NCJ Number
226184
Journal
Studies in Conflict & Terrorism Volume: 31 Issue: 10 Dated: October 2008 Pages: 924-946
Date Published
October 2008
Length
23 pages
Annotation
This article presents empirical data on the chronology of Islamic jihadism in Western Europe from 1994 through 2007, showing that it constitutes a growing and increasingly lethal threat in the context of increased tensions between the Muslim world and the West, such that it must be addressed socially, politically, and economically.
Abstract
The chronology is organized into three periods that reflect changes in the organizational, operational, and motivational patterns of jihadism inside Western Europe. The first period, which spanned 1994 to 1996, featured the Algerian Armed Islamic Group (GIA) taking its Algeria-based struggle to France in a localized attempt to deter France from further involvement in the conflict between local Islamists and the secularist military regime in Algeria. The second period, which occurred from 1998 to 2003/2004, involved the functioning of global jihad in Europe, when several terrorist networks linked to and trained by al Qaeda planned and prepared mass casualty attacks against the interests and citizens of the United States, Israel, and, to a lesser extent, France. In the third period (2003/2004 to 2007), global jihad inspired by al Qaeda planned and executed attacks against European countries that supported and contributed to the U.S.-led “War on Terrorism.” Many of these militant jihadists living in targeted European countries were recruited and radicalized within Europe’s jihadi underworld. They were apparently motivated primarily by European participation in the invasion of Iraq. The number of terrorist attacks planned and/or implemented over these three periods has steadily increased, except for “category 3” incidents (poorly and vaguely documented events). The lack of increase in such incidents probably indicates that cases have become more substantial over time as reflected in access to information and data on terrorism incidents. Incidents have become more frequent and lethal since the invasion of Iraq in 2003. 87 notes