Wietse van den Berge
Wietse van den Berge a Research Fellow at ICCT. He studied political science at Leiden University, specialising in international relations and political philosophy. After graduating in 2002, he joined the Royal Netherlands Air Force and attended the Royal Netherlands Military Academy. A 12-month internship at the academy’s military science faculty followed completion of his officer training, researching military history and military operations. Wietse held several ranks within the Air Force and in 2011-2012 he served as a military observer for the United Nations in the Middle East. He was triggered by personally witnessing the Arab uprisings in that region to return to his academic career. Since joining Leiden University’s the Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA) in 2013, his focus centres on political violence in contemporary Middle Eastern conflicts. Within ICCT, Wietse is involved in a project concerning foreign terrorist fighters.
The QAnon conspiracy emerged on 28 October 2017, when a user named “Q” posted what were purported to be highly classified government secrets on 4chan’s /pol/ (politically incorrect) discussion board, contributing to a thread discussing the Mueller investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 United States (US) elections. Notably, Q’s claim of having special access to […]
This report looks at journalism and social media reporting in Nigeria. The author raises key implications in journalistic reporting by looking at the 2014 #BringBackOurGirls social media campaign. This study importantly takes both a local and a global perspective on Nigeria’s media reporting. This report is part of a wider project, led by the International […]
The casualties caused by armed violence in Mali have increased fourfold between 2016 and 2019, with young people being among the most affected by the situation. Insecurity, lack of economic opportunities, limited mobility and poor governance place youths at risk of engagement into violent extremism. Although many initiatives have been developed to prevent and counter […]