ENGAGING DIVERSE POPULATIONS AND REFUGEE COMMUNITIES TO COUNTER VIOLENT EXTREMISM

KCSS Director, Dr Florian Qehaja has contributed to the ninth annual security conference organized by the U.S. Department of State in cooperation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, NY FBI field office. Panel discussion where Mr. Qehaja contributed was focused on “Engaging Diverse Populations and Refugee Communities to Counter Violent Extremism” and ways to counter violent extremism while effectively assimilating the ongoing wave of refugees.

Since 2015, more than one million people fleeing violence in their home countries risked the treacherous journey to Europe. Experts fear that camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees are fertile recruiting grounds for violent extremism, especially where people find themselves marginalized, disenfranchised and excluded for protracted periods. Finding solutions (whether repatriation, local integration or resettlement elsewhere) represents an urgent humanitarian and security priority for governments, development organizations and aid groups.

This conference gathered sixty judicial, law enforcement and security officials; criminologists; and other professionals who deal with international crime in six Multi-Regional, Regional, and Single-Country Projects from thirty-nine countries visiting the United States under the auspices of the International Visitor Leadership Program.