UK de-radicalization referrals for far-right, Islamist extremists now equal

Islamophobic propaganda and messaging by far-right groups are often a major force behind their recruitment. (Shutterstock)
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  • Ex-member of far-right group: 鈥楾he enemy in our minds was Islam, (it) was the Muslim people鈥�
  • In 2019 Britain saw four far-right attacks or plots, one more than number of Islamist incidents

LONDON: For the first time since data has been recorded, there was an equal number of referrals to the UK鈥檚 de-radicalization programs for far-right and Islamist extremists.

In the year leading up to March 2019, out of 5,738 referrals to the government鈥檚 counter-terrorism program Channel, 1,404 (24 percent) were for concerns related to Islamist radicalization and 1,389 (24 percent) related to right-wing radicalization.

Of those right-wingers, 62 percent were youths up to the age of 20, and in the 2017-2018 period, 682 children under the age of 18 were referred for links to the radical right. Children as young as 9 have been referred to Channel for right-wing radicalization.

One counter-extremism group, Exit UK, said 70 percent of the people it has helped leave far-right organizations were recruited online.

Islamophobic propaganda and messaging by far-right groups are often a major force behind their recruitment.

One former member of a far-right group told Sky News: 鈥淭he enemy in our minds was Islam, (it) was the Muslim people, (it) was almost the police as well as the government, and journalists as well.鈥�

The UK鈥檚 MI5 and various counter-extremism organizations have repeatedly cautioned of the growing threat of far-right violence in the UK and across Europe.

In 2019, Britain saw four far-right attacks or plots, one more than the number of Islamist incidents in the same period.