Media - European Foundation for Democracy

Interview 20 December 2016

Alexander Ritzmann on France24 – 20/12/16

EFD Executive Director Alexander Ritzmann is interviewed by France24 on the attack that occurred at the Christmas market in Berlin....

Mention 20 December 2016

Brussels shows support for Berlin

EFD Executive Director is mentioned by the German newspaper Deutsche Welle on the terrorist attack that recently occurred in Berlin....

Interview 19 December 2016

Children are free from suspicion and manipulable

In this interview with Abendzeitung München, EFD Programme Director Ahmad Mansour discusses the case of a twelve-year-old who allegedly planned a bomb attack on a Christmas market in Ludwigshafen, Germany. This recruitment of children by terrorist or criminal organisations is not a new phenomenon, Mansour explains. Children have been in the focus of Islamists for years, be it Hamas or the Taliban....

Article 13 December 2016

The need to counter extremist propaganda more effectively

EFD Executive Director Alexander Ritzmann explains the different reasons why people believe in extremist ideologies or join extremist groups in an article published by The Parliament Magazine....

Interview 12 December 2016

DAS! with Ahmad Mansour

In this interview on German tv show DAS!, EFD Programme Director Ahmad Mansour discusses why the so-called Islamic State holds a fascination for young people and how their radicalisation can be prevented or restricted by strong family ties....

Article 08 December 2016

The EU cannot afford to just ‘muddle through’ on Turkey

EFD Senior Policy Advisor Dr. Demir Murat Seyrek and EPC Policy Analyst Amanda Paul have issued a commentary on the recent developments on EU-Turkey relations....

Article 06 December 2016

Chapters 23 and 24: a test of the EU’s sincerity

In this article for Deutsche Welle, EFD Senior Policy Advisor Demir Murat Seyrek challenges the EU's sincerity with regards to addressing the democratic problems Turkey faces and raises the question of why negotiation chapters 23 (judiciary and fundamental rights) and 24 (justice, freedom and security) of the accession talks are currently still blocked....

Mention 22 November 2016

Turkey and the EU: The end of the affair?

EFD Senior Policy Advisor Demir Murat Seyrek is mentioned by BBC News on the latest developments of the Turkey-Eu relations....

Mention 19 November 2016

From Minnesota to Libya, Italy and Spain: the new jihadist hotbeds

The online version of the well-known Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera releases an article on EFD's latest publication: "Jihadist Hotbeds – Understanding Local Radicalisation Processes", edited by EFD Visiting Fellow Arturo Varvelli....

Interview 18 November 2016

The counter-extremism agenda

EFD President and head of the Counter Extremism Project Brussels is interviewed by Pan European Networks, a leading independent online newspaper, on global efforts to tackle radicalisation....

Mention 16 November 2016

Part II: Could integration prevent radicalisation of Muslim youth?

Daily News Egypt mentions EFD Programme Director Ahmad Mansour on why youngsters slip into radicalisation. "Mansour calls for a social and political rethinking process of the phenomenon of radicalisation in order to prevent and combat ideological extremism. It is a process, in which everyone in society should take part."...

Article 16 November 2016

Reasons not to end EU-Turkey talks

In an Op-Ed published by EUobserver, EFD Senior Policy Advisor Dr Demir Murat Seyrek and EPC Senior Policy Analyst Amanda Paul suggest a number of reasons why they advise the EU not to suspend talks with Turkey....

Article 14 November 2016

Analysis: Turkey-EU relations drifting towards a cliff

EFD Senior Policy Advisor Demir Murat Seyrek writes for DW Türkçe on the worsening relationship between Turkey and the EU as a result of serious problems in Turkey in terms of fundamental rights and freedoms & Turkish government’s increasingly negative attitude towards the EU....

Mention 09 November 2016

Tentative Europe reaches out to Trump’s America

"We don't know where America is going to go and what we've seen in the campaign is not inspiring," says EFD President and Founder Roberta Bonazzi in this interview with Deutsche Welle regarding the election of Donald Trump....

Article 01 November 2016

Visa liberation between Turkey and the EU

EFD Senior Policy Advisor Demir Murat Seyrek writes for Deutsche Welle on the negotiation process regarding visa liberalisation between Turkey and the EU, after a deadline for the implementation of visa liberalisation has passed at the end of October....

Mention 31 October 2016

Could Integration Prevent Radicalisation of Muslim Youth?

EFD Programme Director Ahmad Mansour is mentioned by the Mashreq Politics & Culture Journal in an event report on the “Conference on the Muslim youth in Germany between integration, compartmentalisation and new ways”, organised by the Frankfurt Research Centre for Global Islam. Mansour called for a social and political rethinking process of the phenomenon of radicalisation, in order to prevent and combat ideological extremism....

Article 30 October 2016

From suicide to mass murder – terrorist propaganda and the responsibility of the media

In this article, EFD Executive Director Alexander Ritzmann highlights that media outlets often involuntarily serve as extended propaganda channels of terrorist organisations....

Interview 30 October 2016

Islam expert refers to Salafism as ‘an ideology of violence’

Educators are left absolutely unprepared by their professional training to deal with the issue of Salafism in schools, EFD Programme Director Ahmad Mansour explains in this interview with Neue Westfälische. We must invest into preventive measures to enable the teachers to recognise radicalisation through means of rhetoric, behaviour and mindset....

