Terrorism: a death industry that is fading away thanks to a strategy seeking the ‎reintegration of former terrorists

Morocco confronted the terrorist threat by adopting a reintegration program ‎named "Mossalaha" in order to protect its youth from the threat of extremism. ‎While this reintegration strategy was welcomed by a number of former terrorists, ‎other extremists took advantage of it as a means of executing their deadly plans.‎

An alleged repentance in order to exploit highly polarized social networks

Morocco’s effective proactive approach to counter terrorism led to the arrest of ‎hundreds of terrorists who have set their sights on social media in order to recruit ‎potential extremists for terrorist purposes. Whereas some of them did really turn ‎the page and sought repentance, others are just pretending to do so, pursuing their ‎extremist activities through internet where they post radical content, such as the ‎experienced terrorist and ex-convict Mohammad Hajib. Currently living in ‎Germany, Mohammad Hajib found a fertile ground for violent extremism. ‎Germany has become an incubator for terrorists and ISIS followers, a situation ‎that went oblivious to its European neighbours. (A French investigative program ‎raised the alarm about the matter)‎

Stubborn Germany: consumed by the fire of terrorism yet taking terrorists under ‎its wings

Germany’s contradictory approach in dealing with terrorism has got many ‎confused. How can a country that has witnessed suicide attacks on its soil provide ‎shelter for fleeing extremists? Besides, German security services have knowingly ‎chosen to ignore intelligence provided by Moroccan intelligence services regarding ‎the Berlin Christmas market attacker Anis Amri, who left 12 people dead and ‎dozens wounded.‎

Jihad through activism…a new form of brainwashing ‎

Practicing jihad in the name of activism is a tactic adopted by many former ‎terrorists who have embraced the concept of "Taqqiya", a form of legal religious ‎dissimulation in which believers deny their faith or even commit blasphemous acts ‎as a deception if they are seriously threatened or at risk of persecution. Thus, by ‎embracing this concept, alleged repentant can recruit as many people as they want ‎through social media. However, some former terrorists such as the researcher ‎Mohammed Abdul-Wahhab Rafiqi genuinely sought to contribute in the fight ‎against terrorism by integrating national institutions. ‎

Statistics that confirm the effectiveness of Morocco’s counter terrorism approach

Thanks to the "Mossalaha" reintegration program, many former terrorist convicts ‎underwent ideological revision in prisons aimed at defusing the jihadi mindset and ‎for a better reintegration into society as independent individuals. However, some ‎of them only pretended to have been de-radicalized and continued to spread their ‎extremist ideology.‎

Practicing "Taqiyya": a blow to the state’s efforts and to the credibility of former ‎extremists

It appears that the state’s helping hand and "Mossalaha "reintegration program was ‎not fruitful with all former terrorist convicts , some of them remained faithful the ‎extremist ideology and chose to disguise their extremism through the practice of ‎the concept of "Taqqiya". According to former terrorists, this discredits them and ‎undermines all of the state’s efforts that chose to extend a helping hand in good ‎faith, unlike some other countries who still deal with former terrorist convicts ‎with suspicion.‎

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