Overview

Today's global community needs a better answer to the problem of jihadist violence. The threat continues to change, which often leaves states unprepared for the next violent event. This study illuminates one part of the discussion by addressing the following question: Why did France face an increased terror threat in 2012, when 10 years prior to this, it was widely praised for its effective counterterrorism efforts? This work recognizes a new version of global Salafist jihad, which manifests in a decentralized, transnational movement and uses social media to perpetuate a narrative of civilizational conflict. Then, an analysis of the dynamics of state-societal interaction in France prior to 2012 is used to identify three undercurrents that new terrorism could leverage. First, a review of the history of French Muslim political activism reveals that their success in winning concessions from the state is limited. Second, an increasing number of second-generation Muslim youth are unable to identify with either Eastern or Western culture. Third, France's record of exceptionally Westernized Muslim sentiment likely antagonizes jihadist ideologues. By this framework, jihadists are motivated to recruit wayward youth with a narrative of renewed identity and purpose in jihad. The body of this research project breaks down into two substantive chapters. The first, Chapter II, focuses specifically on the characterization of a new terrorism and how democracies, such as France, might respond on an ideological level. Chapter II begins with a practical look at the debate over new terrorism. This chapter details a typographical analysis of the current theories, establishing the existing camps and supporting evidence for each theory. This analysis will attempt to give a collective reckoning of the motivations and behavior of the new threat. Three subsections of the chapter elaborate key academic opinions that best support a new terrorism theory, codified by leaderless jihad, a clash of civilizations, and social media. When considered together, these component parts show an attempt by extreme Islamists to polarize the global population into equally antagonizing positions. Chapter II also includes a review of how democracies interact with terrorism, to include how they might unwittingly incite violence from Salafi Islamist hardliners. As the second substantive chapter, Chapter III closely examines societal and institutional influences on France's Muslim population and their potential contribution to resurgent violence. Chapter III also examines the role of identity conflict in shaping the environment for jihadism. Additionally, it begins by focusing on state-society interaction in France. It describes church-state patterns that set the conditions for Muslim assimilation, highlighting the strong role of laicite (100) in the French political debate. The research emphasizes how these structures interact with and affect the majority Muslim community in general and radicalized Islamists separately. Chapter III also supports the concept of an identity crisis occurring for Muslims in the French state. Finally, Chapter IV concludes the study. By juxtaposing this project's three major themes-the routines of French counterterrorism activities, the nature of the new threat in France, and the social context for Muslims in the French state-I draw recommendations for adjustment at both the state and agency levels, which require a greater understanding of perceptions among France's contesting interest groups. The chapter also includes my recommendations for further research focus on events in France after the 2012 and subsequent attacks, as well as continued evaluation of popular sentiment among European Muslim populations.

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9781983127045

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