-Three specialized workshops raise students’ awareness related to the dangers of digital extremism
The TRENDS Youth Council emphasized that enhancing awareness through modern knowledge and specialized scientific research is one of the most essential pillars of protecting youth and society from the dangers of extremism and terrorism, particularly in light of the rapid transformations occurring in the digital sphere.
It consisted of three specialized workshops organized by the Council on the sidelines of the TRENDS Fifth Annual Forum on Political Islam. University students attended the workshops, discussing the latest challenges related to the digital space and how it is used to promote extremism.
The first workshop was Terrorism and Extremism in the Time of Artificial Intelligence. It focused on how extremism has become as algorithmic as it is ideological. This is achieved by exploiting recommendation systems and algorithm-generated closed circuits, which are made by algorithms and use generative AI tools to produce deepfakes and disseminate propaganda via chatbots. It makes traditional confrontation mechanisms insufficient.
The second workshop — The Role of Think Tanks in Countering Terrorism — highlighted the importance of think tanks in providing independent perspectives free from political pressures, uncovering extremist groups’ hidden financial and intellectual networks, and formulating practical recommendations for decision-makers. It also reviewed examples of TRENDS’s contributions, including its reports on the economic financing of the Muslim Brotherhood, its historical analyses of the movement’s development as a transnational actor, and the group’s Global Power Index, which serves as a tool for assessing its ideological and economic influence worldwide.
The third workshop was Youth, Extremism, and the Digital Battlefield. It examined in detail how recruitment is no longer limited to face-to-face meetings. Gaming and social media platforms now provide alternative spaces for at-risk youth to develop new forms of belonging and identity. The workshop presented practical examples, such as ISIS’s exploitation of games (e.g., Grand Theft Auto) to produce propaganda videos, and the modification of games such as Minecraft and Roblox to spread hate speech. It also highlighted the dangers of recruiting girls through virtual relationships, recruiting boys through memes and coded humor, and pushing them toward encrypted platforms such as Discord and Telegram, away from public scrutiny.
The workshops allowed participating students to engage in practical and interactive experiences, including analyzing images and videos to determine their authenticity (Deepfake or Real?), discussing research scenarios on how think tanks address issues such as the covert funding of organizations or the online recruitment of youth, and presenting collective proposals to confront these challenges.
Researcher AlAnood Alhosani, Chair of the TRENDS Youth Council, emphasized that organizing these workshops reflects the Council’s commitment to empowering youth and engaging them in formulating realistic solutions to the risks of extremism. She added that knowledge and critical analysis are the most powerful tools available to youth to counter extremist groups’ exploitation and transform them into positive energy that promotes peace, stability, and shapes the future.
