The New Age of Terrorism
After the Islamic State group was driven from its last remaining territory in Syria last year, it marked the end of a five-year ‘caliphate’ that once ruled over eight million people, using its territory to launch terrorist attacks overseas and carry out mass atrocities across the region. But despite losing its caliphate and its leader, some experts claim that IS is now beginning to make a resurgence, orchestrating a wave of attacks across Iraq and Syria this year. We’ve also seen the continuation of so-called ‘lone wolf’ attacks, with a suspected terrorist attack in Reading in recent weeks.
So how will these organisations adapt? Will they merely regroup and return stronger, as the Taliban did following the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001? Some have argued that the West’s previous foreign policy blunders, like giving weapons to the Afghan mujahideen in their fight against the Soviets, or toppling Saddam Hussein in 2003, helped give rise to jihadist movements. So how can governments around the world respond to a resurgence in terrorist activity without making the mistakes of the past? And what’s the best way to address the historic root causes of terrorism?
Speakers: Suzanne Raine, IWM Trustee and former Director of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Charlie Winter, IWM Associate and Senior Research Fellow at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation Azadeh Moaveni, journalist and author of Guest House for Young Widows: Among the Women of ISIS