Mention 28 October 2016

A close look at the German Muslim associations

EFD Programme Director Ahmad Mansour is mentioned by the German Die Welt on the collaboration of the federal and state governments with Muslim associations. Closer examination is required to guarantee the compatibility of the associations’ understanding of religion with Germany’s liberal and democratic fundamental order, says Mansour. This requires a careful selection of those associations that can be considered as partners in prevention and...

Mention 26 October 2016

Municipalities are preparing to receive IS terrorists with housing and grants

EFD Senior Fellow Magnus Norell is mentioned by the Swedish magazine Samtiden on the controversial decision some Swedish cities have taken to rehabilitate former Isis fighters and other extremists by providing them with housing, employment, education and financial support....

Article 18 October 2016

Terrorism: Islam expert warns of high radicalisation risk in Italy

Following a press briefing held by the European Foundation for Democracy on preventing radicalisation in Italy, with EFD Senior Fellow Dr Valentina Colombo as the main speaker, the Italian news agency Agenzia Giornalistica Italiana (AGI) issued a press release with Colombo's statements....

Interview 18 October 2016

The ideology is stronger than a pseudo-state

In this interview with jetzt.de, EFD Programme Director Ahmad Mansour cautions that the recent chalking up of military victories against Isis should not be equated with progress in the battle against the groups’ extremist ideology. We must continue all the more to fight Islamist radicalisation, Mansour urges, as followers of the ideology are increasingly prevented from leaving the country, raising the potential for attacks in Germany....

Interview 13 October 2016

“If you want to commit a suicide bombing operation, you’re not going to kill yourself”

In an interview with Die Welt, EFD Programme Director Ahmad Mansour comments on the suicide of suspected Isis terrorist Dschaber al-Bakr in a German prison....

Interview 11 October 2016

Syria: the PYD is an existential threat for Ankara, nonetheless there will be no direct attack

EFD Senior Policy Advisor Demir Murat Seyrek is interviewed by Aki-Adnkronos International on the threat that the Syrian Democratic Union Party poses to Anakara....

Interview 10 October 2016

Ahmad Mansour: “A child with a headscarf is abuse”

In this interview with Der Standard, EFD Programme Director Ahmad Mansour criticises the lack of a clear communication of societal values by the German government. He condemns the prevalent cultural relativism that prevents open debate about certain Islamic belief systems and explains why headscarfs should be banned from elementary schools....

Op-Ed 05 October 2016

New report recommends collective response in fight against jihadist radicalism

"In a recent report, the European Foundation for Democracy and the Italian Institute for International Political Studies ( ISPI ) analysed some of the key hotbeds of jihadist radicalisation, in a bid to better understand the root-causes, triggers and dynamics of the phenomenon, and to suggest strategies to counter it."...

Article 04 October 2016

No Daesh in Algeria: What’s the secret?

EFD's latest publication, Jihadist Hotbeds – Understanding Local Radicalisation Processes, is mentioned in a blog post by by Democracy Digest....

Interview 27 September 2016

Muslims themselves must form German Islam

In this interview with Zeit Online, EFD Programme Director Ahmad Mansour evaluates the achievements as well as the weaknesses of the German Islam Conference, on the occasion of its 10th anniversary....

Article 27 September 2016

Those cartoons on Allah that will cost you your life

EFD Senior Fellow Valentina Colombo writes about the assassination of Nahid Hattar, a Jordanian writer charged with offending Islam after allegedly sharing a satirical cartoon on his Facebook page....

Mention 22 September 2016

Analysts: Expect visa liberalisation for Turkey by early 2017

EFD Senior Policy Advisor Demir Murat Seyrek is mentioned by EurActive on the issue concerning visa liberalisation for Turkey....

Interview 20 September 2016

USA, the expert explains: ‘behind lone wolf attacks lies a very strong jihadist call’

EFD Executive Director Roberta Bonazzi is interviewed by the Italian newspaper Adnkronos....

Mention 18 September 2016

Manhattan, the Jihadist propaganda is silent on the instant messaging app ‘Telegram’

EFD Executive Director Roberta Bonazzi is interviewed by the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera on the recent wave of violence that New York and Manhattan have witnessed....

Interview 16 September 2016

In dialogue: Ahmad Mansour in a conversation with Michael Krons

In this interview with German tv station Phoenix, EFD Programme Director Ahmad Mansour explains why suppressed sexuality is one of the key reasons for radicalisation. "When kissing or cuddling in public is regarded as sinful, it makes normal social interaction between the sexes impossible”....

Mention 14 September 2016

Could Germany learn from Israel’s diversity?

EFD Programme Director Ahmad Mansour is mentioned by the American weekly newspaper The Jewish News Press....

Interview 12 September 2016

EU- Turkey relations are normalising

EFD Senior Policy Advisor Dr. Demir Murat Seyrek is interviewed by DW on EU-Turkey relations in the aftermath of the failed coup attempt and the subsequent visit of the High Representative of the European Union Federica Mogherini to Turkey....

Interview 08 September 2016

“Rome”, Isis’ new magasine to attract new followers

EFD Sernior Fellow Valentina Colombo is interviewed by Il Giornale di Sicilia on 'Rumiyah', the latest version of the Islamic State's magazine....