The Ghettos of Europe Where Jihadists Are Made
The problem of Islamic radicalization is coming home to roost. Amid the high profile attacks in Paris, Brussels, Nice and now Munich, one fact remains clear; the threat of terrorism is here to stay. However it is not Syrian refugees who are committing these acts of terror. It is naturalized citizens of the nations of Europe.
Salah Abdeslam, the mastermind of the November terror attacks in Paris was a Belgian born French citizen. Brothers Said and Cherif Kouachi who committed the Charlie Hebdo massacre in January 2015 were both born and raised in Paris. All 5 of the Brussels attackers were citizens of Western European countries. 3 of them were born and raised in Brussels itself. Public opinion has shifted against the influx of Syrian refugees and countries like France and the U.K. are responding to the threat of terrorism by conducting even more air strikes in Syria and Iraq. Little do they realize that they’re barking up the wrong tree.
But radicalization and religious extremism don’t just happen overnight. No human being is born with an inherent nature to commit unspeakable evil. There had to be a catalyst that sparked the flame of radicalization in the hearts of terrorists like Salah Abdeslam.
Going through the sprawling immigrant neighborhoods of European cities, you start to see why so many migrant youth are vulnerable to radicalization. Take Molenbeek for example. This borough in Northwest Brussels is home to more wanted terrorists and terror suspects than any other region in Europe. Molenbeek also has an overall unemployment rate of 30%, far higher than Belgium’s 8.5% national average. Molenbeek’s youth unemployment figures are even higher — up to 40%. The neighborhood is also one of Belgium’s poorest with a persistent poverty problem for the past few decades.
Molenbeek also faces a lack of integration. While Muslims represent 6% of Belgium’s total population, in Molenbeek it’s up to 41%. Molenbeek’s residents are predominantly of Moroccan and Turkish decent. Belgium’s mass immigration policy, combined with a lack of social integration and economic opportunity have created impoverished, crime ridden migrant enclaves like Molenbeek. Such conditions are a perfect breeding ground for terrorist networks to recruit potential Jihadists. It is easier for radical clerics and Imams to sell their message of hate when disgruntled youth have nothing else to lose.
For the migrant youth of Europe who’ve spent their lives growing up in poverty, having been marginalized by the economic system, the rhetoric of terrorist groups like ISIS can sound appealing. Having grown up in racial enclaves, it’s easier to believe the words of radical preachers who stir hatred against the “richer White European infidels”. So when ISIS calls on European Muslims to wage Jihad against the West and join their brothers in Syria and Iraq, many willingly go.
And it’s not just Molenbeek. This phenomenon is also being repeated in poor intercity suburbs across Europe. From Saint Denis, Paris to the suburbs of Birmingham, England, radicalization is taking root in the hearts of disgruntled youth.
While Europe continues to conduct even more air strikes in Iraq and Syria every time an attack happens, it has largely failed to deal with the threat of radicalization on the Homefront. Hundreds of millions are spent on costly military campaigns while entire neighborhoods remain derelict and ignored. Even if Isis were wiped off the face of the map today, it wouldn’t take long before another terrorist group rises to take its place. Until the problem of poverty, unemployment and lack of social mobility can be tackled, terrorist groups will continue to have a field day in recruiting disgruntled youth.
In the United States, the poorest neighborhoods are also plagued with the most crime. I believe the same will be the case for Europe. It is much harder for radicalization to take place when economic conditions are improving. Rather than dropping bombs in Iraq and Syria, European governments should invest in neighborhoods like Molenbeek and Saint Denis. Whether through public projects such as hospitals or schools or private sector investments by European businesses, one of the most effective tools in combating terrorism is through social uplift.
