In this research-note we employ the work of Wiktorowicz (2005) who suggests that persons who are knowledgeable of Islam may be more capable of critically evaluating the claims of militant recruiters and ideologues and thus be more resistant to their appeals than those who are not knowledgeable. This gives rise to an interesting research question: does knowledge of Islam reduce support for Islamist militancy? To evaluate this research question, we employ data derived from of nationally representative survey fielded among 16,279 Pakistanis in 2011. Using several survey items, we construct a -knowledge index‖ to measure respondents' basic knowledge of Islam which is our principal independent variable. To operationalize support for militancy we use two survey items which query respondents about their support for two prominent Islamist militant groups based in and from Pakistan: the Afghan Taliban as well the sectarian group, Sipah-e-Sahaba-e-Pakistan (also known as Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat). We use ordinary least squares regression to evaluate the impact of our independent variables upon support for these two groups, controlling for other relevant factors. We find that knowledge of Islam does predict less support for these two groups; however, other variables such as sectarian organization and ethnicity have greater predictive power.
IntroductionThe popular movie Four Lions narrates the efforts of four bungling British Islamist terrorists plotting coordinated suicide bombings in London, as well as the incompetence of the British law enforcement authorities who were trying to identify and apprehend the real culprits to preempt the attack. i At one level, the movie is a tale of two brothers: Omar and Ahmed. Omar is a clever, clean-shaven, cosmopolitan, aspiring martyr (played by Riz Ahmed). Ahmed is his Salafi, non-violent brother, who only wears traditional dress (played by Wasim Zakir). One is struck by the numerous contrasts between the two brothers and their social circles. WhereasOmar and his (exclusively male) associates study the Quran and endeavor to live in accordance with its teachings; neither Ahmed nor his fellow aspiring terrorists seem terribly pious or even knowledgeable about Islam, the faith in whose name they plan a mass casualty attack. WhereasOmar has a loving, respectful relationship with his wife Sofia, who is a nurse and who does not wear niqab or hejab; Ahmed's wife wears the black burqa and face covering popularly associated with Salafi Islam. Despite her ostensible modernity and integration with British society, Sofia fully supports her husband's quest for martyrdom and encourages him when he feels discouraged about the plan's prospects. The interplay between these two brothers and their differing lives comprise a key mechanism by which the film interrogates fundamental-if misguidedquestions that persist across British society and beyond: What does it mean to be a radical or an extremist Muslim? Can a Muslim be radical or fundamentalist, but not violent? How does clothing (...
Bangladesh, one of the world's largest Muslim countries, is generally viewed as a success story with a strong tradition of secular democracy. Unfortunately, this assertion rests on a weak empirical foundation. Since becoming independent from Pakistan in 1971, democracy and secularism have been consistently undermined. Moreover, since 2000 Bangladesh has experienced more than 100 incidents of Islamist terrorism. More recently, the Islamic State and Al-Qaeda Indian Subcontinent have assaulted religious and ethnic minorities as well as secular and liberal activists. While these turns of events are alarming, Islamist militancy in Bangladesh remains understudied. In this article, we address this lacuna by undertaking regression analysis of recent Pew Research Center survey data to exposit the determinants of popular support of Islamist terrorism. With this study, we hope other scholars will be motivated to turn their attention to this increasingly important state.
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