TY - JOUR

T1 - “I Don’t Justify Anything Regarding My Son:”

T2 - Danish Foreign Fighters’ Initial Attraction and Reaffirmed Commitment to Islamic State and Al Qaeda - Testimonies from Five Relatives

AU - Jørgensen, Kathrine Elmose

PY - 2023

Y1 - 2023

N2 - Relatives are a potentially rich source of insight regarding foreign fighters’ pathways into Islamist fundamentalism. However, a small fraction of the literature that explores Salafi-jihadist trajectories examines the testimonies of extremists’ families. Based on qualitative interviews with relatives of five Danish, non-returned male foreign fighters, this article explores how and why—according to their relatives—the men were initially attracted and reaffirmed their commitment to violent jihadism. Findings reveal tensions within the data between ascribing responsibility to the men and mitigating their responsibility. Yet, the article suggests that the relatives’ testimonies should not be perceived simply as using “neutralization techniques” nor as exculpatory narratives, since there is a tendency for the relatives to acknowledge and even accept the men’s deviance.

AB - Relatives are a potentially rich source of insight regarding foreign fighters’ pathways into Islamist fundamentalism. However, a small fraction of the literature that explores Salafi-jihadist trajectories examines the testimonies of extremists’ families. Based on qualitative interviews with relatives of five Danish, non-returned male foreign fighters, this article explores how and why—according to their relatives—the men were initially attracted and reaffirmed their commitment to violent jihadism. Findings reveal tensions within the data between ascribing responsibility to the men and mitigating their responsibility. Yet, the article suggests that the relatives’ testimonies should not be perceived simply as using “neutralization techniques” nor as exculpatory narratives, since there is a tendency for the relatives to acknowledge and even accept the men’s deviance.

KW - Faculty of Social Sciences

KW - Salafi-jihadist trajectories

KW - relatives

KW - qualitative interviews

KW - non-returned foreign fighters

KW - punctured narratives

U2 - 10.1080/09546553.2022.2045964

DO - 10.1080/09546553.2022.2045964

M3 - Journal article

VL - 35

SP - 1422

EP - 1439

JO - Terrorism and Political Violence

JF - Terrorism and Political Violence

SN - 0954-6553

IS - 6

ER -