For 20 years, ISD has delivered field-leading threat detection, analysis and real-world strategies to combat terrorism, extremism and authoritarianism - in all their ideological forms.

Islamist Extremism

Islamist Extremism presents a politicised supremacist vision of Islam that is antithetical to democracy and human rights. Since the Islamic State (IS) and Al Qaeda’s high water mark a decade ago, Islamist Extremist movements are in a state of flux, spreading across a broad range of violent and political groups globally. We track and respond to these evolving threats using a range of tools and approaches, as well as trying to reach an increasingly young cohort of digital supporters.”

September 17, 2026

25 years after 9/11, al-Qaeda remains perennially online: The group’s digital ecosystem in 2026

Twenty-five years after 9/11, al-Qaeda remains online, adapting its decentralized ecosystem across platforms, messaging services and AI.

Islamist Extremism, Tech Accountability and Safety, Threat Analysis and Prevention

September 8, 2026

Generation ‘Slop Jihad:’ The decentralized ‘media jihad’ gets sloppy

Islamist Extremism, Terrorism and Extremism

July 29, 2026

Five lessons from the Islamist extremist attack on Berlin Pride

Anti-LGBTQ+, Islamist Extremism

March 11, 2026

Islamic State group activity in the US in 2025

Islamist Extremism, Terrorism and Extremism, Threat Analysis and Prevention

March 10, 2026

The 2025 Annual Review of Plots and Attacks Across the US

Hybrid Extremism and Nihilistic Violence, Islamist Extremism, Terrorism and Extremism, Threat Analysis and Prevention

February 26, 2026

Coordinating Through Chaos: The State of the Islamic State Online in 2026

Islamist Extremism, Terrorism and Extremism

February 26, 2026

As platforms pull back moderation, Islamic State contents grows in reach

Islamist Extremism

January 17, 2026

Morocco’s Religious Diplomacy: Soft Power, Sovereignty and the Politics of Faith

Islamist Extremism

December 23, 2025

Bondi Beach: The hallmarks of an Islamic State attack 

Antisemitism, Islamist Extremism, Threat Analysis and Prevention

Further Reading

November 28, 2024

A resurgent and diversifying threat: Islamist extremist violence in Germany in the wake of October 7

Analysing the rise in Islamist extremist attacks targeting Germany since Hamas' October 7 attack on Israel.

Islamist Extremism, Threat Analysis and Prevention

November 28, 2024

A spectrum of threats: Islamist extremism online in Germany post-October 7

Examining the risks presented to Germany by the contemporary online landscape of Islamist extremism.

Islamist Extremism, Terrorism and Extremism

September 13, 2024

From message boards to TikTok: al-Qaeda’s two decades of internet exploitation

For over two decades al-Qaeda has had a thriving online presence, ISD's Moustada Ayad explains why this long-term problem doesn't need to be one.

Islamist Extremism, Tech Accountability and Safety, Threat Analysis and Prevention

July 18, 2024

The ‘original sounds’ of terrorist leaders: A TikTok feature enables terrorist content to flourish

ISD found that speeches by IS and al-Qaeda leaders are easily found on TikTok through simple searches, even after removal, due to TikTok’s ‘original sound’ feature.

Islamist Extremism, Tech Accountability and Safety, Threat Analysis and Prevention

June 18, 2024

Pro-Islamic State outlet using CNN and Al Jazeera branding to boost reach

Executive Director for Africa, the Middle East and Asia, Moustafa Ayad, spoke to WIRED about ISD’s investigation on a pro-Islamic State (IS) network.

Islamist Extremism

June 18, 2024

‘CNN’, the Caliphate News Network: IS support groups hiding behind faux media giant social accounts

IS support groups have long created content using media outlet assets, but the creation of fake social media accounts to spread the faux-branded content is a new tactic, leveraging previous moderation workarounds and state influence strategies to proliferate terrorist content online.

Islamist Extremism, Tech Accountability and Safety

March 19, 2024

“Don’t you want to go on vacation?”: Hawking ‘hijrah’ to the African affiliates of the Islamic State

ISD analyses the Facebook activity of 10 Islamic State alternative news outlets, their promotion of hijrah (immigration) to Africa and the welcomed efforts to sell the continent to a base accustomed to supporting the group's actions in Syria and Iraq.

Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference, Islamist Extremism

March 8, 2024

Appraising the Islamist extremist landscape after 7/10

Since October 7, there has been growing speculation about the evolving terrorism threat landscape. In this Dispatch, ISD reviews what we know and do not yet know about the changing UK terrorist threat.

Islamist Extremism

January 23, 2024

The UK government bans Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir

ISD’s Rashad Ali talked to Tortoise Media about the UK government’s decision to designate Islamist group Hizb-ut Tahrir as a terrorist organisation.

Islamist Extremism, Tech Legislation and Regulation, Terrorism and Extremism

January 19, 2024

Hizb ut-Tahrir

This article explains Hizb ut-Tahrir's activities and ideologies and its recent designation as a terrorist organization in the UK.

Islamist Extremism, Terrorism and Extremism

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