Evaluation Capacity
ICCT sees a need for systematic evaluation of past and current counter-terrorism policies and strategies to assess effectiveness, learn from experiences and improve practices. Policies and strategies are often based on untested assumptions, thus running the risk of improper decision-making, which in turn might trigger unwanted and unforeseen dynamics. Though to some degree understandable, political imperatives to act first and reflect afterwards, are unsustainable. Therefore, ICCT aims to improve the feedback loop between policy and practice and will start by taking stock of and evaluate existing counter-terrorism strategies and initiatives.
In the aftermath of a terrorist attack, a series of events can ostensibly be relied on. As we mourn, the media frantically try to gather information about the attacker(s) and, upon learning that they used social media for some part of their activity, it is suggested by journalists, politicians, and pundits that they were radicalised […]
In recent years Europe has faced an increasing wave of so-called ‘lone actor’ attacks committed by jihadist terrorists. This trend has continued in 2017. For example, the attacks in London and Stockholm, which were simple but devastating in their methodology, used vehicles to run pedestrians down. While the London attacker disembarked to engage in a […]
In a March 2017 paper published by the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism—The Hague, this author introduced a framework for studying the construction of extremist identity through ideological texts. This Report will examine the framework against a historical example of the so-called Islamic State (IS) propaganda to illustrate how messaging strategies can be based on insights derived […]