Radicalization of Young People: The Power of Islamists on the Internet

Radicalization of Young People: The Power of Islamists Online

Islamist propaganda has long been reaching young people in the middle of their everyday digital lives. Research by BR and SWR shows how radicalization works through social media and gaming — and how difficult it is for families to respond.

It starts with a few pages on Instagram. Religious content, preachers, videos. Amir (name changed) is 16 years old, five years ago, and searching for answers. He does not want his real name made public. He comes from a Muslim household, but his family is not radical.

Yet Amir keeps clicking. At some point, he is sent links to groups on the messaging app Telegram. There, young people and adults discuss religion — but also the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS). Amir begins to believe them.

"We Muslims are being oppressed — and they are the only ones doing anything about it," he says today, describing his conviction at the time.

He watches war videos, images of suffering Muslims. Suddenly he receives simple explanations for complex conflicts. And he finds a community that makes him feel he is on the right side. Eventually, Amir is convinced: "The IS people know Islam best."

From Chat to Closed Group

Amir's story illustrates a path that security authorities and experts are increasingly observing: Islamist radicalization today often takes place precisely where young people already spend a large part of their time — on Instagram, TikTok, Telegram, and also in gaming. Research by BR Funkstreifzug and the SWR program Das Wissen shows how different platforms and digital spaces can interlock.

Gunfire, commands, burning cities: gamers pit heavily armed characters against each other. Opponents are shot or killed with machetes. Black IS flags appear repeatedly. Terrorists are portrayed as heroes. The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution also warns that IS attacks and military operations are being reenacted on the gaming platform Roblox.

Social scientist Constantin Winkler from the Leibniz Institute for Peace and Conflict Research in Frankfurt am Main conducts research on radicalization and digital gaming cultures. "Unlike reading a piece of propaganda, players themselves take on an active role," he says.

But the game is often just the beginning. The actual recruitment mostly takes place through direct communication. One link leads to the next; open spaces become closed groups and forums.

Expert Calls for Stronger Regulation

Platform operators say they take action against such content. Roblox points to technical protective measures, security teams, and cooperation with law enforcement agencies to identify and remove extremist content. Meta, the company behind Instagram, states that it excludes violent extremist groups from its platforms and also directs users to support and exit programs.

The cultural anthropologist and extremism researcher Kaiya Reisch finds this insufficient. What is particularly problematic, says Reisch, who works for the Federal Working Group on Religiously Motivated Extremism, is that users keep scrolling and rarely question content. Rather than blanket bans, she advocates stronger regulation and clear guidelines on what content may be published at all.

Drawn in Ever Deeper

What an insular world of Islamists looks like becomes apparent on the password-protected platform "TechHaven". After logging in, a kind of digital library of militant Islamism opens up: propaganda magazines, calls to violence, incitement against Jews and Christians, alongside bomb-making instructions.

The role such digital spaces can play is also illustrated by the attack at the Berlin Christopher Street Day at the end of July. The 21-year-old attacker Abdul B. had been active in Islamist online networks for years and had himself appeared as a preacher on social media. Two days after the attack, in which a woman was killed and 31 people were injured, he was celebrated as a martyr on TechHaven.

Young People Are Easier to Manipulate

Amir first encountered this digital, radical world as a teenager. In his Telegram groups, young people talked about attacking a police station or a Christmas market. Amir says he never wanted to carry out an attack himself. But when a 15- or 16-year-old talks about killing people and older members respond with "Mashallah, brother, you're right," the young person feels validated. That is what he experienced himself.

Amir eventually comes to the attention of the authorities. After spreading IS propaganda on social media, his apartment is searched. He had shared a so-called nasheed — a religious chant of the kind terrorist organizations also use for propaganda purposes. No criminal proceedings are brought.

But something changes in Amir. He increasingly comes to view the IS's choice of victims as arbitrary and wrong. Eventually, he voluntarily participates in a deradicalization program. As far as BR and SWR were able to verify, he has since broken away from the IS.

The Radicalization of Their Own Children

Another family is still far from reaching that point. On the outskirts of a larger German city, reporters from BR and SWR meet a father. He speaks Arabic, and his statements are translated. His son is 18 years old, attends a secondary school, and is supposed to be starting an apprenticeship.

But for about a year now, the father says, his son has been changing. His son had actively searched TikTok for people who share his religious views and had begun proselytizing — first to strangers, then to his own family: "You're not allowed to do that, it's not in accordance with Islam." The 18-year-old now refers to other people as "kuffar" — unbelievers. Including his own parents.

The 18-year-old also speaks with BR and SWR. He makes no attempt to conceal his views. In his opinion, homosexuals should be punished with death, as should people who leave Islam. The father still hopes that much of this is connected to puberty. His son is simply being contrary, he says — going through a kind of defiant phase.

Sami Alkomi views the development more critically. The Syria-born man works for the "Demokratielotsen" (Democracy Navigators), who advise families, schools and municipalities on dealing with extremism. Alkomi is working with Amir's family and already considers the radicalization of the 18-year-old to be well advanced. How things should proceed for the young man remains unclear. Alkomi is considering bringing in additional support projects. The family needs even more support to get their son back on the right track.

You can hear more on this topic here: Radicalized online – How Islamists reach young people.