International Max Planck Research School on Retaliation, Mediation and Punishment

Curriculum vitae

Research Interests and Goals:

Environmental Criminology/urban-spatial distribution of crime
Jihadism & Salafi ideology

Ph.D. Proposal:

Salafi Jihadism and Counter-Terrorism

Subject of the study:

In terrorist conflicts the adverse actors utilize violence as a means to assert their antagonizing views of the ideal social order. Both actors construe a corresponding narrative of how the application of violence is legitimate, functional, and necessary. This research project investigates the narrative of jihadi violence together with its terrorist dimension.

Jihadism is an illustrative case of contemporary terrorism. It can be describe as a recent form of (Sunni) Islamic fundamentalism that opposes secular influences through violent activism (namely jihad). Jihadi violence can be defined as physical harm against persons committed by actors who thereby execute the doctrine of jihad (according to the heterodox interpretation of jihadism). In other words, jihadi violence is violence motivated through and inspired by the ideology of jihadism. This definition is subjective because it is characterized by motivation rather than by clear-cut behavioral criteria – violence is considered jihadi when the actor claims it to be so. However, this subjectivity is intrinsic to jihadi violence: While orthodox Muslims condemn most aspects of jihadism as heretic, jihadists claim to be the guardians of true Islam.

Literature suggests to understand violence in the global jihad not only as functionalist (that is, as political violence) but also as a cultural expression (Cozzens 2007). David Ronfeldt (2007:41) speaks about the “sacred, purifying nature of violence” and he suggests thinking of Al-Qaeda as “a global tribe waging segmental warfare”. Wadley (2003) examines “treachery and deceit: Parallels in tribal and terrorist warfare”. Indeed, jihadi violence seems to serve other than mere political and military purposes. For this reason the project also investigates evidence for the non-political dimension of jihadi violence, and testes whether notions of “altruistic violence” (Wu 2008) and “altruistic punishment” (Fehr and Gächter 2002) apply.

Research design and method:

The study analyses public statements of al-Qaeda and affiliated groups with focus on the question: “What do jihadi discourses say about motivation (cause), justification, and expected outcome/utility (functionality) of violent action?” In a second step the doctrine of jihadism is compared with its actual implementation in regional conflicts, by analyzing claims of responsibility for terrorist/military operations.

The textual data (transcripts of video/audio speeches, communiqués and statements of AQ and affiliated groups) is sampled from the archive of the SITE Intelligence Group, a commercial intelligence provider that closely monitors various kinds of media from the jihadi movement. Through inductive content analysis (using the software MAXQDA) open and latent patterns in the data shall be identified and described.

Status of the project:

Literature from Islamic and oriental studies, anthropology, criminology and terrorist studies has been reviewed in order to draw a descriptive profile of jihadism and to clarify the term.

Likewise, an analytical definition of terrorism has been drafted by compiling relevant contributions from the literature on the topic.

Project related literature (selection):

• Black, Donald. 2004. "Terrorism as social control." Pp. 9-18 in Terrorism and Counter-terrorism. Criminological perspectives, edited by M. Deflem. Amsterdam: Elsevier.
• Brachman, Jarret M. 2009. Global Jihadism. London: Routledge.
• Cozzens, Jeffrey B. 2007. "Approaching al-Qaeda's warfare: Function, culture and grant strategy." Pp. 127-163 in Mapping terrorism research, edited by Magnus Ranstorp. New York: Routledge.
• Fehr, Ernst, and Simon Gächter. 2002. "Altruistic punishment in humans." Nature 415: 137-140.
• Hegghammer, Thomas. 2005. "Al-Qaida statements 2003-2004 - A compilation of translated texts by Usama bin Ladin and Ayman al-Zawahiri." Pp. 91, edited by Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI). Kjeller: Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI).
• ICG, International Crisis Group. 2005. "Understanding Islamism." in Middle East/North Afirca Report. Cairo/Brussels.
• Lia, Brynjar. 2008. "Doctrines for jihadi terrorist training." Terrorism and Political Violence 20: 498-517.
• Ranstorp, Magnus. 2007. "The virtual sanctuary of Al-Qaeda and terrorism in an age of globalisation." in International relations and security in the digital age, edited by John Eriksson and Giampiero Giacomello. London: Routledge.
• Ronfeld, D. 2007. "Al-Qaeda and its affiliates. A global tribe waging segmental warfare." Pp. 34-55 in Information Strategy and Warfare: A Guide to Theory and Practice, edited by J.; Borer Arquilla, D. New York: Routledge.
• Torres, Manuel R., Javier Jordán, and Nicola Horsburgh. 2006. "Analysis and evolution of the global jihadist movement propaganda." Terrorism and Political Violence 18: 399-421.
• Wadley, Reed L. 2003. "Treachery and deceit: Parallels in tribal and terrorist warfare?" Studies in Conflict & Terrorism 26: 331-345.
• Wu, Kevin Chien-Chang. 2008. "Altruistic violence." The American Journal of Bioethics - Neuroscience 8: 28-30.

Publications (selection):

• Armborst, Andreas: A profile of Religious Fundamentalism and Terrorist Activism. In: Defence Against Terrorism Review, 2009, Issue⁄Volume 2/1, p. 51 - 71.

Further information:

• Project Homepage

Lectures:

• Last update: 02 February 2010
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