Regional Responses to Radicalization in Afghanistan

The document analyzes the rise of the Vilayat-e Khorasan front of Daesh in Afghanistan and the resulting anxiety among neighboring states. It argues that regional governments are hindered by a 'mutual blame game,' treating Daesh as an external political entity rather than a social phenomenon with domestic drivers. The author identifies key drivers of radicalization, including poverty, unemployment, lack of education, and political grievances, particularly in Central Asia. The paper distinguishes between short-term counter-measures (military force, border controls, intelligence) and long-term preventive measures (education, inter-faith dialogue, and addressing socio-economic grievances). It concludes that a multilateral approach, supported by regional organizations like the SCO and CICA, is essential to combat this transnational threat.

• The establishment of the Vilayat-e Khorasan front of Daesh in Afghanistan is viewed as a greater threat than the Afghan Taliban because Daesh seeks to conquer territory beyond current national borders, potentially reaching marginalized populations across the region.
• Regional states are currently unable to cooperate effectively because their national security narratives frame Daesh as an external phenomenon, leading to a cycle of mutual blame rather than a recognition of domestic root causes.
• Recruitment for Daesh in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and China is driven by a combination of ideological zeal, poverty, unemployment, lack of functional Islamic education, and psychological trauma.
• In Central Asia, radicalization is further fueled by region-specific factors such as political oppression, the discrimination experienced by labor migrants in Russia, and an identity vacuum following the end of socialism.
• A common vulnerability across all neighboring countries is unbalanced development and the widening gap between urban and rural areas, which leaves rural populations susceptible to recruitment.
• Current responses are heavily weighted toward counter-measures—such as military force, border controls, and internet monitoring—which the author argues can be counter-productive or insufficient if they do not address root causes.
• Effective long-term prevention requires targeting grievances through improved secular and religious education, job creation, and inter-faith and intra-faith dialogue to counter extremist narratives.
• Multilateral organizations such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA), and the UN can facilitate the harmonization of legislation and the exchange of best practices in prevention.

APA

Tadjbakhsh, S. (2016). Regional Responses to Radicalization in Afghanistan. Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/957fd112-b7cc-47a9-9356-ec24a1269238/Tadjbakhsh S 2016 Regional Responses to Radicalization in Afghanistan PRIO PAPER.pdf?inline=true

Chicago

Tadjbakhsh, Shahrbanou. Regional Responses to Radicalization in Afghanistan. Peace Research Institute Oslo, 2016. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/957fd112-b7cc-47a9-9356-ec24a1269238/Tadjbakhsh S 2016 Regional Responses to Radicalization in Afghanistan PRIO PAPER.pdf?inline=true.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Tadjbakhsh |first1=Shahrbanou |title=Regional Responses to Radicalization in Afghanistan |publisher=Peace Research Institute Oslo |date=2016 |url=https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/957fd112-b7cc-47a9-9356-ec24a1269238/Tadjbakhsh S 2016 Regional Responses to Radicalization in Afghanistan PRIO PAPER.pdf?inline=true |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{tadjbakhsh2016regional, author = {Tadjbakhsh, Shahrbanou}, title = {{Regional Responses to Radicalization in Afghanistan}}, institution = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, year = {2016}, url = {https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/957fd112-b7cc-47a9-9356-ec24a1269238/Tadjbakhsh S 2016 Regional Responses to Radicalization in Afghanistan PRIO PAPER.pdf?inline=true}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }