Religion

Al-Shabaab means “the Youth.” Al-Shabaab is a Somali Islamist militant group that emerged around 2006, during Somalia’s long period of civil war, weak governance, and state collapse.

Boko Haram was founded in 2002 in northeastern Nigeria by Mohammed Yusuf. It began as an Islamist sectarian movement centered in and around Maiduguri, in Borno State, and it initially attracted followers through preaching, religious instruction, and criticism of corruption, injustice, and the failures of the Nigerian state. The movement later turned to assassinations and large-scale violence.

Al-Qaeda was founded in 1988 near the end of the Soviet–Afghan War. It grew out of the network of Arab foreign fighters, recruiters, financiers, and ideologues who had mobilized to support the Afghan jihad against the Soviet Union.

The name Hezbollah means “Party of God.” Hezbollah was founded in 1982 in Lebanon during the Lebanese Civil War and in response to Israel’s 1982 invasion of Lebanon.

Hamas was founded in 1987 at the beginning of the First Intifada, a Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation. It emerged from the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood and presented itself as an Islamist alternative to the more secular Palestinian nationalist movements that had long dominated Palestinian politics.

The Muslim Brotherhood was founded in 1928 in Ismailia, Egypt, by Hassan al-Banna. It became one of the most influential Islamist movements in the modern Muslim world by promoting the idea that Islam should govern not only personal faith, but also society, law, politics, and the state.

The Iraq War (2003-2011) is especially important because it helped create the direct pathway to ISIS.

The Soviet–Afghan War (1979–1989) was one of the most important turning points in the rise of modern Sunni jihadist extremism.

The Iranian Revolution (1978–1979) began as a broad coalition against the shah that included Islamists, secular liberals, Marxists, student groups, and other opponents of the regime.

The seven conditions we will look at are: (1) War, Conflict, and Political Instability, (2) Power Vacuums and Weak Governance, (3) Ideological Framing and Religious Justification, (4) Identity, Grievance, and Perceived Injustice, (5) Recruitment, Networks, and Social Influence, (6) Strategic Use of Violence and Fear, (7) External Support and Global Connections.