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Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses

Building a Global Network for Security

ISSN 2382-6444

The Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses (CTTA) carries articles with in-depth analysis of topical issues on terrorism and counter-terrorism, broadly structured around a common theme. CTTA brings perspectives from counter-terrorism researchers and practitioners with a view to produce policy relevant analysis. Launched in 2009, Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses is the journal of the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research (ICPVTR) of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore. The CTTA has a circulation of more than 11,000 subscribers.

Articles in this Latest Issue

Volume 12, Issue 04 (June 2020): Diffused, Chronic and Evolving Global Threat Landscape

In the face of a dynamically metastasising terrorist threat, the global security landscape is evolving into one that is more diffused, chronic and dispersed, where low-to-medium level individual acts of violence are becoming commonplace. The chaotic, unpredictable ways in which terrorist events unfold, is now enjoined by new actors such as the far-right movement, with the potential to further spread across the globe.

Though the propensity to react violently has increased, the favoured modus operandi remains low-end urban terrorism (stabbings, vehicular ramming and use of home-made explosive devices), mainly due to the inability of like-minded extremist groups to form organisational structures and augment their capabilities for coordinated attacks. However, the very fact that these extremist entities can form virtual communities on social media and share a bond is alarming. With this as a given, the upgrading of violent capabilities is a question of when, not if.

There has been a noticeable explosion of radicalism across the ideological spectrum. Various entities linked to the far-right movement in the West, some anti-establishment groups, as well as supporters and followers of global jihadist movements, namely Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (IS), have actively exploited the uncertainty created by the COVID-19 pandemic, and ongoing violent race protests in the US, to further their respective agendas. In short, it appears the chaos and volatility of current times, is mirrored within the global extremist-radical milieu.

Against this backdrop, the present issue of the Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses (CTTA) features five articles. First, Kumar Ramakrishna examines White Supremacist Terrorism in parts of the West, and the potential security implications for Asia. According to the author, the threat has become increasingly transnational, with growing evidence of White Supremacist networks in the US and parts of Europe strengthening their international linkages. Closer to home, the threat is limited, although violent elements within Asian ultranationalist movements of various persuasions may in future seek to network online and draw tactical inspiration from their counterparts in the West.

Second, Abdul Basit explores the implications of the ongoing peace process in Afghanistan on the South Asian militant landscape. The expected US exit from Afghanistan is creating a triumphant jihadist narrative in South Asia. However, the author is of the view that unlike in the past, when defeat and withdrawal of a major power from Afghanistan fuelled global jihadism, this time around, the absence of a global power might reinvigorate local and regional trends of jihadism in the region, although transnational jihadism would be weakened.

Third, Sudha Ramchandran analyses the rising Hindutva influence which aims to transform India into a Hindu state. The author maintains that the aggressive pursuit of the Hindutva agenda by the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its fraternal organisations is deepening the insecurities of India’s religious minorities, especially Muslims. With their repeated and robust assaults on Indian secularism, Hindutva radicals are not only weakening the idea of India, but also compromising the security of all its people.

The last two articles take a closer look at growing female involvement in Islamist terrorist groups in South and Southeast Asia. In the first of these articles, Unaesah Rahmah reasons that even as more women have taken on active roles as suicide bombers and attackers, in pro-IS terrorist networks around Indonesia, they still abide by the traditional gender roles ascribed by these groups, with men still playing the dominant role. Nevertheless, the landscape is evolving, and more women have demonstrated a desire for greater agency, given the gender-oriented drivers fuelling female jihadism in Indonesia.

The final article by Shafi Md Mostofa highlights female radicalisation in Bangladesh, which is marked by women’s growing participation in violent acts. According to the author, the 2016 Holey Artisan Bakery attack was a turning point in this regard. Since then, women in a departure from their previous roles as nurturers and caretakers of jihadists are acting as suicide bombers, propagandists, recruiters and mentors for would-be female radicals in Bangladesh. The so-called Islamist model of obedience to husband, ideological conviction, Muslim victimhood narratives and crises in life, are identified as the main drivers of female radicalisation in Bangladesh.

In conclusion, we hope for everyone to stay healthy as we surmount the COVID-19 pandemic, from wherever you are reading the CTTA.

Please click HERE to read the full issue.

