Countering violent extremism

In a three-day summit on countering violent extremism held in Washington, D.C. this week, President Barack Obama repeatedly argued that ascribing a global security threat to “violent Islamic extremism,” plays into an anti-Muslim narrative exploited by terrorist groups such as the Islamic State. But with the focus of U.S. leadership deflected to domestic politicking over diction, the meeting concluded Thursday without a clear plan of action for reversing the Islamic State’s recruiting momentum, or for dealing with extremism’s root causes: bad governance, economic desperation and disenfranchisement.

White House Counter-Extremism Summit Shows Hearts And Minds Don’t Come Easy