The Spread of Radicalization is Engineered
Extremism doesn’t emerge by accident. It’s created, funded, and weaponized. And we must eradicate it.
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"Freedom and fear, justice and cruelty, have always been at war, and we know that God is not neutral between them." - President George W. Bush
During my military service with the IDF, I have seen the good and the bad of how the Palestinian Authority educates its children and youth. While many families genuinely want their children to become successful stewards of humanity, hate and radicalization start early, and it’s not new news. Radicalization also happens in other parts of the world, not just in the Middle East.
This week, the world saw once again the face of radicalization. The images of a young Israeli woman—pale, emaciated, terrified—emerging from 16 months of captivity in a Hamas tunnel in the Gaza Strip were horrifying. They served as a brutal reminder of the actual cost of extremism. To be clear, this was not a battlefield casualty nor a collateral damage. This was the deliberate, calculated dehumanization of an innocent person, taken from her home during the October 7th massacre, by an ideology that thrives on suffering.
This isn’t just about one hostage, one terrorist group, or one war. The roots of radicalization stretch far beyond Gaza, beyond the Middle East, beyond any one nation or religion. Extremism is a global disease—one that festers wherever grievance meets indoctrination, wherever power is wielded through fear rather than progress.
Radicalization also doesn’t happen in a vacuum. No child is born a terrorist, and no teenager wakes up one morning and decides to kidnap, torture, and kill in the name of an ideology. Radicalization is engineered and is the result of three deliberate, reinforcing forces:
1/ Ideological Indoctrination: Extremist ideologies rewrite reality for those who embrace them. Whether it’s Islamist terrorism, far-right nationalism, or authoritarian extremism, the playbook is the same: First, they strip away individual identity and replace it with allegiance to a cause greater than the self. Next, they demonize the “other”—convince followers that their enemies are not just wrong but evil, subhuman, and irredeemable. Then, they justify any atrocity by reframing violence as a moral duty.
A radicalized mind is a closed system—impervious to logic and resistant to outside influence. Once the loop is complete, de-radicalization becomes nearly impossible. Read Matthew Levitt's 2007 thoughts on how Hamas radicalizes Palestinian society.
2/ A Propaganda Machine: This is how extremism spreads. Radicalization isn’t just taught—it’s also marketed. Extremist groups operate with the sophistication of a corporate PR campaign, deploying social media algorithms that amplify extremist rhetoric, power echo chambers that reinforce belief and cut followers off from conflicting perspectives, and nurture recruitment networks that prey on the vulnerable - whether it’s disaffected youth in Western cities or impoverished children in war zones.
The result is the emergence of self-sustaining radicalization ecosystems. Extremism doesn’t necessarily require physical training camps or clandestine meetings but is transmitted through TikTok videos, Telegram groups, and YouTube rabbit holes. David Kirkpatrick and Adam Rasgon write extensively about Hamas’ propaganda war.
3/ Political and Economic Fuel: This is why and how radicalization persists. The dirty truth is that radicalization is profitable—for governments, warlords, and power-hungry leaders alike. Authoritarian regimes exploit terrorism to justify mass surveillance and crackdowns on dissent, corrupt politicians fund radical groups as pawns in larger geopolitical games, and Western defense contractors profit off the endless cycle of war.
As long as radicalization serves the interests of influential players and entities, it will continue to spread. For an in-depth analysis of the dynamics around the Israel-Hamas conflict, read "Israel and Hamas Conflict In Brief: Overview, US Policy, and Options."
We need to be serious about ending radicalization and a 21st-century approach to a 21st-century problem. Military solutions alone are not enough. We need to dismantle the pipeline that fuels extremism at its source. Here are a few strategies to consider:
1/ Cut off the financial networks. We must:
Track and seize extremist funding—follow the money across banks, crypto, and illicit trade routes.
Hold state sponsors accountable—no more backdoor support for terror networks.
Shut down the economic incentives that keep extremism profitable.
2/ Weaponize AI against extremism. We should:
Build AI-driven intelligence can detect radicalization patterns before recruits become terrorists.
Develop machine learning models that can disrupt extremist narratives in real-time.
Ensure that governments and tech companies collaborate to create systems for dismantling online extremist networks, similar to how we combat cybercrime.
3/ Deploy counter-ideologies that undermine extremism. Extremism is a belief system, and beliefs can be challenged and replaced. We can:
Flood radical spaces with counternarratives that expose the lies of extremist leaders.
Use ex-radical voices to dismantle recruitment tactics.
Create powerful, aspirational alternatives and offer an ideology of creation.
4/ Build a future that doesn’t breed extremism. Radicalization thrives where people have no hope, including war-torn regions with no economy, failed states with no education, and disenfranchised youth who see no future.
The bottom line is that we can’t just defeat extremists—we also need to destroy the conditions that create them. This includes investing in education and economic opportunities, rebuilding shattered communities, and creating pathways where young people see more value in innovation than martyrdom.
The long-term fight against radicalization is not just military but must include economic, technological, and ideological initiatives.
We cannot be passive witnesses to this horror that is born out of radicalization worldwide. The images of that Israeli woman will fade from the news cycle, just like the videos of ISIS beheadings did, just like the footage of school shootings, and just like every atrocity we claim to be outraged by—until the next one comes along. But radicalization is not fading. It’s only growing.
By treating radicalization as an unfortunate reality rather than an engineered problem, we guarantee watching the next generation of extremists rise even more sophisticated, more decentralized, and more dangerous than the last.
We have the tools to stop radicalization.
We know how to dismantle it.
Now, we need the collective will to do so consistently.
By not acting to solve radicalization, we continue to be witnesses to the spread of extremism and are, therefore, complicit in it.
Thanks for reading,
Yon
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AI assistants were used to help research and edit this essay.