Subscribing to CTTA

To be added to the CTTA mailing list, please email your full name, organisation and designation, with the subject ‘CTTA Subscription’ to [email protected].

Editorial Team

Advisory Board

  • Dr Jolene Jerard Adjunct Senior Fellow, Deputy Head of International Centre for Political Violence and Research, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
  • Dr Rohan Gunaratna Professor of Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
  • Dr Kumar Ramakrishna Associate Dean (Policy Studies), Head of International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research & Research Adviser to National Security Studies Programme, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
  • Dr John Harrison Associate Editor Journal of Transportation Security
  • Dr Marcin Styszynski, Assistant Professor, Adam Mickiewicz University, Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies
  • Dr Fernando Reinares Director, Program on Global Terrorism, Elcano Royal Institute
    Professor of Security Studies, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Madrid, Spain
  • Dr Stephen Sloan Professor Emeritus, The University of Oklahoma Lawrence J. Chastang, Distinguished Professor of Terrorism Studies, The University of Central Florida
  • Dr Hamoon Khelghat-Doost, Senior Lecturer in Political Science, Science University of Malaysia

Call for Contributions

Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses (CTTA) welcomes contributions from researchers and practitioners in political violence and terrorism, security and other related fields.

Issue Calendar 2020

The Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses (CTTA) series for 2020 welcomes topical, timely and relevant policy-oriented articles that allow readers to gain an in-depth understanding of the overall global and regional threat landscape. This could include strategic counter-terrorism issues, regionally focused articles as well as specialised topics.

Themes of Interest:

  • Rise of right-wing extremist movements in North America, Europe, Australia and other regions.
  • Analysis and policy responses to ethno-nationalist, separatist and non-Islamist extremist/terrorist organisations.
  • Developing areas including cyber terrorism, cyber security, innovative policing techniques and evolving counter-terrorism responses.

CTTA Submission Guidelines/ Editorial Style and Policy

Please email your submissions to [email protected].

Submission deadlines: The CTTA is published quarterly; submissions are accepted each month for consideration.

Preferred file format: MS Word document. Please do not submit in PDF format.

Originality: The author should only submit her or his original work. The author should not submit concurrent manuscripts (or manuscripts essentially describing the same subject matter) to multiple journals. The author must first seek editorial permission, if he or she would like to submit an article which has previously been published elsewhere.

Editors are entitled to request the author to provide the raw data for her or his research for convenience of editorial review.

Manuscript title: The title should be limited to 15 words or less; the title should be a brief phrase describing the contents of the paper.

Abstract: The abstract should summarise the manuscript content in 70-100 words. The abstract should be informative and self-explanatory, and should state the argument of the article and its major conclusions. Standard nomenclature should be used, and if abbreviations are used they must be defined at their first mention.

Word length: We publish articles within three different categories with varied word lengths. This includes, (i) commentaries: between 1,000 to 1,500 words, (ii) regular articles: between 2,000 to 3,000 words, and (iii) in-depth feature articles: between 4,000 to 5,000 words.

Structure: Please divide your article into subtopics with subheadings.

Style: British spelling and language style are used for the CTTA (as with other publications of ICPVTR and RSIS).

References and citations: Chicago Manual of Style (Footnoting system) is used.

If the author has used work, ideas and/or words of others, appropriate citations are required within the text of the article. Author should provide a list of references to indicate all sources that have supported the research at the end of the article.

Author information: Please include complete names and affiliation/ and or experience of author(s) in a few lines at the end of the article; contact email address of author(s) can be included.

The author should give due acknowledgement to all individuals who have made contributions to the research, and those who have contributed significantly to the research should be listed as co-authors. The author should ensure that all co-authors have affirmed the final version of the paper and have agreed on its final publication.

Copyright: The copyright of a published article will remain with the author(s); the author(s) agree to require that the Counter Terrorist Trends and Analysis (CTTA) journal be given credit as the original publisher in any republication of the article authorised by the author(s). Such credit shall include a proper citation to the article’s publication in the CTTA, including the author(s), the journal, the volume and issue numbers, the year of the article’s publication in the journal and the internet address for the issue.

The Editorial Team reserves the right to make changes to the content of submissions for publication and/or reject a submission at its discretion.

Please contact us at [email protected] if you have any queries pertaining to the CTTA submission guidelines or editorial style and policy.

Past Issues

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

Last updated on 10/06/2020