This book is a comparative study of terrorism and counterterrorism in Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. It explores the history and contemporary developments of terrorism, especially Islamist terrorism, in these two Sunni Muslim-majority countries. In doing so, it analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of governments’ policies, strategies, and models of counterterrorism, including terrorist rehabilitation and reintegration programs. In addition, the book also documents the opinions of Saudis and Indonesians to find societal voices on effective ways of combating violent extremism and discusses Saudi-Indonesian cooperation on counterterrorism, defense, and security issues. The book suggests that although particular Islamic texts, teachings, and discourses might influence radical behaviors and practices of some Muslim individuals and groupings, terrorism is beyond ideological, religious, and doctrinal issues. Therefore, multiple methods and strategies are needed to combat radicalism and create sustainable peace in society. The work will be is beneficial for both academic and non-academic communities, particularly students of conflict, violence, peacebuilding, and religious studies.

What is the relationship between Saudi Arabia and Indonesia? For centuries, Indonesians have travelled to Saudi Arabia and have been deeply involved in education, scholarship and the creation of centres for Islamic learning in the country. Yet the impact of this type of migration has not yet been the focus of scholarly research and little is known about the important intellectual connections that now exist. This book examines Indonesian educational migrants and intellectual travellers in Saudi Arabia including students, researchers, teachers and scholars to provide a unique portrait of the religious and intellectual linkages between the two countries. Based on in-depth interviews and questionnaires, Sumanto Al Qurtuby identifies the “Indonesian legacy” in Saudi Arabia and examines in turn how the host country's influential Islamic scholars have impacted on Indonesian Muslims. The research sheds light on the dynamic history of Saudi Arabian-Indonesian relations and the intellectual impact of Indonesian migrants in Saudi Arabia.

The Proceedings of Batusangkar International Conference VI (BIC VI), that was organized by Graduate Program of IAIN Batusangkar, was held in hybrid platform on 11-12 October 2021 with the main theme " Strengthening Life Harmony in 4.0 Era". The BIC VI conference includes several interesting topics such as Science, Technology Literacy, Engineering, Law, Economy, Education, and Religion. The participants came from various universities and practitioners with a total of 140 papers that were published in a proceedings. It is expected that this proceedings will bring contribution and insight, resulting in new knowledge, inspirations, and collaborations. We are very grateful for their participation. We hope to meet you again in the next edition BIC VII or BICoSecH VII.

The 9/11 attacks revealed that the transnational terrorist threat facing the US and its partners was far more dangerous than most had previously discerned. It was now clear that al-Qaeda intended to, and could threaten the West’s – particularly the US’ – political and military leverage, with the aim of shifting the balance of power from the West to Islam after a violent global confrontation. In that sense, the new terrorist threat is strategic, and it has led to a worldwide mobilisation comparable to that required by a world war. This Paper argues that prevailing in the ‘war’ on terror, much like victory in the Cold War, entails containment, deterrence, outperformance and engagement. Military power is secondary to intelligence, law enforcement, enlightened social policy and diplomacy. Diplomatic engagement with the larger Muslim world is paramount as a means of denying al-Qaeda not merely recruits but the‘clash of civilisations’ it seeks. The US-led intervention in Iraq, though intended to introduce democratic reform in the wider Middle East, has so far antagonised Islam and strengthened Islamist terrorism. This suggests that coercive or aggressively ideological diplomacy is unlikely to win over an Islamic population biased by anti-Western propaganda. Successful Western diplomacy will have to be discreet, nuanced and incremental.

With the rise of religiously motivated violence and terrorism, governments around the world need to develop their religious and ideological capabilities in parallel with strengthening their law enforcement, military and intelligence capabilities. Terrorist Rehabilitation: A New Frontier in Counter-terrorism aims to provide an understanding of the importance of the approach and strategy of terrorist rehabilitation in countering this threat.Comprising of nine chapters, this book provides case study assessments of terrorist rehabilitation practices set against the backdrop of their unique operational and geopolitical milieu in countries such as Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. This will help the reader to form a foundational understanding of the concept of terrorist rehabilitation by combining the insights, successes and experience of senior government officials and counter-terrorism experts. In addition, the contributors provide discussions on religious concepts that have been manipulated by violent Islamists as a background to understanding religiously or ideologically motivated terrorism and the avenues open for countering it.

"Long regarded as one of the most gifted analysts of Muslim culture and politics in Indonesia, Sumanto Al Qurtuby in this new book extends his gaze to analyze the causes and consequences of religious extremism in Saudi Arabia and Indonesia, as well as the efforts undertaken by government and societal organizations in both countries to counter such currents. The result is a rare achievement in contemporary scholarship: a book that simultaneously demonstrates a profound understanding of Islam and society in these two important countries, while also speaking with clarity and insight to policy analysts and security experts." -Robert Hefner, Professor of Anthropology and Global Affairs, Pardee School of Global Affairs, Boston University, Boston, USA This book is a comparative study of terrorism and counterterrorism in Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. It explores the history and contemporary developments of terrorism, especially Islamist terrorism, in these two Sunni Muslim-majority countries. In doing so, it analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of governments' policies, strategies, and models of counterterrorism, including terrorist rehabilitation and reintegration programs. In addition, the book also documents the opinions of Saudis and Indonesians to find societal voices on effective ways of combating violent extremism and discusses Saudi-Indonesian cooperation on counterterrorism, defense, and security issues. The book suggests that although particular Islamic texts, teachings, and discourses might influence radical behaviors and practices of some Muslim individuals and groupings, terrorism is beyond ideological, religious, and doctrinal issues. Therefore, multiple methods and strategies are needed to combat radicalism and create sustainable peace in society. The work will be is beneficial for both academic and non-academic communities, particularly students of conflict, violence, peacebuilding, and religious studies. Sumanto Al Qurtuby is an associate professor of Cultural Anthropology in the Department of Global Studies and an affiliate of the IRC for Finance & Digital Economy, KFUPM Business School, King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals. He holds a Ph.D. from Boston University and was a former fellow at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at University of Notre Dame and the Middle East Institute of National University of Singapore. He is the author of Religious Violence and Conciliation in Indonesia (2016) and Saudi Arabia and Indonesian Networks: Migration, Education and Islam (2019).

This is the seventh report in a series on the foreign policy aspects of the war against terrorism. During the course of these inquiries the Committee has covered subjects such as the fall of the Taliban and efforts to rebuild Afghanistan, shifts in the organisation of Al Qaeda, the war and subsequent situation in Iraq, multilateral efforts to tackle terrorist financing and global work to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. This report returns to a number of these themes and discusses the situations in Israel and the Palestinian Territories, Iraq and Iran. In addition it looks at the UK's relations with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Not only are both countries allies in the war against terrorism, they also have experience in understanding and then thwarting the recruitment of extremists.

Focusing on the phenomenon of terrorism in the post-9/11 era, Terrorism and Counterterrorism investigates this form of political violence in an international and American context and in light of new and historical trends.In this comprehensive and highly readable text, Brigitte Nacos, a renowned expert in the field, clearly defines terrorism's diverse causes, actors, and strategies, outlines anti- and counter-terrorist responses, and highlights terrorism's relationship with the media and the public. Terrorism and Counterterrorism introduces students to the field's main debates and helps them critically assess our understanding of and our strategies for this complex and enduring issue.