ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book describes the killing of innocent people for political, ideological or religious motivations. It explores the environment that led, after 1997, to the deradicalization, ‘from the mountains’ of Algeria’s largest Islamic militant group, the Islamic Salvation Army. The book analyses the new Bangladeshi caretaker government’s efforts in countering rising tides of violent extremism in the country after 2005. It aims to evaluate conditions that led to the deradicalization, from inside prisons, of Egypt’s two largest armed organizations in the 1980s and 1990s, namely, Islamic Group and al-Jihad Organization. The book demonstrates how the lack of political commitment and failure to promote competent and independent ulama and scholars undermined Jordan’s Counter-derad efforts. It discusses one of the most far-reaching counter-radicalization programmes found in our eight country case studies, namely Morocco.
