The book launch seminar of “Jemaah Islamiyah, ISIS and Beyond: Tracking the Evolving Challenge of Violent Extremism in Southeast Asia (2001–2025)” was held on 18 July 2025. The book is authored by Professor Kumar Ramakrishna, Professor of National Security Studies, Provost’s Chair in National Security Studies at NTU, Dean of RSIS, and Research Adviser to the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research at RSIS.
Professor Ramakrishna presented five key points from the book. First, violent extremism in the region has evolved significantly since 2001. Second, terrorism is no longer a male-dominated enterprise, with women and youth increasingly playing active roles. Third, there is an emergence of other types of non-Islamist, identity-based extremism, such as the rise of White Supremacist Far Right extremism. Fourth, managing the impact of technologies, such as social media and generative AI, has become more critical today. Fifth and finally, he emphasised the need for a whole-of-society approach to counter extremism—one that involves government agencies engaging with NGOs, think tanks, and grassroots and community leaders.
The book launch seminar featured a panel discussion with Dr Noor Huda Ismail, Visiting Fellow at RSIS, and Dr Mohamed Bin Ali, Senior Fellow in the Studies in Inter-Religious Relations in Plural Societies Programme (SRP) at RSIS. The engaging and thought-provoking discussion was moderated by Professor Paul Hedges, Professor of Interreligious Studies, SRP, Associate Dean (Scholarly Ecosystems) at RSIS, and Life Member of Clare Hall, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom.
Together with Professor Ramakrishna, the distinguished panel critically analysed the major themes of the book, including the mutating role of ideology as a root cause of violent extremism, the weaponisation of everyday tools, as well as the alarming impact of recent technological developments such as deepfakes and drones.
