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Islamist violent extremist organisations’ use of corruption narratives

Violent extremism is a complex phenomenon that is shaped by numerous ideological, social, economic, and political factors. Violent extremist organisations attempt to exploit existing grievances to frame their ideology as the solution to complex problems faced by individuals or communities. This propaganda is most effective where it reflects local lived experiences and appears to make sense of personal or societal crises. Corruption can both push and pull individuals and groups towards violent extremist organisations. The abuse of power can generate feelings of anger, a sense of alienation and a loss of empowerment and dignity. By emphasising government corruption as a malady inherent to the political status quo, extremist organisations can position themselves as viable alternatives. This is often accompanied by narratives that portray violent extremist groups as defenders of purity, as a force that fights against an unjust system, as an avenue for political and personal transformation as well as a way out of poverty. Such narratives can attract people who feel politically, economically or socially marginalised, and who are looking for opportunities to overturn perceived injustices, seek empowerment or even take revenge.

20 June 2023
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Islamist violent extremist organisations’ use of corruption narratives

Main points

  • Recruitment by Islamist violent extremist organisations can draw on ideological factors (such as the notion that Islam is a complete and pure political, social and economic system) as well as concrete social, political and/or economic issues.
  • Islamist violent extremism offers a radically different vision of society, which can be attractive to some people who desire a recasting of the socio-political order.
  • Perceived corruption – often understood more broadly as injustice or ungodliness by the populace – can play a significant role in increasing dissatisfaction with existing governance structures.
  • In practice, corruption – in the sense of the abuse of entrusted power for private gain – also fuels many of the forms of misrule and maladministration that leave groups and individuals more susceptible to the revolutionary messages of violent extremist organisations.
  • Violent extremists often tailor their messages to local conditions and individual predicaments to exploit people’s underlying grievances. These material grievances tend to be at least as important as ideological factors.

Cite this publication


Bak, M. (2023) Islamist violent extremist organisations’ use of corruption narratives. Bergen: U4 Anti-Corruption Resource Centre, Chr. Michelsen Institute (U4 Helpdesk Answer 2023:15)

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Mathias Bak

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All views in this text are the author(s)’, and may differ from the U4 partner agencies’ policies.

This work is licenced under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International licence (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

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