Walking Away from Terrorism: Accounts of Disengagement from Radical and Extremist Movements

This book focuses on identifying the tipping points for disengagement from terrorism, and is informed by the detailed, illuminating and sometimes extraordinary accounts that the terrorists themselves offer about the reasons why they left terrorism behind.The book will be structured along four major issues:1) What do we currently know about disengagement and de-radicalization from terrorism?2) What do terrorists themselves say about their experiences of disengagement? (in terms of a) how exit routes became expressed (e.g. pathways, routes, key factors) b) why they felt they wanted to leave c) what happened to them once they found themselves as ex-terrorists, and no longer part of the structures that protected them3) What lessons and implications can we take from a rigorous analysis of the terrorists' accounts of disengagement, and related to this4) What are the implications for policy, law enforcement, intelligence, civil society and other relevant parties to an effective counterterrorism initiative?In sum, the book will provide a model of disengagement and de-radicalization; a detailed analysis of the implications of the model for informing responses, and a strategic, systematically presented, point-by-point and multi-level guide for policy makers for facilitating de-radicalization processes at a variety of political, social and legal levels.This book is essential reading for all students of terrorism studies and highly recommended for students of international security, international relations and politics.

Foreword Preface: A Personal Reflection on Fieldwork 1. Qualities Are Not Causes 2. How, When and Why Terrorism Ends 3. "Prison was a good thing" 4. "I volunteered" 5. "There is no conscious decision" 6. "A step too far" 7. "They were once my people" 8. "I don't believe in integration" 9. Conclusions Bibliography