MOSCOW, September 23 (RIA Novosti) – German teenagers, joining radical groups to fight in Syria and Iraq are “young people in distress”, who have family problems or lack appreciation, said Jochen Müller, a German Islamic studies scholar, in an interview published by Deutsche Welle on Tuesday.
“With some youths, you notice that religious conviction has nothing to do with their very quick radicalization. It's more their family, social or individual stories that give them the push,” Müller said, adding that religion is often just a handy pretext for young people willing to give vent to their grievances and resentment.
Müller claims that radical ideology can be very appealing to young people, especially those from migrant communities. Many of them are looking for adventures or trying to find their identity. The war in Syria is, therefore, an ideal narrative used by Islamist groups to attract non-adults and recruit them for fighting.
Much of the indoctrination is done online through websites containing jihadi messages, social networks or other internet sources, such as Youtube. However, radicals are constantly developing new tools for recruitment, including creating extremist cells in schools and educational facilities. According to the Guardian, 25 schools in Birmingham, United Kingdom, came under investigation in April after an anonymous letter, containing information about alleged Islamist “takeovers” of the schools, was sent to education councils and teaching unions.
What needs to be developed to combat this threat, Müller assumes, is high-quality religious education, clear differentiation between radical and moderate Islam, as well as public information campaigns about the dangers posed by radical groups.
“Society has to intervene here - in schools, in youth organizations, in political education - to point out these dangers and make young people more sensitive to them,” he said, stressing that only relatives and communities, not intelligence services, can notice signs of youth radicalization at early-stages.
According to German intelligence services, 24 teenagers left their homeland to join radical groups in Syria and Iraq. The youngest of them is said to be 13 years old.
