U.S. Embassy Launches Symposium on Countering Violent Extremism Online
U.S. Charge d’Affaires ad interim Ambassador Richard Jones launched on Thursday a three-day symposium on countering violent extremism online, the first of its kind in Lebanon, the U.S. Embassy announced.
The Embassy said in a statement that #HackingExtremism “brings together leaders from the Lebanese government, civil society, the private sector, and academia to assess the threats posed by violent extremism online in Lebanon and develop coordinated, community-driven approaches to promoting an alternate and inclusive vision of hope for a better future.”
The symposium, which is in collaboration with the Social Media Exchange (SMEX), “includes sessions on social media, messaging, Daesh’s (Islamic State group's) propaganda tactics, and the importance of protecting human rights and civil liberties online when developing countermeasures,” said the statement.
“The urgent challenge of violent extremism demands that we all embrace a proactive, positive approach that involves contributions from a wide range of stakeholders in order to undermine the attraction of extremist movements and ideologies that seek to radicalize, recruit, and incite to violence,” Jones stated.
He said this endeavor is important to the U.S. Embassy and to Lebanon because extremist groups such as the IS and al-Qaida-linked al-Nusra Front pose a threat to Lebanon at the tactical and ideological level.
He said the Lebanese army and security forces regularly confront the terrorists along the border with Syria.
“They have done a truly admirable job of preserving Lebanon’s security in the face of these real and direct threats from violent extremists,” the diplomat added.
He described violent extremism as “cancer,” saying “some young people fall victim to the depraved disinformation of the hate mongers.”
“At every level of society – grassroots, local government, and national government – we all have a role, in social media and elsewhere, in defeating Daesh’s malicious propaganda and revealing violent extremist messaging and narratives for what they really are. The howls of monsters,” he said.
The U.S. Embassy is sponsoring “Lifting Up Youth Voices: A Chat about Technology, Countering Violent Extremism, and Free Speech” forum in collaboration with the Lebanese American University (LAU) and SMEX.
The forum will provide an opportunity for young people to join the discussion about countering violent extremism online and in their communities and to suggest potential responses.
G.K.
M.T.
