The Internet: The New Training Ground for Young Terrorist Recruits

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September 20, 2006 5:14 PM

The "youthification" of terrorism -- the radicalization of young converts -- is a growing trend among terrorist networks fueled by tech-savvy extremists and their widespread use of the Internet.

According to a recent Department of Homeland Security interagency forum on Sunni Muslim radicalization in the United States and Europe, "youthification" occurs as second- and third-generation Muslims in Europe and America and other young converts form social bonds via the Internet. According to Dr. Randy Borum, an expert in terrorist psychology, it is easier to manipulate Muslim converts as their lack of knowledge of Islam leaves them more malleable.

"Extremist cells -- at least in Europe -- revolve around smart, educated 'entrepreneurs' with politically activist mindsets. These dedicated individuals serve as intermediaries between new recruits and organized extremist groups and support networks, and serve as the linchpin to operational activity," reads a DHS report on the forum obtained by ABC News.

"The Internet has virtually replaced traveling to extremist camps in Afghanistan and Pakistan as a means of networking and forming social ties," noted the report, which was based on a panel of terrorism experts and academics in Europe and the United States.

The report also said that the extremism found in Europe is being fueled by trends that have yet not reached critical mass in the U.S.

"Socioeconomic, immigration, security and demographic policy issues all are intertwined -- and identified with the immigrant Muslim population -- in Europe to a larger degree than in the United States. This phenomenon has led to a collective feeling of victimization by Muslims vis-à-vis the secularized European majority. Unlike the American promise of opportunity, there is no equivalent 'European dream' -- nor is there a realistic belief in the possibility of one," the report says.

At least some U.S. intelligence officials, while agreeing with the current differences between Europe and the U.S., say that some of the patterns that have created disenfranchisement in Europe are in the process of occurring in the U.S. and, if not addressed, will fuel homegrown terror.

The panel made several recommendations on that point including, "Dialogue with the Muslim community on topics other than terrorism needs to be expanded; an example is the increase in interfaith dialogue that has occurred post-11 September...reaching out to the community on more generalized issues will help combat the perceived stigmatism of extremism."