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Osama's Boyz: The Homegrown Jihadi Terrorist Threat as Gang Activity
| Articles are $4.00 and only available by downloadable Acrobat PDF. |
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65 |
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Total Pages 6 |
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A. Aaron Weisburd
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May 2008 |
Categories
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Terrorism
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| Abstract |
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The phenomenon of homegrown jihadi terrorism may at first seem inscrutable. On closer examination it appears to be a kind of gang activity, rooted in particular communities and arising from informal social networks. Criminology has occupied itself with the study of gangs for at least the last 80 years and much of that may be directly applicable in terms of both theory and research findings. Individuals who are part of these terrorist gangs proceed through a process of radicalization that has been well-delineated. Whether an individual will transit though all the stages of radicalization, becoming part of a gang that will at least attempt acts of terrorism, will depend on differentials of opportunity and of association. It may be possible to develop a theory of Differential Jihadization, which can both explain the phenomenon to researchers, and assist practitioners in assessing the threat that a gang may represent. Future research should examine such homegrown jihadi gangs in light of contemporary criminal gangs, and the Internet is a likely common turf where members of both types of gangs can be found, observed, and compared. |
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| Articles are $4.00 and only available by downloadable Acrobat PDF. |
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