Samira, originally from Belgium, walks with her son in Camp Roj in northern Syria. Her French husband is imprisoned for links to the Islamic State. She has tried to return to Belgium, where she says she wants to reintegrate into society, but their repatriation has sparked controversy.
(AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)
Moha Ennaji, International Institute for Languages and Cultures
Trying to reintegrate foreign fighters who return home shouldn't be considered the soft option. Governments in countries like Morocco and Tunisia need to respond realistically to a complex problem.
An army soldier in Douentza in the Mopti region of central Mali in March 2013, before the government lost control.
Farafi net.com/flickr
With northern Mali mired in conflict, increasing instability in the centre of the country is worrying observers. The attitude of the Malian authorities holds the key to defusing these tensions.
The heavy truck that was driven into a crowd at high speed killing scores on Bastille Day in Nice.
Reuters/Eric Gaillard
The Bastille Day attack in Nice – committed by an individual unknown to French security services – marks the evolution of radicalisation in many ways.
Without the perfect-storm conditions of post-invasion insurgency, this most potent expression of al-Qaedaism yet would never have risen to dominate both the Middle East and the world in the way that it does.
Reuters/Stringer
The final article of our series on the historical roots of Islamic State examines the role recent Western intervention in the Middle East played in the group's inexorable rise.
Blocking IS one click at a time?
Pierre (Rennes)/flickr
Under pressure in the Middle East, ISIS is turning to terrorism in Europe with a new set of predictable goals.
Moroccan woman Samira Yerou is arrested at Barcelona airport in March on suspicion of attempting to join IS militants in Syria.
REUTERS/Spanish Interior Ministry/Handout via Reuters
The failure of African states to adequately address their racial, ethnic, cultural, religious and economic differences provided the fertile ground on which rebel groups now prosper.
Kadiza Sultana, Amira Abase and Shamima Begum left the UK in mid-February.
Met Police
Record numbers of arrests of young Britons on suspicion of terrorism offences shows the need for a new and effective approach to online jihad.
President Barack Obama and his inner circle follow the assassination of Osama bin Laden, which made headlines worldwide but is seemingly unimportant four years on.
EPA/Pete Souza/White House handout
Memories of the killing of Osama bin Laden are fading, but the legacies of al-Qaeda and the war on terror's many 'own goals' haunt us in the form of multiplying threats and lost civil liberties.
When Australians hear about Foreign Minister Julie Bishop’s dire warnings and counter-terrorism raids, they could lose historical perspective on the threat posed by Islamic State.
AAP/Mal Fairclough
Dire government warnings and counter-terrorism raids in our suburbs paint a picture of the worst threat Western nations have ever faced. A little historical perspective is in order.
Families cross the Euphrates River seeking the relative safety of Baghdad as Islamic State fighters advance with the goal of creating such violence that people turn from the government to any force capable of restoring peace.
EPA/Ahmed Jalil
Islamic State is a project built on solid foundations by jihadist theorists with decades of experience. The savagery of terrorism precedes the next stage of a caliphate that delivers longed-for order.
Bullet holes from the Copenhagen attack.
Liselotte Sabroe/Scanpix Denmark/Reuters
Copenhagen has been left reeling from a series of violent attacks on February 14 and 15. A young man armed with an automatic weapon and other guns killed two civilians and injured five police officers…
Security conscious. Behind Boris Johnson’s analysis of terror.
BackBoris2012 Campaign Team
Last week, London’s mayor Boris Johnson generated a largely negative reaction when he described European jihadis as “wankers” – people who feel they are failures and that the world is against them. Now…
French police question suspected jihadist
Christian Hartmann/Reuters
The recent events in Paris have once again cast doubts on the ability of French intelligence to provide national security. Following the attacks, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls did not hesitate to…
Director, Program Management and Research Operations of the Center for Social Well-Being and Development, Milken Institute School of Public Health, George Washington University
Associate Professor in the Milken Institute School of Public Health, Department of Anthropology, and Elliott School of International Affairs at the George Washington University, and Director of both the Avance Center for the Advancement of Immigrant/Refug, George Washington University