Third report on Online Jihadist Propaganda published

The third edition of Europol’s annual report on Online Jihadist Propaganda provides a comprehensive analysis of the major trends and developments in online propaganda of the most prominent jihadist organisations for the year 2020.

Focusing on the ISIS and al-Qaeda as well as their offshoots, the report addresses the trajectories of these groups, and how they have responded to shifting dynamics and attempted to overcome setbacks. Both these jihadist terrorist groups faced major blows, and had to adapt to shifting realities to survive and stay relevant. The risk of online jihadist propaganda being translated into offline violence remains high, as propaganda from both groups continues to call for lone actor attacks by individuals who have no physical connections to either group.

According to the report, ISIS displays increasing insurgent activity in its traditional heartlands and continuous global reach under its new leadership. The group is focused on attempting a resurgence in Iraq and expanding its international presence by further empowering its global network of affiliates.

However, a year on from ISIS’s military defeat, the group’s media production capabilities remain limited, marred by the loss of infrastructure and personnel. As a result, official IS propaganda continued to dwindle in 2020.

Over the course of 2020, al-Qaeda has weathered a series of major blows and lost some significant senior leaders. The group continues to capitalise on current events to advance its ideological leanings, which are presented as ‘less extreme’ in comparison with ISIS.