Islamic extremism, Islamist extremism, or radical Islam, is used in reference to extremist beliefs and behaviors which are associated with the far-right ideology in Islam. These are controversial terms with varying definitions, ranging from academic understandings to the idea that all ideologies other than Islam have failed and are inferior to Islam. These terms can also be used in reference to other sects of Islam that do not share such beliefs. Political definitions of Islamic extremism include the one which is used by the government of the United Kingdom, which understands Islamic extremism as any form of Islam that opposes "democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs". In 2019, the U.S. Institute for Peace released an important report on extremism in fragile states that developed recommendations focused on adopting a shared understanding, operationalize a prevention framework, and rallying the international community.
Islamic extremism should not be equated with Islamic fundamentalism or Islamism, the former is defined as a movement of Muslims who believe that Muslim-majority countries should return to the fundamentals of an Islamic state and the latter movement is defined as a form of political Islam, but some experts consider both Islamic fundamentalism and Islamism to be forms of Islamic extremism. Acts of violence which are committed by Islamic terrorists and jihadists.
The academic definition of radical Islam consists of two parts:
The first being: Islamic thought that states that all ideologies other than Islam, whether associated with the West (capitalism or democracy) or the East (communism or socialism) have failed and have demonstrated their bankruptcy.
The second being: Islamic thought that states that (semi)secular regimes are wrong because of their negligence of Islam.
The UK High Courts have ruled in two cases on Islamic extremism, and provided definition.
This page is automatically generated and may contain information that is not correct, complete, up-to-date, or relevant to your search query. The same applies to every other page on this website. Please make sure to verify the information with EPFL's official sources.
Takfiri (تَكْفِيرِيّ, lit. "excommunicational") is an Arabic and Islamic term denoting a Muslim who excommunicates one of his/her coreligionists, i.e. who accuses another Muslim of being an apostate. Since according to the traditional interpretations of Islamic law (sharīʿa) the punishment for apostasy is the death penalty, and potentially a cause of strife and violence within the Muslim community (Ummah), an ill-founded accusation of takfīr is considered a major forbidden act (haram) in Islamic jurisprudence, with one ḥadīth declaring that one who wrongly declares another Muslim to be an unbeliever is himself an apostate.
Islam is the second largest religion in the United Kingdom, with results from the 2011 Census giving the total population as 2,786,635, or 4.4% of the total UK population, while the 2021 Census results released so far () show a population of 3,868,133 (6.5%) in England and Wales, 3,801,179 in England and 66,950 in Wales. The 2011 census reported 76,737 Muslims in Scotland (1.45%). London has the greatest population of Muslims in the country. The vast majority of Muslims in the United Kingdom adhere to Sunni Islam, while smaller numbers are associated with Shia Islam.
Religious fanaticism, or religious extremism, is a pejorative designation used to indicate uncritical zeal or obsessive enthusiasm that is related to one's own, or one's group's, devotion to a religion – a form of human fanaticism that could otherwise be expressed in one's other involvements and participation, including employment, role, and partisan affinities. Historically, the term was applied in Christian antiquity to denigrate non-Christian religions, and subsequently acquired its current usage with the Age of Enlightenment.