On November 9, the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) and the European Policy Centre (EPC) held a webinar and launched their joint publication, Marching home? Why repatriating foreign terrorist fighters is a pan-European priority. The report examines...
The recent ISIS terrorist attack in Vienna was a reminder of the threat posed by the ongoing presence of extremist Islamist networks in Europe. The alleged perpetrator identified as Kujtim Fejzulai—a wannabe foreign terrorist fighter (FTF), who...
The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) today released a landmark report exposing the precarious situation as a result of the detention of at least 28 German men and boys allegedly affiliated to ISIS—in overcrowded and legally ambiguous facilities in the...
However, the results of a study by terrorism researcher Sofia Koller of the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) suggest that many of those affected have been trying to return to Germany for years. Lydia G. is also said to have had a change of heart; she wants to return to Germany. Whether and when a trial against the IS returnee will begin is not yet known.
"Exit programs would generally work well in Germany, says Sofia Koller from the Counter Extremism Project (CEP). She has been researching how to deal with IS returnees for years. She warns that exit processes do not work linearly. Time and again, life crises could drive former extremists to radical ideology."
Should I Go Or Should I Stay: Foreign Terrorist Fighter Mobilization After The Taliban’s Takeover In Afghanistan
Sofia Koller
Senior Research Analyst, Counter Extremism Project (CEP)
The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS) hosted a webinar on Thursday, June 29, 2023, focusing on the reemerging security risks emanating from Afghanistan.
This webinar focused on two of the key regional and international terrorist threats emanating from the situation in Afghanistan. The first is the ongoing threat of foreign terrorist fighters (FTFs) that currently operate in Afghanistan and the latent threat of new FTF flows to the country. Secondly, the withdrawal of international forces from Afghanistan and the subsequent swift takeover of power by the Taliban, the traditional protectors of al-Qaeda-Core, sent a strong message to the international terrorist community that victory is possible.
"The reality probably lies somewhere in between, says Sofia Koller, a senior research analyst at the Counter Extremism Project, a non-profit organisation in New York.
'It would be wrong to say they were all naive, but also wrong to say they all knew exactly what they were doing,' she told The National. ...
'In one case in court, a Yazidi woman gave a horrifying account. Then the defendant said something like: I’m sorry I called you a slave girl. But I didn’t really hear her say: I’m sorry about what happened to you and your people and how I contributed to that,' Ms Koller said."
On December 6, 2022, the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) was delighted to invite to this webinar to discuss recent repatriation missions of European nationals, the role of the September 2022 verdict of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), as well as challenges in the prosecution of returnees in their home countries, including in Germany, France, and the Netherlands.
Presentation by Tanya Mehra LL.M Senior Research Fellow and Programme Lead (Rule of Law Responses to Terrorism) at the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism – The Hague.
On December 6, 2022, the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) was delighted to invite to this webinar to discuss recent repatriation missions of European nationals, the role of the September 2022 verdict of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), as well as challenges in the prosecution of returnees in their home countries, including in Germany, France, and the Netherlands.
Presentation by Sofia Koller, Senior Research Analyst, Counter Extremism Project.
New CEP policy paper: "Recent Legal and Political Developments in the Repatriation of European Nationals from Northeastern Syria"
Extremists: Their Words. Their Actions.
Fact:
On April 3, 2017, the day Vladimir Putin was due to visit the city, a suicide bombing was carried out in the St. Petersburg metro, killing 15 people and injuring 64. An al-Qaeda affiliate, Imam Shamil Battalion, claimed responsibility.
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