Terrorism & Violent Extremism
Just Security provides expert legal and policy analysis of terrorism, counterterrorism, and domestic and international violent extremism.
2,228 Articles

Fall of Mosul Raises Question: What Should Be Done with Female Foreign Fighters?
In the aftermath of the assault on Mosul, we have gained significant insights into the scale and substance of the brutality experienced by civilians during the occupation by ISIS and…

Lessons From Mosul: How to Reduce Civilian Harm in Urban Warfare
Fighting in densely populated areas poses a number of significant challenges to forces trying to adhere to the rules that govern warfare. Even assuming that international humanitarian…

Letter to the Editor: Sorry, No More Chances for CVE
We read with great interest your July 5 article, Giving CVE a Chance, which minimizes the complaints of “detractors” of the Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) program without…

Letter to the Editor: There Is Much More to a Civilian Casualty Investigation than Eyewitness Accounts
I applaud and agree with Sarah Knuckey’s, Ole Solvang’s, Jonathan Horowitz’s and Radhya Almutawakel’s recent post (“Pentagon Admits Major Investigation Flaw: imeshey…

The Call is Coming from Inside the House — Homegrown Extremism is Here
Much of our nation’s focus on preventing terrorist attacks has been on our borders, but, in fact, violent extremists are already here. It is like those old horror movies, where…

The Trump Administration Provides One More Reason to Discontinue CVE
In a post last week, Steve Weine celebrated the fact that the Obama administration’s countering violent extremism (CVE) program was still alive. In his view, “national security…

Giving CVE a Chance
Last week’s announcement by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) of a revised list of awardees of the Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) Grant Program generated many headlines…

US-UAE Partnership and Alleged Torture: Recommended Next Steps for the Administration and Congress
An important foreign military partner in our armed conflict against al-Qaida in Yemen—the United Arab Emirates—has faced a series of allegations that it is engaged in systematic…

A Test Case for Guantánamo’s New Convening Authority
The latest Guantánamo military commission case to make headlines—the new charges against Encep Nurjamen (a.k.a. Hambali)—is shrouded in an unusual amount of secrecy. But when…

Saif Gaddafi’s Release and the Challenge for International Criminal Justice
Six years after his capture during the Arab Spring uprising against his father Muammar Gaddafi, and despite pending charges in the International Criminal Court, Saif al Islam Gaddafi…

Hyping the Terrorist Threat: Trump Makes an Old Problem Worse
For the better part of two decades, American policymakers have struggled to explain the nature of the terrorist threat facing the United States. Mayors, governors, and members…

Timeline of Escalation in Syria: U.S. vs. Iran, Russia, Syria and “Pro-Regime” Forces post January 20, 2017
April 4: Chemical attack A rocket laced with the nerve agent sarin kills more than 80 civilians in Khan Shaykhun in the rebel-held Idlib province. The attack is attributed to the…