australia in the lead-up to the 2019 federal election and beyond. Read the other pieces in the series here. No-one wants to feel insecure. The foundational element of the social contract…

Societies that have experienced violent conflict face considerable challenges in building sustainable peace. One crucial question they need to address is how to deal with their violent past and atrocities that were committed – for example, whether perpetrators should be held accountable by judicial means, or whether the focus should…

Despite our success protecting America’s homeland, extremism is spreading. Since 9/11, the number of terrorist attacks worldwide per year has increased fivefold. As long as this continues, the United States will remain vulnerable to terrorism while extremism contributes to chaos, conflict, and coercion that drains U.S. resources, weakens our allies,…

The Sarajevo authorities have begun talks about checking the identities of captured Islamic State fighters, their wives and children before they can be sent back from Syria to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Research on de-radicalisation has been primarily concerned with the efficacy of de-radicalisation programmes and their negative consequences. However, there has been little research on how the public perceives de-radicalisation programmes and whether they are viewed as effective or desirable. It is important to understand public attitudes to de-radicalisation programmes because…

A collection of publications and tools for CVE practitioners compiled by the US Department of Homeland Security.

In recent years, women’s support for, and participation in, ISIL’s activities has generated growing attention. Women’s radicalization to political violence and terrorism is nothing new per se, but ISIL’s success in recruiting women has been remarkable in several ways, including in terms of the sheer numbers; the geographical diversity of…

State fragility has resonated in global public policy-making since the turn of the millennium. Having featured prominently in the wake of the terrorist attacks of 9/11, fragility has not only been perceived to lie at the heart of civil wars in impoverished countries. Considered as constituting the ‘source of many…

A combination of social media analysis, network mapping and investigative reporting carried out by ISD’s Digital Research Unit found that far-right conspiracy and misinformation networks used a suite of new and existing platforms to mobilise and coordinate election-related activities online and offline in the lead up to the Bavarian State…

A growing body of research has made the case that counter-terrorism and CVE would benefit from a more nuanced gender lens. What remains under-studied—and generally absent from policy discussions—is whether the growing attentiveness to gender might also include a greater focus on masculinities.

The joint United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN) publication, Invisible Women: Gendered Dimensions of Return, Reintegration and Rehabilitation, is an effort to map the gaps and challenges pertaining to the reintegration and rehabilitation of women and girls associated with violent extremist movements and establish…

This report examines efforts in Somalia to disengage and deradicalise former members of Al-Shabaab through the Serendi rehabilitation centre. This programme is designed to weaken the group’s influence by providing an attractive alternative. The report analyses the programme’s effectiveness and makes a case for exploring similar initiatives in other comparable…