In August 2014, when the first case of Ebola virus was reported in Nigeria, a lot of people embraced myths and false information in a bid to tackle the deadly disease. Among the false ‘experimental therapies’ that were spreading like wildfire was the belief that drinking and bathing in water saturated with salt would cure the Ebola virus. Consequently, many people were hospitalised with itchy skin, rashes and high blood pressure, and some even lost their lives.
Bio Hadelin Feront heads the City of Brussels’ Unit for Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (P/CVE Unit), a position he has held since 2013. Based within the City of Brussels’ Crime Prevention Agency (BRAVVO), the PreRad Unit relies on the agency’s more than 300 frontline professionals, as well as an extensive network of specialized partners….
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Above: Men gather during a mass burial at Zabarmari, in the Jere local government area of Borno State, in northeast Nigeria, on Nov. 29 after a militant attack. (Credit: Ahmed Kingimi/Reuters) 8 December 2020 The following opinion piece has been written by a guest author. The views expressed in it do not necessarily reflect those…
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Above: the city of Melbourne, in the State of Victoria, Australia. Bio Mario Peucker is a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Sustainable Industries and Liveable Cities at Victoria University in Melbourne (Australia) and a Senior Fellow at the Centre for Analysis of the Radical Right (CARR). Mario is also an executive member of…
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The destruction of the Babri Masjid in 1992 marked a seminal event in India’s post-independence history, setting the stage for the rise of the Hindutva-aligned Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to national prominence. At the time, then chief-minister of Gujarat Narendra Modi cemented a national image defined by two narratives; first as a staunch Hindutva leader who allowed one of the deadliest incidents of anti-Muslim violence in post-independence India, and second as a pro-business reformer. Both catalyzed his rise to Prime Minister in 2014. Modi’s premiership and the BJP’s dominance of national politics has ensured both are able to implement their vision of transforming India into a Hindutva state.
With bedrooms and kitchens turning into offices over the past six months as Britain and other countries around the world introduce measures to stem virus transmission, we’ve seen a magnitude of unforeseen consequences. Across the country, incidents of domestic violence have rocketed and mental health problems have seen widespread deterioration. A vital and yet tragically overlooked consequence has been the ripple effect playing out on our online spaces, leading to an epidemic of online abuse, especially for women and non-binary people. Now that a new report has exposed that almost half of UK women and non-binary people have experienced online abuse since the lockdown, it’s time institutions deal with this growing problem.
At this very moment, almost 80 million men, women and children are on the move, violently dislocated from their homes and livelihoods. There are more refugees and internally displaced people in the world than at any point since the Second World War. And the challenges are set to worsen. Hundreds of millions more will soon be forced to move as a result of droughts, floods, rising seas and other climatic shifts.
Karolin Schwarz, Journalist and author Karolin Schwarz is a journalist, author, fact-checker and trainer, focusing on the far right, political disinformation and the intersection of the internet and society. Her book “Hasskrieger: Der neue globale Rechtsextremismus” (Hate Warriors: the new global right-wing extremism) was published in February 2020. She gives lectures and trainings on disinformation…
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The concept of “countering violent extremism” (CVE) – which involves the use of non-kinetic tools to undermine recruitment and mobilization to terrorism and focusing attention on the drivers and not just the manifestations of the violence – was not new when then President Obama convened the White House CVE Summit five years ago. However, the unprecedented high-level gathering of governments, civil society, and the private sector elevated the issue as a priority in many capitals around the globe.
Above: The explosion at the Port of Beirut on 4 August 2020 killed more than 200 and injured at least 7,000. 26 August 2020 Nidal Khaled, Coordinator and Focal Point for Majdal Anjar Local Prevention Network, Lebanon. President of Youth Initiatives Association On 4 August, a powerful explosion ripped through Beirut’s port, killing at least…
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