Al Muhajiroun

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xv

   PDF

2. Researching the Activists: Understanding Methods, Data, and Approaches

   • Douglas Weeks

   Pages 1-39

3. The Vanguards of Radicalism in the UK

   • Douglas Weeks

   Pages 41-66

4. Al Muhajiroun: The Early Days (1996–2004)

   • Douglas Weeks

   Pages 67-101

5. The Ideology of Al Muhajiroun

   • Douglas Weeks

   Pages 103-140

6. The Post Al Muhajiroun Years (2005–2014): Proscription and Other Means of Deterrence

   • Douglas Weeks

   Pages 141-181

7. The Impacts of the Islamic State and Strategies of Control

   • Douglas Weeks

   Pages 183-221

8. Comparing Ideologies: Al Muhajiroun, Al Qaeda, and Islamic State

   • Douglas Weeks

   Pages 223-254

9. Understanding and Managing the Threat

   • Douglas Weeks

   Pages 255-297

10. Conclusion: Summing up the Activists

    • Douglas Weeks

    Pages 299-320

11. Back Matter

    Pages 321-378

    PDF

Grounded in nine years of ethnographic research on the al Muhajiroun/Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jamaah movement (ALM/ASWJ), Douglas Weeks mixes ethnography and traditional research methods to tell the complete story of al Muhajiroun. Beginning with three core events that became a primer for radical Islamic political thought in the UK, Al Muhajiroun, A Case Study in Islamic Activism traces the development of the movement form its incipient beginnings to its current status. Based on his extensive interaction with the group and its leaders, Weeks contextualizes the history, beliefs, methods, and differences between ALM/ASWJ, al Qaeda, and the Islamic State so that the group and the threat it poses is comprehensively understood. 

• Extremism
• Terrorism
• Radicalism
• Ideology
• Counter-terrorism
• Islam
• Islamism
• religion and society

‘A fascinating and thought-provoking book. Based on nine years of ethnographic research and hundreds of interviews, Douglas Weeks sheds compelling fresh light on Al Muhajiroun and its descendants. In doing so, he challenges many of the assumptions routinely made about the threat Al Muhajiroun posed, as well as about our overall understanding of the nature of radicalisation in the UK.’

—Andrew Silke, Professor of Terrorism, Risk, and Resilience, Cranfield University, UK 

‘This book challenges many of the prevailing assumptions about the nature of Islamist movements, and explores them in a detailed manner that hasn't previously been explored at an anthropological level. Douglas Weeks analyses al Muhajiroun’s claims to theological authenticity whilst avoiding clichés. This book questions many assumptions made by government and commentators trying to connect the likes of al-Muhajiroun and its sister groups to terror today. A must read for everyone involved at an academic or professional level.’ 

—Rashad Ali, Resident Senior Fellow, Institute for Strategic Dialogue, UK 

‘Douglas Weeks has written a fascinating and authoritative ethnographic account of the UK-based extremist group, al Muhajiroun.  In this immensely rich case study, Weeks sheds new light on the dynamics and dimensions of radical Islamist activism and warns of the dangers of government responses that fail to properly contextualize and counter homegrown extremism and radicalization.’

—Professor Bruce Hoffman, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA

• School of Criminology, Criminal Justice and Emergency Management, California State University, Long Beach, Long Beach, USA

  Douglas Weeks

Douglas Weeks is a Lecturer at California State University Long Beach. Before entering academia, Dr. Weeks spent 29 years as a firefighter and served as Emergency Services and Counter-terrorism Coordinator from 1996 until his retirement in 2009. He specializes in radicalization, deradicalization, and counterterrorism policy.

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