The ICSR and the BBC released results of a global survey of jihadist violence. Titled ‘The New Jihadism: A Global Snapshot’, the aim was to produce a snapshot of deaths caused by jihadist groups during the month of November 2014, says the ICSR, the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation in full, part of the Department of War Studies at King’s College London.
Over that month, jihadists carried out 664 attacks, killing 5,042 people– the equivalent of three attacks per day on the scale of the London bombings in July 2005. The overall picture is that of an increasingly ambitious, complex, sophisticated and far-reaching movement – one that seems to be in the middle of a transformation, say researchers. According to the data, ‘bombings’ were outnumbered by shootings, ambushes, and shelling, reflecting the increased emphasis on holding territory and confronting conventional forces.
For the full 24-page report visit the ICSR website. The study concludes that confronting this threat will be ‘a generational challenge involving not just military power but political skill, economic resources, and – not least – a readiness to challenge the ideas and beliefs that are driving its expansion’.
