Media
Interview
21 December 2016
Alexander Ritzmann on BBC 5 Live
EFD Executive Director Alexander Ritzmann is interviewed by the BBC 5 Live Radio channel on the Berlin Attack...
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Mention
21 December 2016
The use of a truck can also be a sign of weakness
EFD Executive Director Alexander Ritzmann is interviewed by the Italian newspaper l'Avvenire....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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."...
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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...
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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."...
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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....
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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”....
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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....
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